As stand-up paddle boarding grows, options for enjoying the sport expand

 

PARK CITY — Trent Hickman doesn’t exactly know why surfing captivated a kid from Utah.
“Maybe it’s because my mom is from Malibu (California),” he said. “I’ve always had an affinity for surfing; I’ve always wanted to be a surfer. I remember going to visit my grandpa and trying to learn how to surf. It seemed like Mission Impossible for a kid from Utah.”
Hickman may not have had a lot of opportunities to surf as a youngster growing up in the shadow of the Rocky Mountains, but he made the most of every opportunity he had.
In 2004, he moved to Costa Rica. Six months of the year he lived there and spent much of that time surfing. The other six months, he was in Utah, working and wishing he could find a way to ride the waves in the desert.
About five years ago, he found a way to bring his passion to Utah.
“Someone said, ‘You’ve got to try stand-up paddle boarding,’ ” he said. A Park City couple who were among the first to preach the benefits of the sport, Bob and Betsy Risner, took Hickman out for ...more