Darwin's long shadow or Mother Nature's unseen hand in shaping the SUP board and its pilots?

Several million years ago, after the earth cooled enough to support the carbon-hydrogen oxygen ecosystem we now enjoy, evolution, as Charles Darwin would later name it, began its wandering and unpredictable journey. Along the way some truly innovative species emerged to dominate the landscape. Many fell prey to an environment unanticipated by their ancestors. Dinosaurs and pterodactyls didn't make the cut. Our ancestors did. Even as recently as ten millennia ago, sturdy creatures like woolly mammoths and saber-toothed tigers existed but still failed to survive as species. So, can we expect SUP to be just another short chapter in the book of water sports fads? The answer, dear reader, is no and lies in the truly unique design of our - the pilot's - extremities: hands, arms, feet and legs, and the engine that powers them.

Let's start with the engine: lungs, heart, blood, senses (eyes, ears, etc), memory and control system (brain). Most, but not all, of its design features were shaped years ago by the need to avoid the tigers and bring down the mammoths, difficult tasks since we were never as big or as quick as the tiger, or as strong as the mammoth. But our brain (the ones mounted in skilled hunters) had the capacity to learn from successes and failures, develop tactics of position and numbers, and craft strategies to save energy for a relentless pursuit. Once the tribe selected dinner, its (the dinner's) hours were numbered. Next the legs and feet, which began as fins on fish, but evolved into knees, heels and toes to gain high speed on land. These proved useful for many tasks: escaping (the tiger) or overtaking (the woolly mammoth). Originally, and mostly to this day, they come in sets of four with the front pair also tasked for maneuver and the rear pair for added power. Then after several millennia, the primates (chimps, apes, etc) emerged and found new uses for the front legs - now called arms, hands and fingers - tasks like grooming companions and peeling bananas, that required precision. But they still retained their strength for their original purpose of escape and chase. So let's see how our pre-historic developed human fits its emerging role as a Stand Up Paddler.

First, it is standing and maintaining its balance on the wobbly water's surface for easy and quick movement - fore, aft and sideways. Second, the strength in both its arms and legs add together for power to the paddle. Third, its wrists and hands subtly adjust the direction and thrust of the paddle's blade. Fourth and perhaps most important, the mind integrates the eyes, ears, cardio-vascular and muscular sensors into a complex multi-variable spatial solution that also gives a profound sense of individual pleasure.

All in all, SUP seems to be remarkably well suited to human biomechanics as explained by Darwinian evolution. Or was it the reverse? Did human biomechanics somehow anticipate the eventual development of polyester foam, fiberglass, carbon fibre and the invention of SUP a few hundred-thousand years earlier? Maybe.

Jim Drake

SUP Development

Once again, the pace of development at Starboard SUP has been relentless. Throughout the year we have strived to refine and evolve the world's most comprehensive range, driven by our watchwords: "innovation" and "quality". Svein Rasmussen's vision remains undimmed. He's always looking beyond the parameters of "the box", seeing gaps in the market and plugging them with boards such as the Avanti and the Fisherman.

Best-selling models like the 10'5" have been re-worked to ensure all boards in the range perform at their best. And while controversial, pushing the boundaries with their length, the Impossible and the Rush have proven the naysayers wrong and shown they're a valid entity. I'm really excited with the evolution of the Pro range in thesmaller sizes. Although already proven performers with the sensational results of Dave Muir and Tama Audibert in Tahiti, I can say categorically that the newer models really boast some beautiful shapes that make it extremely easy to rip.

There's so much work behind the scenes at Starboard to make sure the final product is just right. Whether "just right" is the ultimate high-end performance product with the introduction of Brushed Carbon technology, or simply still being able to buy a board with Starboard's unmatched design pedigree at the right price. But ultimately, once again it's been a unique privilege to be part of Starboard's development. Just as it's been a lot of fun to be immersed in SUP's evolution and Starboard's pioneering part in it.

Product Management

I was an early SUP adopter after joining a demo at Lake Taco in 2007. Afterwards, my wife and I purchased the first generation 11'2" Blend and our passion for SUP was born. Our first boards opened up a new way to experience the world of water.

As avid kite-surfers, we spend most weekends at Hua Hin beach on the Gulf of Thailand. Thailand is not the world's windiest spot and often the wind gods don't co-operate with our weekend schedule. SUP has allowed us to get out on the water no matter what the conditions. On calm days we can explore the Thai coastline enjoying a good workout, or just getting out and experiencing nature. If the wind picks up a little, we rig a windsurf sail on the SUP and head out for some non-planing windsurf fun. The SUP's glide also enables us to surf the small swell that occasionally rolls through.

When the opportunity to work with Svein Rasmussen and the Starboard SUP team arose, I grabbed the chance to become part of the group which produces a product that has added so much enjoyment to my life. I have been impressed with Starboard's integrity and commitment to producing quality products while driving forward with new innovations. I look forward to the next year to see what new innovations the team can come up with in this fast-moving sport.

585 Westlake street Encinitas, California, the address to Ding King Surfboard Repair, which has been a fixture in North County since 1976. Just a mile from the 'A' frame peaks of D street, it sits on what has always been the surfboard hill, back in the original building next to Bahne Skateboards.

Brian Szymanski, one of the most respected paddleboard shapers moved his tools out of his mother's backyard and in to 'The Hill' when he was only 18 years old. He has since then worked with the leaders in the industry for more than 20 years. This has led him to refine production techniques that result in quality above the norm. A high performance short board and big wave surfer turned paddleboard shaper and racer, Brian enjoys the challenges of designing paddleboards for all conditions. With two "Catalina Classic" stock division victories and multiple first place finishes racing his own designs, Brian's shapes are proven winners. In the past four years Brian has made an impact on the paddleboard industry by pushing the expectations of the stock class paddleboards in speed, stability, comfort and quality of construction.

The first SUP board was shaped for EJ (Ernst Johnson) who patiently asked Brian for help. SUP caught Brian attention and he developed a passion of his own for this new sport. EJ, Brandi Baksic and Matt Freidman are the key players in the Starboard/Szymanski R&D team. "We are a group of paddlers who's soul goal is to make test and race fast boards, to think outside the norm and push the boundaries of what is acceptable. We race/ we train/ we adventure paddle. We look for new challenges and design boards to conquer them"