Kaholo Kits are ready now.   Full-sized plans for scratch-builders will be available in November.

Why are Stand-Up Paddleboards all the rage? Because they're ridiculously fun--like walking on water.  We made a lot of believers out of folks who tried out our new Kaholo SUP kit in Newport Beach, Sacramento, and Port Townsend during our West Coast tour. 

It's taken 18 months and more prototypes than we care to count to refine the Kaholo SUP.  Working with surfing and paddleboard guru Larry Froley of Gray Whale Trading in California, we've created a board with that rare quality of being fast enough to race but stable enough for first-timers.  Tracking is great and a fine bow with kayak-derived shaping lifts the Kaholo up and over waves.  The tail shape and twin fins facilitate surfing once your skills build up to that.

Designer John C. Harris counted himself among the skeptics before trying one out in California in 2006.  "It's the most amazing sensation---as close to walking on water as you're going to get.  But a little faster.  You achieve kayak-like speeds, but your visibility is vastly improved because your head is so much further off the water.  You can see more, see further, and in clear water you have a much better view of sea life than you do in a kayak."

It's also a major workout---every muscle in your body is at work as you ride over waves and work the long-handled SUP paddle.  If taking a walk is healthy, taking a walk on water is healthy AND the view is better.  Harris says he can envision shifting one of his hobbies---wandering marinas on foot looking at boats---to a Kaholo.  Nature lover?  Paddle quietly through the shallows.

Construction is similar to the popular and highly refined San O' 14 and 16 paddleboards (which are too narrow for stand-up paddling).  The board is okoume marine plywood, stitched-and-glued together and sheathed in fiberglass, with a grid of bulkheads and stiffeners inside to make the board stiff and light.

Kits are ready now.  Plans for scratch-builders and a full range of accessories including pads and SUP paddles are coming soon.