The future of stand up paddle racing with Jim Terrell

If you're into competitive Stand Up Paddle racing, you've probably heard of a guy named Jim Terrel. He's the dude from Quickblades, and he really knows a thing or two about board design. 

In an article with Sup Racer this week, he talks about the future of the sport, or more precisely where he believes the board designers will go if left to their own ideas about what a board should be with no regulation. Enter the new 4m class of board. Width limited, length limited, weight limited and certain design features are even limited. That way all competitors are on an even playing field and the sport won't become a test of balance instead of strength and endurance. 

"We’re going to see race boards that are impossible to paddle for all but the most elite, well-balanced paddlers." Says Jim. "We’ll lose the accessibility that made this sport so popular in the first place. And we’ll also lose our association with surfing altogether."

The introduction of class rules are definitely necessary in the sport to prevent things getting crazy. Take this super narrow board in the video below for instance. Almost too difficult to paddle for Jim, let along a mere mortal like yourself. Watch closely and you'll see him frequently interrupting his stroke to balance. Could you see yourself having fun on one in the future? Or do you think there should be a width restriction on stand up paddle boards to prevent things like this being the norm? Have your say in the forums. 

Check out the video below, and read the full article here.