Off-Season Training with Performance Paddling
You know the saying… it takes a village to raise a child? Well… my off-season training so far has taught me that it takes a village to raise a professional athlete. Without the paddling community here in California I wouldn’t of had such a fantastic start to the 2023 season. From a casual invite from Morgan Hoesterey back in December of 2022, I packed up my things and moved to California to live on Morgans sailboat not knowing a lot about what I was getting myself into. I knew that I wanted to learn more about the ocean, my breath work, and in general become a better athlete. Not only did I achieve all of those things, but most importantly I gained a family, a community, and a home away from home all because of Morgan and Anthony Vela. These incredible people I have had the honour of surrounding myself with over the past three months have not only changed my perspective of the sport of stand up paddle boarding, but also the perspective I have about my life and they way I want to live it.
PPSUP’s Annual end of the year party :)
Who is Anthony Vela you may ask. Anthony is the owner of a SUP training group in Dana Point California called ‘Performance Paddling’. If you have never heard of this group, you need to check them out! I began paddling with Anthony and his group in January, and was able to attend roughly 2-3 practices a week until the end of March. Anthony created all of the workouts from scratch. Mondays were usually longer paddling sets, Wednesdays were pyramid drills, and Fridays we usually worked on sprints and skills. Each practice was always so unique and enjoyable. Drills were always catered to EVERYONE’S skill set. If you were a slower paddler Anthony would say “turn when the leader turns” so that everyone was always paddling together. We cheered each other on, pushed each other during races and sprints, and most especially discussed how awesome we were (literally). If anyone in the group ever said something negative Anthony always made us back it up with three positive comments and we weren’t allowed to get off the water until we did so. I truly want to be a leader like Anthony someday, because the way he brings all of us together at practice is something that is truly unique and special, its very hard to put into words.
Coach Anthony shredding the waves!!!
I never had a bad day paddling with the Performance Paddling group (PPSUP). In fact - going to those practices every week always gave me the motivation I needed whenever I was feeling low or missing home. Training with this group gave me a new set of skills I never would have learned paddling on my own. Every single paddler always made me feel so welcomed and put a smile on my face. “We have fun even before we hit the water”. The groups motto could not be anymore true! We started every practice with a dry-land warm up. We would do arm stretches, and multiple sets of lunges getting our bodies ready to hit the water. If someone arrived late, once they joined our groups circle on land, we usually would have to do “two claps, two snaps” and something fun to welcome the member to our group. Sometimes it was your craziest ninja pose, and sometimes it was your best twerk. No matter what we laughed lots, and were motivated to go train.
After a hard practice, we stopped to enjoy the most spectacular sunset in the Dana Point Harbour
When my papere passed away in early February my mom called me with the news, and told me that the funeral was less than a week away. For a moment I was devastated… losing a family member, as well as facing the realization that my off-season training in California was about to get cut short. When I had told Anthony that I was leaving early, he pulled me aside after practice and we chatted about finding a sponsor to help me come back to California. The next day Performance Paddling came together and sponsored me a flight back to California so that I could continue my off-season training with the group. I’ll always get emotional thinking about just how much everyone in the group cared for me enough to allow me to come back and train and essentially support my athletic development. Like I said - I didn’t just gain a group of awesome people to train with but I gained a family. I’ll never be able to repay the paddlers who make up Performance Paddling or express my endless amount of gratitude.
This action of kindness reminded me why I paddle in the first place. When I first arrived in California I was taking everything so seriously… my fitness routine, my diet, and I even limited my social life so that I could become the best paddling athlete I have always wanted to be. Those things are still important to me however, when I met everyone from PPSUP especially Anthony, it made me realize that there is more to life than just becoming a phenomenal athlete. There is love, compassion, drive, and motivation that also makes life so special. I’m happy to have recognized those things and will always continue to keep my eyes open to what other things paddling will teach me. Anthony and PPSUP - THANK YOU for all you have taught me on and off the water!!
I highly recommend for any paddling athletes looking to improve their skills, please reach out to PPSUP! Anthony and his group will welcome you with open arms, give you skills you can’t learn anywhere else, and truly you will have the experience of a lifetime.
Group photo after the HanoHano race in San Diego / January 2023