Sailfish as stand-up paddleboard

[bhm]

Anybody have any experience with this? I'm about to try it for the first time (probably tomorrow), with my new-to-me 1962 Mark 2 Super Sailfish.

I've never done SUP before. I was just surprised to realize how fast they are, when recently I was kayak-paddling my Minifish in to shore and was passed by an SUP going much faster than I was. So I ordered a stand-up paddle on-line and googled what the stroke is supposed to look like, but otherwise this will be a new experiment for me.

I see that the SUP boards have a keel at the tail, so I guess I should mount my Sailfish rudder and tie it pointing forward. First question: daggerboard also, or not? Of course I'll bring it and try it both ways, but I'm curious if anyone already has opinions or experience on this.

Second question: with the much longer hull than a standard SUP, is there any advantage in a modified stroke where you use your legs more, like e.g. to walk forward with the paddle down, like poling a skiff?

I normally sail with outriggers and will have these mounted on the boat for this first attempt, so just staying upright and not falling off should not be an issue.

 

[hospadar]

This guy does some upright paddling in his sunfish in his series about sailing around isle royale in a sunfish (5 part series, great watch if you're into that sort of thing):

Doesn't seem like he has any big difficulty staying upright even without outriggers (but he's in a sunfish, not a sailfish, so probably different?)

He uses a tiller tamer but shows in another video just using a bungee cord wrapped around the tiller and clipped over the rub rails to keep the tiller in position if you're using your rudder as a skeg. I'd think that the centerboard would decrease tracking ability and add drag, but try it either way?

 

[bhm]

This guy does some upright paddling in his sunfish in his series about sailing around isle royale in a sunfish (5 part series, great watch if you're into that sort of thing):

Doesn't seem like he has any big difficulty staying upright even without outriggers (but he's in a sunfish, not a sailfish, so probably different?)

He uses a tiller tamer but shows in another video just using a bungee cord wrapped around the tiller and clipped over the rub rails to keep the tiller in position if you're using your rudder as a skeg. I'd think that the centerboard would decrease tracking ability and add drag, but try it either way?

Thanks, I'll check it out.

I kayak paddle all of my boats a lot, and find that having a board down definitely helps for that because it keeps the boat going straight, instead of pivoting from side to side with each stroke like a kayak does. But with SUP's you may not change sides so much, so this may not matter.

 

[hospadar]

I kayak paddle all of my boats a lot, and find that having a board down definitely helps for that because it keeps the boat going straight, instead of pivoting from side to side with each stroke like a kayak does. But with SUP's you may not change sides so much, so this may not matter.

I learn something new every day!

Not really related, I've wondered for a while how effective it would be to put an oarlock socket on the stern and scull with a single oar for auxiliary propulsion vs kayak/SUP paddling.

 

[bhm]

I learn something new every day!

Not really related, I've wondered for a while how effective it would be to put an oarlock socket on the stern and scull with a single oar for auxiliary propulsion vs kayak/SUP paddling.

Sculling seems like black magic to me so I never tried to learn it. I wouldn't want anything standing up to be my sole paddling option, just because of the extra wind resistance when paddling into a headwind, which I had to do a lot because I learned to sail in leeboard boats that didn't point very well. I did put a full rowing rig on my sailing canoe and that was super-powered, but going backwards was irritating enough that I usually preferred the kayak paddle unless I was in a big hurry. I have a sliding seat that I took from an old rowing machine and I may try turning my Sailfish into a single scull with that, but if I do that I will also mount big double truck-type rear-view mirrors on it. But first I have to find out how well it kayak-paddles and SUP-paddles, in a wider range of wind and water conditions than I have yet tried.

I looked at that video, and the stand-up paddling he does from 8:00 to 8:30 with his kayak paddle looks pretty different from the approved SUP stroke, in both stance and paddle grip, because he's standing in the cockpit in the middle of the boat, and has to grab the paddle in the middle instead of at the top. What he's doing looks the same as a canoe J-stroke, which uses only arm muscles, whereas the SUP advocates claim to get more power than a kayak or canoe because they are somehow using core muscles in the torso as well. But I think this may require standing closer to the side of the boat, as I hope to be able to do on the flat-top Sailfish, and moving the blade straight back through the water for a longer distance on each pull. This is the kind of thing I was hoping that somebody who has already tried it on a Sailfish might know about.

 

[L&VW]

I'd think that the centerboard would decrease tracking ability and add drag, but try it either way?

When I used a kayak paddle to get my Sunfish into a very strong wind, I found the daggerboard to be essential. (Slow, but kept the Sunfish going straight. Calm conditions may be different).

