As the summer heat weighs heavy on runners and cyclists, more people are turning to the water in both conventional and unconventional ways.
Outdoor activities have taken float with more people canoeing, kayaking and stand-up paddle boarding in Baton Rouge and other areas along the Panhandle.
Devin Drouant, Massey’s kayak demo manager, said canoeing is more of a family water activity than kayaking.
Native Americans in arctic regions first used the kayak, but freestyle kayaking didn’t become popular until the 1970s.
Joshua Rivet, an avid kayaker since 2005, said he discovered the sport while competing in an adventure race. Now he kayaks competitively.
“There are a lot of little races around,” he said. “People just don’t know about them.”
The Phatwater Kayak Challenge is a popular competition where participants race from the Grand Gulf to Natchez, Miss.
Rivet said he has noticed water sports have become more popular in the last two years around Baton Rouge.
For Rivet, kayaking is about fitness and leisure, but not everyone uses a kayak to work out.
Aaron Cherry, Facility Services sheet metal master, said kayaking is about leisure.
“It is a different way to enjoy the outdoors,” he said. “Grew up on the water my whole life. You have a kayak, personal flotation device and paddle, and you’re ready to hit the water.”
Students passing the lakes may have noticed the kayaks but wondered about the stand-up paddle boards.
A stand-up paddle board is larger than an average surf board, and riders stand on it with a paddle to propel them through the water.
The sport originated in Hawaii as stand-up paddle board surfing, but within the last few years it has made it way to the LSU Lakes.
Baton Rouge native Jeff Archer founded YOLO Boards, a stand-up paddle board company that manufactures and sells the boards.
His brother, Troy Archer, Baton Rouge resident and sales representative for YOLO Boards, has held stand-up paddle board demos on the LSU lakes for about three years.
“I got a lot of funny looks bringing these boards to the LSU Lakes,” he said.
Stand-up paddle boarding isn’t confined to the South; it’s a nationwide trend. On June 2, stand-up paddle boards from across America competed in the Hobie-Hennessey World Paddle Association U.S. Paddle Championships.
Archer said he is hoping to introduce more people to the adventures a stand-up paddle board can provide, and this year, he and Walker Higgins, sales representative for YOLO Boards, sold about a dozen total.
The boards come in a variety of shapes and sizes and are used for leisure, fitness and competition.
Higgins said the activity is a unique fitness opportunity, and he sees the trend growing in Baton Rouge.
He acknowledged most people are worried about falling off, but when they try the boards, the stability surprises them.
“This year, we hope to sell a good bit of boards, so you can see up to 15 people on the LSU Lakes,” Higgins said.
Although stand-up paddle boarding has grown in Baton Rouge, Rivet said he doesn’t think it will overshadow kayaking, but that the trend could pass.
Higgins described the market for canoeing, kayaking and stand-up paddle boarding as “coexisting more than competition.”
“We are the little guy in this thing,” he said. “We just try to sell our boards and share the love.”
 
____ Contact Marylee Williams at [email protected]