SUP for fun and then wine flights!

I hope you all have been able to get out on the water this spring. It's been a slow start here in the midwest but I'm trying to make up for it. I found a new friend who offers a variety of paddle board activities through the week and on the weekend. Mindy @ Positive Vibes SUP & Fit is not only a certified yoga instructor but also a certified paddle board instructor. She's probably the only person in this area that offers year round paddle board activities with yoga in the pool. But now that's it's warm outside who want's to be indoors!

Amongst other activities, Mindy has a great group outing call "SUP & SIP". (Full calendar information at that link as well.) You not only get to try paddle boarding and meet new friends but then you'll get a wine flight at a the KC Wine CO winery afterwards. The paddle boarding portion is an about an hour and is at the beautiful Lake Olathe. This lake is secluded enough to get you away from highways and houses yet only a few minutes from K7 off of 135th St, just west of Olathe KS.

While out with the Positive Vibes group, I was able to try out an inflatable paddle board for the first time and was pleased with the experience. I have one more inflatable to try out, but then I plan on writing up a full review of inflatable paddle boards versus a rigid. Subscribe to this blog or follow our FB page for all the latest!

Paddle Board and Kayak races!

There's always a few people who enjoy taking a leisurely activity like kayaking on the lake or paddle boarding with friends on a warm Saturday and turning it into a competition. These race events usually happen to the left and right extreme of the USA, but the midwest if finally catching on. Even Iowa has a river race. Check out the Great Iowa River Race in you're near Iowa City in June.

The MR340 has been around a few years and is gaining in popularity as an endurance event. The only midwest alternative to a river race is on a lake. Expect more of these events to pop up in the coming years. Once there's a template in place, several groups will begin hosting races of their own.

The Shawnee Mission Lake Hump Day 5K group currently holds show and go fun races every Wednesday evening beginning March 14th. They have also begun to plan the very first organized race event for kayaks and paddle boards. Expect the race to be on August 25th, start times will be around 9am. Follow their FaceBook page for details and registration information.

Don't forget to check out the Paddle Board KC website and FaceBook page!

River Fins

There's three major forms of paddle boarding. Surf and open water with waves, flat water lakes and various types of rivers to explore. Paddling on rivers can include rapids, rocks, sandbars, logs and numerous hidden hazards. Here in the mid-west we have a number of small rivers to explore along with larger rivers like the Missouri and Mississippi. Smaller or faster flowing rivers will have more hidden hazards to cause a loss of balance and also damage your fin. 

The best way to avoid hitting your fin on an underwater object is to not have a fin. But that won't be a very efficient way to travel. The next best option is to minimize the depth of your fin. There's several points to consider when trying to determine how small of a fin you can tolerate, but that's another topic for another cold winter day.

The latest option I've found is a retractable fin that retracts when in contact with an underwater object and springs back in place on it's own. This sounds like a very reasonable option but I would like to try it before giving a full recommendation. You'll maintain a fin deep in the water that provides lateral torque resistance without the extra bulk of a traditional dolphin shaped fin. With the extra mass near the fin box I would guess there to be increased drag, but a small price to pay for a deep fin that won't knock you off your board when you glide over that underwater log.

Check out Frog Fish Fins for more info about the features and benefits of this design!