Stand-up paddleboards (SUP) are more common today than they've ever been, and they do come with rules.
It's an activity whereby the operator navigates standing on a surfboard and uses a paddle. Stand-up paddleboarding evolved out of surfing and has become a means of navigation on water bodies across Canada, and has generated great interest in North Bay and the surrounding area.
There are rigid plastic and inflatable models.
See HOW TO CHOOSE A STAND UP PADDLEBOARD
As a relatively new type of small vessel, stand-up paddleboards are not specifically referenced in the regulations and are therefore treated the same as other human-powered pleasure craft (sit-on-top kayaks, canoes), with the same safety equipment carriage requirements, according to an OPP news release.
"When used for navigation, stand-up paddleboards must be equipped with:
- an approved personal flotation device or lifejacket,
- 15 metres of a buoyant heaving line,
- a sound-signalling device (whistle, horn),
- navigation lights (if the vessel is operated between sunset and sunrise),
- and a magnetic compass when operated beyond sight of land.
Non-navigation activities are not subject to the mandatory carriage of safety equipment (surfing, stand-up paddle board yoga).
In practice, the operation of stand-up a paddleboard is similar to the operation of sit-on-top kayaks and other sealed-hull vessels.
Currently, an exception is provided under the regulations, stating that if every person on board a paddleboat, a water-cycle or sealed-hull, sit-on-top kayak is wearing a personal flotation device or lifejacket of an appropriate size, the paddleboat, water-cycle or kayak is required to carry on board only a sound-signalling device and, if the paddleboat, water-cycle or kayak is operated after sunset or before sunrise or in periods of restricted visibility, a watertight flashlight.
The exemption removes the requirement to carry 15 metres of buoyant heaving line, and motivates the wearing of personal flotation devices or lifejackets.