We will be bringing our handcrafted wooden paddleboards to the Norfolk Paddle Co demo weekend in Norwich on 11th and 12th May 2019.  Book a slot with RockSUPs to try out our kit and have a chat about how our boards are made and what we could do for you!

Looking forward to seeing you there…

Cold water is defined as anything less than 15ºC – so pretty much year round in UK waters.  Unlike hypothermia, cold water shock can kill very quickly – in less than a minute in most cases.

What happens?

According to the RNLI, the sudden cooling of the skin by cold water causes an involuntary gasp for breath. Breathing rates can change uncontrollably, sometimes increasing as much as tenfold. These responses contribute to a feeling of panic, increasing the chance of inhaling water directly into the lungs.

Cold water shock causes the blood vessels in the skin to close, which increases the resistance of blood flow. Heart rate is also increased. As a result the heart has to work harder and your blood pressure goes up. Cold water shock can therefore also cause heart attacks, even in the relatively young and healthy.

This can all happen very quickly: it only takes half a pint of sea water to enter the lungs for a fully grown man to start drowning. You could die if you don’t get medical care immediately.

What to do

The RNLI has 3 simple points to remember if you find yourself in cold water:

• Take a minute. The initial effects of cold water pass in less than a minute so don’t try to swim straight away.
• Relax and float on your back to catch your breath. Try to get hold of something that will help you float.
• Keep calm then call for help or swim for safety if you’re able.

Of course, it is better to mitigate the risk of cold water shock with some planning before heading near the water.

Check conditions before you start – the water temperature can be significantly different from the air temperature.  For coastal locations, magicseaweed.com gives the current sea temperature along with lot of other data.  For inland waterways, it can be harder to find so try searching google for the specific location or local clubs.

Once you know the temperature of the water, you can dress appropriately – wetsuits come in a multitude of thicknesses for different temperatures and there are even SUP specific drysuits on the market now.  Consider wearing a floatation device (e.g. buoyancy aid) as this will keep you afloat during the initial minutes and significantly increase your chances of survival.

Final thoughts and further reading

This all sounds rather scary but doesn’t need to prevent you enjoying a lovely paddle at any time of year.  I was shocked that as a long term water user I knew very little about it.  I probably still take too many risks and should wear a wetsuit more often but I do now think about cold water shock before launching.

For more information about cold water shock, have a look at the links below:

https://rnli.org/safety/know-the-risks/cold-water-shock
https://rnli.org/magazine/magazine-featured-list/2016/august/cold-water-shock-a-bolt-from-the-blue
https://www.rya.org.uk/newsevents/e-newsletters/up-to-speed/Pages/the-cold-shocking-truthabout-cold-water-shock-.aspx
https://firstaidforlife.org.uk/cold-water-shock/

I’ve seen a number of posts to SUPing groups from people who are wondering about taking their dog paddling with them.  It is definitely something which can be done (there are even videos of dogs surfing – Big wave Bono for an extreme example!) and just needs a little patience and encouragement.  I would recommend getting a doggy lifejacket as it not only ensures they float but also provides a very useful handle for lifting them back out of the water if they happen to fall/jump in.

Barney has been scared of the water since we encouraged him a little too far into the waves when he was young.  Getting him onto the board was a slow process but he would be very miffed if we went without him now.  The first step was getting him to stand on a board on land.  We never forced him on, but encouraged him with treats to step onto it on his own.  We made it a good place for him (mostly through food treats).  Once he was happy jumping on in the dry, we tried with the board in water that was shallow enough to still be beached and repeated the same process.  Next was in deep water secured to the side, then a very short paddle on my knees, finally progressing to longer and longer paddles.

Barney is still scared of the water and won’t go in which means he never tries to jump off the board but he loves being on the water with us.  If you happen to be in Bristol and see us on the water, we will be using the hashtag #barneysups on instagram and facebook for any photos…

📷 Photos by Elizabeth White.

