Word: supping
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...SUP," Parrott said...
...lady to the hardcore guys," says Brewer, and become the new favorite sport of celebrities - Julia Roberts recently bought a board at Brewer's shop, joining the paddling ranks of Kate Hudson, Jennifer Aniston, Matthew McConaughey and Lance Armstrong, among others. It's already spawned new manufacturing: the SUP boards are specially designed, longer and wider than traditional boards. Meanwhile, multiple SUP magazines are now being published, races and wave-riding contests are popping up every month, and, as with any new-wave trend, a whole slew of entrepreneurs are trying to cash in, selling everything from boards and paddles...
...while SUP enthusiasts have became a daily dot on the horizon of many a coastal California city, it's the market for lakes and rivers that has everyone really excited, says Oahu native and former carpenter Blane Chambers, 45, whose company Paddle Surf Hawaii was one of the world's first major makers and distributors of paddleboards. "The flat-water market is just growing everyday," says Chambers in his Hawaiian drawl, explaining that his sales rep in Minnesota is "so excited" after doing the rounds at kayak shops in that lake-filled state. "It's crazy how fast this thing...
...SUP neophyte who did manage to get his hands on a new board is Mike Zapata, 34, the director of sales at a Santa Barbara music technology company, who lives three blocks from the beach. "The problem with surfing is that it's so inconsistent, and I don't have a lot of time," he says. "I needed something that I could count on more." So he bought a paddleboard, and now fits the workout into his daily routine three times a week. "It's been awesome. I really enjoy it," says Zapata, who's lost a couple pounds...
Politics aside, the foreseeable future looks pretty bright for those in front of the SUP wave. Says Chambers, "When I started the company, it was pretty obvious that it had the potential to be bigger than windsurfing. Then I thought, 'This is going to be as big as surfing.' And now I think it's going to be bigger than windsurfing, kitesurfing, surfing - everything put together - because it can be done anywhere...