INTERVIEW: HOW PRONE PADDLEBOARDING HELPED IAN GET BACK ON THE WATER

After a back injury that made everyday activities increasingly difficult, Ian Collier discovered a new way to reconnect with the water on a GONG i-Prone.

Every body and every medical situation is different but for Ian, who suffered from a back injury and an underlying spinal condition, prone paddleboarding became a powerful part of his journey back to movement and day-to-day comfort.

From his first wobbly session to paddling more than 10 kilometres across the pristine lakes of Mazury, Ian found greater stability, renewed confidence and a remarkable improvement in his daily life. Let’s hear him tell the story.

 

Prone paddler : Ian with the I-Prone Trainer 18’.

Could you introduce yourself and tell us a little about your background?

I'm Ian Collier. I'm 53, and I live half the year in the UK and half the year in North East Poland. I'm English but didn't live in the UK until I was 16 because I grew up in Malaysia. I am a digital education consultant, so I can work from anywhere. I met my wife in Poland in 1998 when I was travelling and teaching English. Together we've lived in Spain and India, and we've travelled to almost every country in the world.

Have board sports and water sports always been part of your life?

For a lot of it! I was a keen skater throughout my teens, mostly in Georgetown, Penang, where I went to school. When we moved to the UK in 1989, we lived in Cornwall, well known for surfing. I found bodyboarding more my style despite the 'poor cousin' reputation (maybe because of it) and was in the sea every day for the next four years, when I went to University in London. I started skating again there and kept it up for the rest of my life. I experimented a bit with e-boarding when that hit the market, but I found it soulless - there's no connection to anything elemental, no real ask of me. I was just consuming. Stand-up paddleboarding became my new love about ten years ago, and I did it exclusively on the lakes near our home in Mazury.

What first gave you the idea of trying prone paddleboarding, and what were you hoping to get from it?

In March 2025, I fell down a long flight of stairs, all on my back. As a result, I developed problems walking and standing, and tests revealed I have malformed vertebrae in my lumbar spine, resulting in a smaller-than-usual canal and much more severe consequences of inflammation. I got stuck in an inflammation cycle, and despite careful exercise, especially on core strength, diet, etc it gradually got worse. Finally I was walking with a stick and completely unable to do many simple things. Going around a supermarket without having to sit several times, standing at a concert, walking for pleasure and, of course, SUP. Earlier this year I was sitting on Gyllyngvase Beach in Falmouth, Cornwall, watching the surf life saving club training. They had a circuit in the sea marked with buoys, combining a swimming dash with a prone boarding cycle on life-saving boards. It hit me that prone boarding could be my new thing; it could get me back on a board on the water in a way that didn't hurt my back. I didn't suspect it might even help my back. I started to investigate boards right away.

Where do you usually paddle, and what makes the Mazury region such a special place for watersports?

We live in Mazury in northeast Poland for half the year. It's known as the Land of a Thousand Lakes, but there are actually over 2000, and some counts read 2600. A well-known route called Krutynia connects many lakes with rivers and channels. People kayak and camp for days without ever having to turn around; it's a 100% flow experience, and magnificent. Two major lakes on that route are only a 5-minute drive from our house, giving me a 10k straight run in one direction, and that is where I usually paddle. The region is wild and remote, dotted with villages and covered in forests, fields, and islands, and it is inhabited by extraordinary wildlife, including lynx, wolves, and elk. It's routine for me to paddle with grebes alongside, otters sliding away to hide, and an eagle calling overhead, and 99% of the time I am the only person on the water. Also, vitally, pollution is minimal to completely absent. In the UK, I check a water quality app before going in the sea; here I have no such worries as the waters are pretty much pristine. In fact, we are only 10 minutes from a lake called Pilakno, which is so clean and clear it is used for scuba diving training.

What was your first experience on the Prone board like, and what did you notice about your balance, alignment and core engagement?

The first experience was wobbly! I am used to a higher centre of balance. Also, my wife pointed out that I was lying further to the right. During the first paddle, my arms got tired quickly, and my core burned from the effort of holding myself up at the front. But it was glorious!

How has your experience evolved since that first session, particularly in terms of stability, fitness and the distances you can cover?

