Hometown

Bellevue, Washington

Favorite Hala board

Carbon Nass

How many years have you been SUPing?

9 years

Which SUP discipline(s) can we find you competing in this year?

Flatwater Racing, SUP Yoga

Tell us a little bit about yourself

Why I love to SUP and how I discovered it: For my 30th birthday (March 2014) I decided I wanted to take my yoga teaching to the next level. I signed up for a SUP Yoga Teacher Training with Bliss Paddle Yoga in Laguna Beach, CA. My fitness background is in competitive swimming, swim instructing, lifeguarding, so I’ve always had a passion for being around the water.

Before I attended the training in California I wanted to actually try SUP. I ended up attending the 2014 Outdoor Adventure Expo in Seattle and met Jeff Underwood from Kirkland (NW Paddle Surfers) and Corey Dolan from Tacoma (Dolan’s Board Sports). There was a demo pool set up to where I was able to paddle and try yoga on their boards for hours. I ended up coming back the next day as the “SUP Yoga Demo Girl.” At the conclusion of the event, Jeff and Corey offered me a position teaching SUP yoga for their rental businesses that summer season. I was stoked to already have 2 places to teach SUP Yoga.

I completed my SUP Yoga certification in CA and simply fell in love with paddling. Corey encouraged and motivated me to start racing in spring 2014 to help me become a better paddler. I did just that, entered my first race, and WON. I was hooked and started paddling/training everyday. I was attending flatwater and river races in WA, Idaho, Canada, and Oregon. I also started teaching at two beaches, one in Kirkland and the another in Tacoma, for Jeff and Corey. I was certified by Corey in PaddleFit level 1 & 2 in October 2014, which really helped me to dial in my paddling technique for racing and become a better instructor. I taught for Jeff and Corey for many years to come and am so grateful for them introducing me to SUP.

Along my SUP journey, expanding my own SUP business, Paddling Yogini LLC, became my priority. I built up a fleet of Hala Gear paddleboards that I now use year-around for SUP Yoga, PaddleFlow®, and PaddleFit classes. I also run private SUP events, parties and an annual summer SUP retreat. During the colder months, I move my paddleboard yoga and fitness classes indoors to swimming pools. The pool classes allow me to teach students who would normally not want to get outside in the rain/snow/cold. We build up quite a sweat in the 90 degree pool environment. Then in spring/summer and early fall, I run Paddling Yogini LLC on Lake Sammamish, Beaver Lake, Puget Sound, and other local bodies of water.

Hala Gear is my favorite paddleboard company. I love my Carbon Nass, Carbon Hoss and Asana! Perfect for my PaddleFlow® practice! I love the stability, durability, and all the anchoring attachments on these boards for my PaddleFit and SUP Yoga classes on both outdoor and indoor bodies of water.