More than ever, they are paddling on Lake Geneva. Cohabitation with other users of the lake, local residents – and even birds – is tightening.
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Lutry, June 24, 2020. Self-taught, new practitioners too often ignore the navigation rules that govern the practice of SUP, such as that which prohibits paddles from being inside the area bounded by yellow buoys.
Vanessa Cardoso
In favor of sunny semi-containment and the closure of installations sportsands, the number of Vaudois having acquired a paddle via the internet in March, April and May has exploded. It must be said that SUP (Stand Up Paddle), in times of pandemic, has many advantages: lhe keeps his distance while taking the air. In addition, since about five years, prices have gone down so much – from 250 francs a board currently – that the purchase is quickly amortized. The paddle craze is not new, but what is striking this year, this is the exponential number of new practitioners, the vast majority of whom are self-taught. “In April 2020, our SUP sales jumped 600% compared to March 2020,” said Rico Schüpbach, spokesperson for the online store Galaxus. Over the same period last year (January to June), the increase has already reached 70%. ” Bernard Tappy, communication manager at Qoqa, also confirms the even more pronounced consumer appeal for paddleboarding this year. “We proposed three offers which were all quickly exhausted”, he illustrates, without communicating the volumes achieved.
