Mr Hardy said the accessibility of the sport was leading people to pick up a paddle and experience a new, more easygoing version of surfing.
‘The great thing is you don’t need waves,’ he said.
‘You can go anywhere with a body of water, any lake or river or the coast is completely accessible and it’s making the sport so popular.
Get in front of tomorrow's news for FREE
Journalism for the curious Australian across politics, business, culture and opinion.
READ NOW‘The growth in Perth has been huge in the last few years; the conditions that we have here have certainly helped.’
Mr Hardy said the longer, buoyant boards provided a less intense option to conventional surfing, allowing the paddler to get on the wave earlier with less effort.
‘SUP in particular mixes strength with stamina. People really go on about how it’s an excellent core workout because you use every muscle in your body,’ he said.
‘For older surfers who don’t want to paddle every day, SUP boarding is definitely an easier way to catch waves.’
He said the larger boards also made it more accessible for non-surfers to catch waves.
‘Everyone wants to surf and SUP makes it so much easier. I’m not a surfer and the first time I had the proper feeling of surfing a wave was on a stand- up paddle board,’ he said.
‘It enables so many people to be able to surf.
‘SUP really connects all of us; you can get a group of friends and surf, you can do yoga, you can go for a cruise along the river, there are so many options.’