Last weekend Bex and I popped up to Norfolk to surprise a friend for his 40th birthday.  Maybe ‘popped’ isn’t quite the right word; my truck isn’t the fastest vehicle so I think “tootled in a rush” would be better.

After six hours of driving we turned down a small lane and nearly missed the carpark being distracted by sparkly balloons floating above a stone bridge announcing the big 4-0.  Another couple of friends had arrived before us and put them up as a surprise for the birthday boy. As we hurriedly unloaded and set off up river the wind got a little frisky and popped the zero but four probably still worked for the group’s maturity level.

The birthday boy had been dropped by his wife with lunch, his SUP, £10, and a slightly suspicious feeling.  After a while sitting on his own wondering what was happening, a group of the surprise guests scooped him up and they all took to the river in canoes and SUPs.  When we met them coming the other way a short while later it was a relief to turn around and go with the wind.

The Bure is a beautiful river with gently moving strands of weed under the surface, alternating banks of fields and trees, and a steam train running past.  We launched from the carpark on Old Cromer Rd in Little Hautbois, which has a slipway into the water, and paddled downstream to the Rising Sun pub in Coltishall, a trip of about 3 hours.  There is one short portage, as you come to Coltishall, round a weir.

My friend is lucky enough to have a house backing onto the water so we landed and cracked out the beers!  No party is complete without silly games and the suggestion was SUP polo at this one. With three to a team, a lightweight football, and goal lines at each edge of the garden; the idea was to get the ball across the other team’s goal line as we didn’t have nets.  Games were started with each team on their own goal line and an umpire throwing the ball into the centre from the bank. As a safety precaution, paddles were not allowed to be lifted above waist height, and could not be used to knock other players off their paddleboards.  Bumping into another player was fine though – this is definitely a game for inflatables!!

Unsurprisingly, it all got a little competitive and very wet with players falling in all over the place.  A proficient step back turn was definitely an advantage, as was a stable but turnable board. We found three a side best in the space we had but I can imagine, with more room, it would be great with four or five to a team.  Searching the internet, inflatable fields including the goals can be bought at 20x25m size for three a side and there are places that run sup polo sessions.

I hope you have enjoyed this post and it has given you some ideas for paddle locations and fun games.  Please use the comments to share any games you play on your SUPs and happy paddling!

Welcome to the first RockSUPs blog post!  I hope this will be the start of a series of useful and/or interesting posts so please comment to let me know what you thought and anything else you would like to hear about.

Last week Tristan at Adventure SUP kindly invited me to bring along a demo touring board for his club members to have a go on.  Adventure SUP run classes and club sessions from the Avon Valley Adventure and Wildlife Park on the beautiful river Avon between Bristol and Bath.  It is a stunning location and a lovely easy paddle with kingfishers, herons, and dragonflies on a tree-lined stretch of lazy river.

I joined in on a Wednesday night club session which had a great turn-out and the promise of a BBQ when we finished paddling.  The river up to the weir at Swineford is slow and dappled with leafy shade. It’s about a 30min paddle each way at a leisurely pace.  At the weir, the club members introduced me to ‘snake’ – a game where each paddler lies on the front of their board holding the back of the board in front.  The person at the head can then tow the entire snake along which follows where they go in big ‘S’ shapes. We got up to a 21 person snake before breaking apart for the paddle home!  The snake game also has a serious use; it allows a person to tow one or more people to safety if they get into trouble (for example: if they break a paddle, get injured, or are too tired to make it back).

I was very pleased with the response to the wooden touring board at its first demo session.  Everyone agreed it was beautiful and the people who tried it were very complimentary about the glide and, after getting used to it, stability.

All in all a great evening (the BBQ was delicious) and I can thoroughly recommend getting in touch with Adventure SUP if you are in the area and are looking for lessons or a club to paddle with – they are a very friendly bunch and cover all abilities.  www.adventure-sup.co.uk