How Important Are Clubs?

Do you belong to a Club and if so, what do you think their impact has been on your paddling, progression and more importantly, friendships? 

My first ever paddle was with the Blue Chip SUPer Club at Hurst Park (ed now at Thames Sailing Club). I was intrigued by paddleboarding, and that first lesson taught by Brian Johncey, with those initial tentative steps, has taken me a very long way with the sport. 

From paddling with the Club, to racing, sports photography, writing and lately, media coverage and live commentary on SUP racing. 

More importantly though, the Club has remained at the heart of my paddling, and I have paddled with Blue Chip almost every week since 2012! Those friends remain a great part of my SUP life, and I’m very grateful for the other members. 

I taught SUP intro lessons for many years with Blue Chip, and I remember telling the paddlers one important thing once they had finished their lesson; join our club, indeed join any club, but this is where you will learn so much more from that initial lesson. You may have learnt how to stand, self-rescue and do the basic paddle strokes, but Club paddling teaches you so much more.  

Turning up at the Club with your new board, having to manage your own kit and pump your board up is quite a steep learning curve – you feel pretty new and vulnerable – but with others who have been there, done that, they are ready with a helping hand when everything feels just a bit weird! 

Our weekly adventure paddles would then teach you so much more, turning up somewhere unfamiliar, with others you may not know, feeling like you might be the slowest and again, feeling completely out of your comfort zone.  

Regular club members are always on hand to help you with kit, routes, confidence and paddle with you at the back if that is where you are. We all remember being that paddler; we’ve all been there, and no-one gets left behind! 

Adventure paddling also teaches you about getting on your board in what might feel like a difficult area, slippery mud, tree routes to deal with, a high portage, or maybe having to launch yourself superman style because there is just no other way. Just getting to the water may be a challenge, a vast park to cross, steps to navigate where your kit may feel incredibly heavy – you may never have carried your board that far before!  

Every week you will learn something, a new route, a new skill you thought you never had and you will become stronger not just on the water, but off – stronger when you warmup by pumping that board to 18 psi – as a newcomer that skill may take a little while and we’ve also all been there when you take that hose off, and all the air comes whooshing out – we all laugh because again, it is something we have all done, at least once. 

This is where friendships are formed; you will not get on with everyone, we are all different but that is the joy of a club, you can find your mate or mates, those you just gel with without understanding why. Breakaway groups are formed, not a clique, just those you resonate and bond with. 

Trips away with the club, be they longer or more difficult paddles or even travelling abroad; you may have to earn your stripes as a newcomer with skills to be learned and may not initially get invited – that is just for you and the groups’ safety. The joy when you’ve progressed enough to join that big adventure is not to be underestimated.  

If your mind also wanders to SUP racing, white water SUP, or SUP Polo, what better way than to learn with a club; there will be a member who likes the same discipline as you and regardless of whether you think you are interested in one of those skills, you may well be tempted to join in when you see everyone else having so much fun. 

Another wonderful thing is the socialising; often at a pub or cafe stop along the way. This is where you learn more about the other club members, their profession, their other skills or hobbies, and what they are like as a person – their values. Again, all very bonding and essential for your well-being as a club paddler – knowing others well enough to be able to call on them for help and advice and sometimes those friendships run very deep. 

For a very long time, I was the only girl at Blue Chip, but the other club members treated me as one of their own, always thoughtful towards me but knowing I could hold my own! We now have a healthy number of women who have joined the club, which gives it a better balance – breakaway groups are travelling abroad to experience SUP endurance racing, SUP Polo has been a huge draw for many paddlers, young/old, male/female, and that sport in particular, really lets you get stuck in. Equally, you become protective over the other Polo players, as you know what a fun but tough sport it is.  

You can see I am a big fan of the SUP Club. I know many around the UK and abroad and love seeing the members old and new who experience that same level of support and camaraderie that I have felt over the years. 

If you are not a member of a club, perhaps this will inspire you to investigate your location and find your tribe. Good luck and happy paddling!

Here are some of the lovely Clubs around the UK: 

Ed – Paddle UK have a website that list of all their affiliated clubs. Many Canoe Clubs now have SUP members as at the end of the day we are all Paddlers – https://gopaddling.info/clubs/

They also have a useful blog and service to find your local club – https://gopaddling.info/blog/local-paddling-services/find-paddling-clubs/

To view the most up-to-date directory of BSUPA accredited clubs and schools in your specific area, use the BSUPA Club Finder.

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