Buddy SUPing: A Paddle Community Grows out of Covid in Toronto

October 1, 2022By

Buddy SUPing: Toronto's Paddling Community

Buddy SUPing is a SUP community in Toronto, Ontario that started with a few paddlers looking for people to paddle with and has grown, in only a few years, into a community of SUP paddlers over 3,600 strong. Through paddling meet ups and on and off water events with a focus on inclusivity, this group has become a vehicle for people to have fun, make new friends and learn new paddling skills. Coach Cain interviews Vicky Tran, Jordan Cabral and Jessica Tuazon about the community they’ve grown, how it all started, what it’s all about and where they see it going. Definitely inspirational material, showing others what’s possible when a few like-minded people get together eager to share their stoke for the sport.

buddy suping, covid, Sup community

Larry Cain, Paddle Monster Head Coach

Larry Cain began his career in 1974 at the Oakville Racing Canoe Club, now the Burloak Canoe Club, in Oakville, Ontario. Cain competed in three Summer Olympics, winning a gold medal in the C-1 500 m, and a silver medal in the C1 1000 m events. He also won a silver medal in the C-1 1000 m event at the 1989 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships in Plovdiv. In 1984, he was made a Member of the Order of Canada. In 1997, he was inducted into Canada's Sports Hall of Fame. A trail in Oakville has been named in his honour running along the town's waterfront where Cain trained. He worked as a coach, preparing paddlers for the Olympic Games in Rio. In 2016 Cain co-founded Paddle Monster.