For years, paddleboarding consisted of kneeling on a surfboard with a paddle in hand.
But as an old sport gains new popularity, dozens of athletes can be seen standing on the surface of English Bay, False Creek, and Indian Arm whenever the weather allows it.
Karly Cox, the manager of Deep Cove Canoe and Kayak Centre, has had a front-row seat to the rise of stand-up paddleboarding, also sometimes called SUP.
As recently as 2009, the rental shop stocked only four SUP boards, and even that seemed like it may have been excessive, according to Cox.
"These things are pretty big, they're hard to store, and they're fragile and expensive, so what are we doing?" she recalls thinking at the time.
Today, the store stocks 40 boards, and on some days that still isn't enough.
"They're booked out every sunny day," she says. "It's a trend that's not going to go away."
Stand-up paddleboarding has turned into a phenomenon on the water with fitness serving as a major selling point.
"Your whole body is engaged and all of your body is being used to manoeuvre the stand-up paddleboard," says Cox.
Because the water is an unstable surface, a paddleboarder is constantly using core muscles to maintain balance.
"It's a full body workout," says Cox, explaining that core strength and balance are generally more important than upper-body strength.
Deep Cove Canoe and Kayak Centre also offers courses where boarders do pushups and squats on the board, and another where they do yoga.
"It's just another way of using your whole body and having it engaged while doing yoga on the board," she says.
The centre holds two-hour introductory sessions for newcomers to the sport several times a week.
"You're introduced to the board itself, to the equipment, and the basic paddling strokes, manoeuvres, and just really eliminating any bad habits," says Cox.
One of the appeals of paddleboarding is that the sport doesn't require much gear. "All you need is your stand-up paddleboard, your leash, and your PFD (personal flotation device) and you're good to go," says Cox.
However, she recommends taking a look at the weather forecast before heading onto the water.
"If you're a beginner you're going to hate the sport if you get out on a windy day on a stand-up paddleboard in Kitsilano because it's just going to blow you around," she says. "The weather is huge. It really does play a part because (with) stand-up paddleboarding you're sitting on the direct surface of the water and your body acts as a sail, so if the wind picks up you need to be prepared for that, you need to have the physical strength to be able to take yourself to a safe place," she says.
Asked about the best places to paddleboard, Cox recommends Indian Arm.
"When the harsh winds come out through the Howe Sound and up through the Strait, we are the last people to get it, so we have pretty calm waters," she says.
Karly Cox, rentals manager with Deep Cove Canoe & Kayak, takes to the water for some stand-up paddling. Scan the photo to watch a video of her talking about the type of clothing paddlers wear.
