Bruce Kirkby

Home: Kimberley, British Columbia

Board Setup: Starboard (full quiver stretching from race to expedition to river to surf)

Paddle of Choice: Andaman 520

Other Sponsors: Starboard, MEC, Vasque, Astral, Mustang Survival

Website: http://brucekirkby.com/

The Questions We Ask

Bruce, a member of Starboard's Dream Team, came to paddleboarding on a whim, organizing a 100km fundraising marathon with two buddies in 2012. And he’s never looked back. Today--whether travelling on lake, river or ocean--Bruce is passionate about pushing the limits of possibly on wilderness SUP journeys, often alongside Blackfish teammate Norm Hann.

With journeys spanning more than eighty countries and thirty years, Kirkby’s accomplishments beyond SUP include the first modern crossing of Arabia’s Empty Quarter by camel, a descent of Ethiopia’s Blue Nile Gorge by raft, a sea kayak traverse of Borneo’s northern coast and a coast-to-coast Icelandic trek. He has spent three decades guiding wilderness expeditions, from rafts in the Canadian Arctic to sea kayaking journeys in the Caribbean.

A columnist for The Globe and Mail, author of three bestselling books and winner of multiple National Magazine Awards, Kirkby’s work has appeared in the New York Times, Outside magazine and Canadian Geographic.