My back story

For most of my life, I have owned or had access to some kind of watercraft. I learned to sail as a child. In my teens I learned to water ski and drive a power boat. In my twenties I learned to paddle whitewater as a kayaker and worked for a while as a raft guide. I have kayaked and rafted the Grand Canyon as well as dozens of other places in the west. I married and moved east to North Carolina where I have been raising a family. I have owned kayaks, canoes, sailboats and small fishing boats while I lived here. The kids and I loved sailing out in the sound on a Newport 17 that I had at one point. It was a fairly seaworthy small sailboat, but the realities of storing and maintaining a sailboat competed with too many other priorities. I have even dabbled in building boats, building a pirogue, a small sailboat and have a kayak in progress. I have been drawn to the ocean most of my life; even when I lived in the middle of the country for a few years I managed to visit a few times. When I was young, we spent a lot of time in the Florida panhandle, where we have a number of relatives. One of my siblings moved there and I continue to visit from time to time. I now live close enough to get to the sounds and beaches frequently, sometimes just going for the day. Another lifelong interest I have is fishing. My dad took me to a lot of freshwater farm ponds as well as public reservoirs and I learned to love catching panfish, bass and catfish.  I had a great uncle that took me trolling for king mackerel and mahi. I took up fly fishing and waded creeks for trout out west. I have taken up kayak fishing but with a small kayak only suitable for freshwater ponds/lakes/rivers and protected inshore fishing. I frequent a couple of sites where kayak fishing trips are planned and organized. I really wanted to go on some of the trips out to artificial reefs or casting, drifting and trolling out beyond the breakers and started planning and working on a kayak that would be capable. Age started to catch up with me and I have had some shoulder problems that are exacerbated by paddling a kayak for a long time and/or with much intensity. Spending too long sitting in one causes pain in my lower back, where I have a couple of herniated discs. I feared I had waited too long to chase the dream of paddling out beyond the breakers. Then I discovered SUP.