Stand up paddleboarding is believed to have been around for over 3000 years in one capacity or another.
In fact there are even biblical references to things similar to paddleboards.
Now although its true that paddleboards have been around for thousands of years it is fairly recent that we started using them for enjoyment on the water instead of transportation of goods or other similar services
The story of how modern paddleboarding came to be is actually a really interesting story.
As to who is credited with making paddleboarding mainstream is still out for debate, but we will touch on this later.
The person credited for the invention of modern day paddleboarding is Duke Kahanamoku who along with Ah Choy Brothers taught tourists how to surf the swells of Waikiki. During their lessons Duke Kahanamoku, John Ah Choy and Bobby Ah Choy would stand up on their boards to get a better view over their students and look out for incoming set waves.
This is the first trace we have of modern day SUP riding.
The invention of standing up on the boards and using a canoe paddle to propel themselves along was particularly useful for Bobby Ah Choy, who after an accident was left unable to kneel and found swimming very difficult.
Being able to stand up and paddle meant that he could continue to enjoy the ocean and accompany his friend and brother with lessons.
So who would have thought something watersports related started in Hawaii.
Are we surprised?
But if the modern day paddleboarding started in Hawaii how exactly did it go overseas and become such a popular activity across the globe?
Who Was The First Non-Hawaiin To Paddleboard
One of the first non-hawaiin natives to really get involved with paddleboarding was John Zapotocky.
John Zapatocky moved to Hawaii from Pennsylvania in the 1940’s, after dipping his toe in the water he saw Duke, John & Bobby standing up on their boards paddling round and when asked what he reaction was in an interview in 2010 he simply recalled thinking “my god, that’s what I should be doing”
John approached Duke and said I want to do that
Duke simply replied “get yourself a paddle and do it then”
So John did exactly that.
John is often credited as being the father of modern paddleboarding as he certainly was a figurehead in the sport.
Whilst he didn’t invent it nor did he take it round the world, he did show everyone that saw him just how much fun it can be.
Fortunately lot’s of people did see him as he surfed the same waves for over 60 years before eventually passing at the grand old age of 95 in 2013.
How Did It Go Across The Globe?
Apart from the founding fathers such as they were stand up paddleboarding rather stagnated between the years of 1940 all the way up to the early 2000’s.
It was only when Vietnam war veteran Rick Thomas started leading the charge in the states did it start to flourish into the activity that we all know and love today.
Rick Thomas was extremely passionate towards stand up paddleboarding and all it had to offer bringing it over from Hawaii to San Diego in 2004.
His upbeat attitude and passion lead to the formation of a great SUP community which no doubt led to the sport being noticed, picked up and enhanced by many other figure heads.
As paddleboarding started growing in the states it caught the eye of the most famous waterman on the planet, Laird Hamilton.
Laird Hamilton is known to push the limits of just about every watersport that has ever been invented.
He is mostly known for his big wave charging and the invention of tow in surfing along side friend and fellow waterman Dave Kalama.
Paddleboarding caught the eye of Laird Hamilton and Laird being, well, Laird wanted to push the boundaries of what was thought to be possible on a SUP.
His first major stunt was to stand up paddleboard the heaviest wave on the planet.
A wave that is feared by most surfers let alone paddleboarders.
This wave being Teahupoo.
Fast forward a few more years he carries out another stunt again making headlines
In 2014 Hurricane Marie, which is tied as the seventh-most intense Pacific hurricane on record, brought some very large, powerful swells to the shores of southern California.
As Hurricane Marie bought in swells that were triple overhead Laird thought he would put on a show and demonstrate just what paddleboards could do.
During the Hurricane swells and what was dubbed as big Wednesday Laird paddled into a monster wave, not impressed with just riding big waves he decided to spice up the day by shooting the pier.
A stunt tha caught the eyes of many and made as many headlines.
Unlike the time period between the 1940’s – 2000’s paddleboarding had spread like wildfire between 2004-present day.
In fact within just a few years of paddleboarding hitting the states there were organised races, touring events and other paddleboarding competitions.
Once the sport had got a firm foothold in the states it wasn’t long before paddleboarding went global.
Today you will find paddle boarding just about everywhere you go with places like Germany, Australia, Japan and the UK all holding multiple paddleboarding events all year.
Final Say
Well there you have it a brief overview of the history of modern day Stand Up Paddleboarding and how it went from a helpful surf school method to a globally recognised activity.
The SUP community is a fantastic one to be part of and regardless of how you started, where you came from and what sort of paddleboarding you like to do.
I am happy you’re part of this wonderful community.
Look forward to seeing you out on the water.