Paddleboard class lets women stand up for fitness

A long, wooded road through First Landing State Park in Virginia Beach leads to the Narrows beach and the boat launch where I was headed for my first lesson on a stand-up paddleboard.

When I arrived before 9 a.m., Mike Norment, owner of Beach Eco Tours Inc., was unloading the boards from his trailer.

I was one of seven people registered for the new women's fitness class.

Jantz Rollison, 40, of Richmond was visiting her mother at the Beach. She'd seen people paddleboarding on the James River near her home and in the ocean.

"I want to get a paddleboard, so I thought I'd try it," she said.

Anja Howard, the instructor, handed Rollison a release form. The fitness class costs $25 and is about 90 minutes long.

"Don't bring anything you mind losing in the water," said Howard, collecting car keys to be placed in a locked box. "Everything we bring floats."

Some of us donned sunglasses even after being warned we might lose them. Others wore wide-brimmed hats. Everyone wore a bathing suit.

"OK, ladies and gentlemen, let's rock and roll to the beach," Norment said.

Janet Dobson, 52, of Virginia Beach participated in Beach Eco Tours' sunset paddleboard class earlier in the week. She returned for the fitness class.

"It was easy to catch on," she said.

Dobson's house backs up to the Lynnhaven River, where she plays in a tandem kayak and on a surfbike. She was thinking about adding a stand-up paddleboard to her collection of water toys.

Dobson is a triathlete and a breast cancer survivor.

"I love to exercise outside," she said. "I want to get the experience in the flat water, then I'd like to take it out in the ocean."

Norment had lined up the boards, paddles and life jackets on the sand. We gathered around for instructions.

"I'm nervous it's going to be harder than I think," said Rollison, who runs and swims regularly. "The current's going pretty quick."

The wind kicked up the water's surface, and the current swept across Broad Bay and into the Narrows, where it would continue pushing into Linkhorn Bay, Rainey's Gut and Crystal Lake.

Norment, 46, rated the current a six on a scale of one to 10. We would be paddling against it for the start of the session, when our energy levels were high.

He started Beach Eco Tours a few years ago. In the first year, all the participants were women, he said. Now about 30 percent of his customers are men. Beach Eco Tours offers a variety of paddleboard classes including flat water tours at First Landing State Park and Rudee Inlet, and dolphin tours and wave riding classes in the ocean.

"I do it to get people out to see the environment, to get them involved in a new sport and to get them involved in a fitness-minded activity," Norment said.

If you've been to the beach lately, you may have seen stand-up paddleboarders on the waves. Kid Rock paddled across the Detroit River on one earlier this summer.

The sport has a Hawaiian heritage. From the point of view of a landlubber, paddleboarders appear to be one with the ocean's undulations.

Don't be fooled.

I was reminded of how pushy Mother Nature can be when I hit the water for the women's fitness class.

We would travel about one mile out to a nearby cove to stretch and do exercises on our board. Norment explained how to begin at the shore on your knees, how to stand up and how to hold and use the paddle. He warned us about looking down.

"The horizon is the only stable thing you have in this environment," he said. "Your mind is going to be saying, 'What is going on with the floor?'

"If you look down at the board, you're done," he said.

And with that, we were off, divided into two groups to cross the channel.

I was most surprised by how secure I felt on the board. Falling off wasn't a worry for me, but within seconds I realized that the water was telling me where to go. It was up to me, faced with a strong current, to take control.

As the group moved forward, I floundered behind. The distance between us grew, but I tried not to focus on that. Howard doubled back with encouraging words. I dug in with my paddle and concentrated on my breathing.

The air smelled salty, and the sun bore down. I spotted a baby crab fluttering though the water, moving much faster than I was. The environment was beautiful - gracious homes on one bank, the expanse of green park on the other.

"Once you get around the point, it's going to be much easier," Howard said.

I could see the destination, but was I moving forward?

I remembered the drive into the park earlier that morning. What I would have given for an engine to zoom me forward to the rest of the group. But that would have defeated the purpose, so I reminded myself of the goal of the class and the benefits of a work-out, and I gave it all I had.

The ladies had waited for me, and the cove was calm and inviting, a welcome change from the sprint-like paddle.

I chugged one of the water bottles that Howard brought and joined the group for exercises and meditation.

We formed a large circle on our boards.

"Think about Zen, margaritas and cabana boys," Howard said as we stretched.

In this small slice of paradise, we did leg lifts and yoga poses. We focused on being grateful.

When it was time to return to the beach, I gave thanks to Mother Nature for the push back.

Stacy Parker, (757) 222-5432, stacy.parker@pilotonline.com