I remember that first experience but don't recognise it any more. I experienced a sudden change after the first five sessions. Stability is no longer an issue. Part of this is finding my proper place along the length of the board (I started off too far back, so my centre was on a narrower section and tipped me from side to side). Part of this is an extraordinary improvement in core strength and core confidence (I can feel myself activating and deactivating it while lying down, which is new for me). That gives me more confidence with stability. Another part is 'learning' to roll gently from left to right as I paddle (I didn't force that, it just began to happen). However, a major contributor (and this is going to sound hippy-mystical, but it is true) is that I started to feel less like a person lying on a board and more like the board is a part of me, an extension of me. I'm a very confident swimmer, and rolling, turning, etc. in the water is very natural, and that's how I feel on the board now. A sudden tip to the side from wind, a wave, or a current hitting the fin doesn't shock me anymore; I just tip and then roll back again, as I would if I were swimming. As for distances, I can comfortably paddle 10k+ without any issues at all. That's partly fitness and partly understanding pacing the paddling - to begin with, I was over eager, imitating a swimming stroke, and proneboarding can be far more relaxed and slower than that, especially on a longer board when the glide kicks in. It's like flying. And here's the REALLY huge thing, my spine-related symptoms are far, far fewer. I was already on the mend somewhat after a year of effort, but prone boarding has accelerated that dramatically.

Having used other inflatable boards, what stood out to you about the Prone board's design, quality and performance?

When I started looking for a prone board, all I could find were hard boards. They looked awesome but were very expensive and had to be shipped quite a distance, usually from Spain, with a risk of damage. I was so determined, however, that I was about to buy one. Then I found out about GONG and their new line of inflatable prone boards, and it was an instant yes for me. I'd already heard of GONG from kite surfers I know, so I knew they had a rep for super high quality and amazing service. I was really nervous about missing out on an 18' board as the release date was a month before I was due to be in Poland, and the team supported a pre-order and a prearranged delayed shipping date. They hit the date exactly, with no need for reminders, and the board arrived within a few days. It was smaller and lighter in the bag than I expected, and to be honest, my heart sank a little because I feared that suggested a lower quality than hoped for. I was VERY wrong. The moment I started to inflate the I-Prone I realised that it absolutely mirrored, if not excelled, the quality of my previously owned inflatable SUP boards, yet somehow in a lighter and easier-to-inflate design even at 18'. It's very easy to lift and carry when fully inflated and sits snugly on the Rhino straps I have on my Skoda Fabia, which is a small car! Properly strapped down across the middle and at either end, I can drive wherever I want without any issues. In the water, it is sleek and powerful, and it reaches incredible speed quickly, all while staying easy to maintain with a relaxed stroke. It's not only a relaxed cruiser, though; if I want, I can challenge myself to accelerate and increase speed for a challenging cardio session. And let's not forget the standard fin box, with a huge range of fins available. I've set aside the fin it came with in favour of a GONG carbon fiber beauty.

How have other people reacted when they see you on the water, and why do you think prone paddleboarding could appeal to a wider audience?

The I-Prone certainly draws attention! A big part of that is the size of it; at 18' the model I have isn't exactly subtle! On the way to the lake, I get a lot of wide stares from other drivers, who are used to seeing kayaks and windsurf boards on roofs but nothing like this. At the waterside, the questions begin: what is it, where did I get it, is it inflatable, how much does it cost, etc. And that's before anyone realises that it isn't a SUP and it is paddled like a surfer heading out to a set, and FAST. I have had a fisherman in a rowboat ask me where the engine is; he assumed electric propulsion somewhere because of my speed. I've never seen a prone board here; I'm almost 100% sure I'm the only one for now, but not for long. I think that prone boarding has mass appeal for many reasons: it's easy to pick up, it's safe to engage in, it's flexible and accessible thanks to GONG's inflatable, affordable models, it's empowering and, like all the best exercise opportunities, it disguises the effort you're putting in because it's so much fun; you're improving your fitness without realising. It's also very familiar even before your first session because it mirrors swimming. There aren't any new tools to learn or major new skills to pick up; you lie down, start paddling, and you're away, on the water, with the water.

Thank you for sharing !

Before starting or returning to physical activity with an injury, persistent pain or health condition, always consult a doctor or qualified healthcare professional. They are best placed to assess your individual situation and tell you what is safe and appropriate for you. Ian’s experience is a personal story, not medical advice.