Sweetwater Kayak Symposium so easy, anyone can do it

As my friend the distressed mullet(distressedmullett.com) says, be a man, learn to stand. That was Brody and I's goal this weekend, to show kayakers that they need to stop being lazy and stand up. We went to the Sweetwater Kayak Symposium based out Sweet Water Kayaks, not far from Derby lane on Gandy in St. Pete. The symposium brought kayak advocates from around the world. I met some amazing people who have paddled the Arctic circle for 7 weeks or this guy Jake who went down the Mississippi along the gulf coast and somehow went through the Great Lakes in a big round trip showing that we truly are all connected by water. Anyways, Brody spoke at the event and we were to hold demos to show these influential kayakers what SUP was all about. Saturday was a bust with rain, wind, and cold, but Sunday proved to be a nice day. Some of the Kayakers were skeptical of us standing folks and thought we were punks by perception, but i actually heard multiple guys say they knew what their next toy would be. Get up stand up!

Kayak group This symposium was cool with multiple classes around the bay area to choose from taught by legendary paddlers.


Raceboard All work and no play makes Garrett a dull boy so while Brody was talking to everyone i tried out all the different YOLO boards. This thing is sweet. I understand why guys can rock out 10 minute miles, they ride this thing. Crazy fast made out of carbon fiber.


explorer This 14 foot board is made for touring and is what the YOLO guys took through the everglades. If you are going touring or want a stable board this thing is a Cadillac in the water.


So easy a gimp can do it Not my words, his. He claimed to be SUP's new great ad "So easy a gimp can do it" What an amazing guy, was a competitive surfer for a # of years all with a titanium leg.


Winning them over One by one the kayakers slowly came over to hear Brody's pitch.


YAK Yolo's very stable explorer/ rental/ fishing board. Super durable and stable. This is great for beginners or those that want go on an adventure with lots of bungees and room to move around on.


Tahoe Rubicon One of the kayakers actually was a Tahoe SUP rep. They make great flat water boards, I was impressed with the glide, but it was pretty tippy. it has a dry storage compartment, but apparently they are liars as water easily crept in.


timid yaker This guy was a great example of a timid person who didn't want to get wet that was up and loving it in about 5 minutes.


courage to stand


Dominating 5 minutes later and he was up and loving it.


Really cool experience to watch people who were not interested in what we were selling slowly fall in love with SUP. Thanks for letting me tag along Brody!