I did some stand-up paddling yesterday in my old race C1 (Wenonah
Advantage). I went for maybe 3 miles.

I made my own 6'-6" paddle out of 2 old kevlar shaft paddles combined
with a plug of carbon shaft.

It was fun and I guess kinda fast. I was paddling quite powerfully.
Really, at my top effort. It's really liberating to stand up, I find.
Same with poling.

But, dang, that paddle bent a lot. And it's quite heavy. It made me
want a carbon version, and maybe 6'-8" long. I'm 6 feet tall.

The stroke-rate ends up being very slow. I guess it's about twice as
long as a usual stroke, but slower than half as fast. So in the end,
considering the HUGE amount of flex and paddle weight---it seems like
sit-down paddling was a LOT faster.

I wonder if a carbon paddle could fix all that?

Also, it seemed to really wear away at my upper body. It seemed to use
up my muscles faster than sit-down paddling. ...But without making me
go faster!

I stand behind my seat with my dominant foot forward. It feels stable
and dyno.

Has anyone seen all the new websites about the surfers doing stand-up?
I was into stand-up for years before those websites popped up! Ha!
Here's a couple:

http://www.standuppaddlesurf.net/

http://www.paddlesurf.net/

--JP
outyourbackdoor.com