Stand-up paddle on the Shambhavi backwater
Where to go, when to paddle and what to watch for on the river behind the Sasihithlu sandbar.
Before the first lesson: a morning with our coaches
At 5.45 the coaches are already on the beach, checking the water, the boards and the flags.
Our first lesson starts at 7, but the coaches arrive at 5.45. Most of what keeps a lesson safe happens before any student arrives.
The first job is to look at the sea. Two coaches walk the length of the sandbar and watch the waves for fifteen minutes, counting sets and noting where they break. They look for rips near the river mouth and at the ends of the bar. If the sea has changed overnight, they decide whether lessons go ahead, move or stop.
Then the flags go in. Red and yellow flags mark the lesson area, and a red flag marks any rip close by. A rescue board and a first-aid kit go to the water’s edge, where they stay all morning. The boards come next. Every soft-top is checked for torn leashes, loose fins and cracks. Anything damaged goes aside for repair. Rash vests are sorted by size and sunscreen is set out in the shade.
At 6.30 the coaches have a short meeting: who is coming, who is nervous, who has a bad shoulder, which children are new. Groups are set so that each coach knows the names of their students before they arrive. By 6.50 the kettle is on and the first car is usually pulling in. It is the calmest part of the day, and the part students never see.
