Mike's Paddle

Hello from Alameda! In 2013 I decided to leave my professional career as a Finance and HR manager at UCSF and start my own business. Before then I had been working in offices since I graduated from college and doing a lot of paddling on the weekend (mainly kayaking and rafting). I had developed severe back pain from all of the sitting activities in my life: sitting in offices and meetings, sitting at home watching tv, sitting to drive to rivers and oceans, sitting paddling in kayaks and rafts... Just sitting all the time! I realized that I needed to make a change and hence STAND UP PADDLE! SUP combines my passion of paddling and be healthy to heal my back by standing up. I am enthusiastic about teaching people how to paddle and how to stand up and love sharing my love for the sport. This sport is open to everyone! Originally from China, I have travelled the world in search of water. I was first introduced in paddling on a frozen lake in Beijing when I was a child. I love all water-based activities: kayaking, rafting, stand up paddle and surfing. I have 16 years experience in kayaking, canoeing and stand up paddling. Destinations include many parts of the San Francisco Bay, California coast and rivers in the Sierra. Paddling has also taken me to many beautiful international locations: Brazil, Columbia, Ecuador, Venezuela, Costa Rica, Panama, Guatemala, Canada, Mongolia, Mexico, Hawaii, and China. However, my favorite paddle is right in my backyard: Ballena Bay of Alameda.