Never stand up in a canoe. It’s one of the golden rules of canoeing, right? The explosive growth of stand up paddling (SUP) has many canoeists thinking that this myth couldn’t be further from the truth, as single- bladers from across North America are discovering that canoes are a perfect—and often overlooked—craft for SUP.
SUP is not just a surfing sport. It’s especially popular among flatwater enthusiasts from weekend warriors to fitness racers. SUP strokes involve the whole body, making it a great core workout, while also building balance by working smaller muscles in the feet and legs. “I was amazed the first time I stood up and paddled my canoe with a SUP paddle,” says Bruce Bergstrom, owner of Sawyer Paddles & Oars. “The ease, power, length of stroke and stability one gains by standing is remarkable.”
Standing lets you see both deeper into the water and further downstream. The strokes for stand up canoeing are essentially the same as for solo canoeing—Js, pries, draws and cross strokes all can be done standing, and with a far greater range of motion and power than when sitting or kneeling.
STAND UP CANOEING IS NOTHING NEW
Top open canoeist Mark Scriver takes a SUP paddle on trips and paddles half the time standing up. “On big, wide and sometimes shallow rivers where you’re looking for the best channel, it’s easier to use a SUP paddle and remain standing than to stand up, look, sit down and paddle.”
In 2009, founder of Stride SUP, Luke Hopkins, and his brother Ty competed against 48 other canoes in a three-mile race down Virginia’s New River. Luke and Ty tandem paddled standing up, negotiating class II–III rapids and winning the race…by a long shot! Even Luke was surprised: “I was shocked by the performance and power using a long paddle. Our strokes were eight feet long and had so much power behind them.”
Standing up in a canoe is actually nothing new…ever heard of canoe poling? Anglers and hunters have long been standing up to pole and paddle through southern bayous. When it comes to canoe fishing, Guillaume Chassé of Esquif Canoes thinks standing up is the only way to go, “Stand up canoeing is the best way for an angler to cast his line, and it’s easier to haul in your catch.”
As the sport of SUP on boards continues to gain popularity worldwide, stand up canoeing has nowhere to go but, well…UP! The biggest hurdle is getting people to try it. As Clay Feeter, publisher of Stand Up Journal, says, “Standing up and flexing your legs and back becomes so easy and understandable once the newcomer gives it a try. But you don’t get it until you try it. Getting people to feel it is the next step.”
Jon “Shaggy” McLaughlin paddled 148 miles of the Northern Forest Canoe Trail across the Adirondacks from Old Forge to Plattsburgh, New York. He paddled the entire route standing up in his canoe.
This article first appeared in the Summer 2010 issue of Canoeroots Magazine. For more great content, subscribe to Canoeroots’ print and digital editions here.