 

[signal charlie]

We have with it and SUPs as well. The Sailfish makes an outstanding SUP.
-With the extra weight it is very stable, and will carry more that any SUP.
-It is easier to move around on a Sailfish vs a tender SUP. Standing one spot too long you feet may go to sleep. But we didn't walk around to much, poling only works in shallow water with a pole long enough to touch bottom.
-The Sailfish has a small full length keel, so it will track well. No need for the rudder, in fact it could hinder turning. With the caveat that a stiff breeze will send you sideways on any boat unless you have more keel.
-The key with a SUP paddle is buying a good one that is the right length. On land, raise your arm up straight, put the paddle next to you, and your arm should be fully extended as you grip the SUP handle. A short paddle is more of a problem than one that is too long.
- The Sailfish has a slender and long water line, and with its low, flat deck, it SUPs better than a Sunfish. The Sunfish is better double paddling (kayak paddle) sitting down vs sitting Indian style on the Sailfish. But you can add a short beach chair to the Sailfish, tied to the rails, and have fun.

We still have our Sailfish and sold our SUP.

 

[bhm]

View attachment 51207

We have with it and SUPs as well. The Sailfish makes an outstanding SUP.
-With the extra weight it is very stable, and will carry more that any SUP.
-It is easier to move around on a Sailfish vs a tender SUP. Standing one spot too long you feet may go to sleep. But we didn't walk around to much, poling only works in shallow water with a pole long enough to touch bottom.
-The Sailfish has a small full length keel, so it will track well. No need for the rudder, in fact it could hinder turning. With the caveat that a stiff breeze will send you sideways on any boat unless you have more keel.
-The key with a SUP paddle is buying a good one that is the right length. On land, raise your arm up straight, put the paddle next to you, and your arm should be fully extended as you grip the SUP handle. A short paddle is more of a problem than one that is too long.
- The Sailfish has a slender and long water line, and with its low, flat deck, it SUPs better than a Sunfish. The Sunfish is better double paddling (kayak paddle) sitting down vs sitting Indian style on the Sailfish. But you can add a short beach chair to the Sailfish, tied to the rails, and have fun.

We still have our Sailfish and sold our SUP.

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Excellent information and advice, and timely too, as I am just about to go out and try this for the first time, on a small flat lake where I try new boats and gear before taking them out on big wavy Cayuga Lake. Especially, it is good to see that you can SUP with the mast up and sail down on the deck, since I want to try a new sailing configuration on this same outing (wide bench seat with crosswise footbrace, i.e. as if the Sailfish rails were rotated 90 degrees).

Also good to know that I don't need the rudder down, and I see your point about how it could hinder turning. But I would think that having the board down would not hinder turning if you are standing right over it (i.e. pivoting around it like a post stuck into the water), so probably I'll try that.

 

[bhm]

View attachment 51207

We have with it and SUPs as well. The Sailfish makes an outstanding SUP.
-With the extra weight it is very stable, and will carry more that any SUP.
-It is easier to move around on a Sailfish vs a tender SUP. Standing one spot too long you feet may go to sleep. But we didn't walk around to much, poling only works in shallow water with a pole long enough to touch bottom.
-The Sailfish has a small full length keel, so it will track well. No need for the rudder, in fact it could hinder turning. With the caveat that a stiff breeze will send you sideways on any boat unless you have more keel.
-The key with a SUP paddle is buying a good one that is the right length. On land, raise your arm up straight, put the paddle next to you, and your arm should be fully extended as you grip the SUP handle. A short paddle is more of a problem than one that is too long.
- The Sailfish has a slender and long water line, and with its low, flat deck, it SUPs better than a Sunfish. The Sunfish is better double paddling (kayak paddle) sitting down vs sitting Indian style on the Sailfish. But you can add a short beach chair to the Sailfish, tied to the rails, and have fun.

We still have our Sailfish and sold our SUP.

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Just got back. The sailing was pretty good so I only tried the SUP briefly, on my way back in after I dropped the sail. But I think it was enough to be pretty sure that for me on this boat, my 10-foot kayak paddle is way better (with a seat, as in your picture here). My max SUP speed was 1.4 mph and the average was probably a lot less, while with kayak paddling on this or my Minifish I average better than 2 mph on flat water like this. I think the SUP'er who zoomed past me must just have been a lot younger and stronger than I am, or was sprinting for shore. But I did find that with the daggerboard down I definitely needed the rudder down and tied square as well, to keep going straight -- at least in its kicked-up position which is where it already was as I was coming in. But I doubt if I will ever be doing SUP again, so it doesn't much matter now.