We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Tara Scheller. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Tara below.
Alright, Tara thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to have you retell us the story behind how you came up with the idea for your business, I think our audience would really enjoy hearing the backstory.
I always wanted to try stand up paddle boarding (SUP), and especially SUP yoga, but was filled with excuses… “I’m not cool enough, strong enough, brave enough, young enough, fit enough” … you get the idea. Then it happened. Summer of 2017, I was on a small beach with my family where they had SUP rentals. The employee on the beach told us to give it a try. My boys were thrilled and immediately jumped at the opportunity. I was extremely nervous but how could I say no?! As soon as I got on a board and was on the water, I felt transformed! All of the negative thoughts, “I can’t” and “who do I think I am to do something like this?” disappeared. It was very inspiring! I felt inspired by the experience and knew I could help others feel the same way!
I honestly don’t think I would have taken the necessary steps for certification as quickly as I did, but my husband set it all up before I could change my mind! By spring of 2018, I completed a 200-hour yoga teacher certification and a 40-hour SUP yoga & PaddleFit certification. Rivertowns SUP & Yoga started as a very dream-like vision but quickly became a reality when the business literally launched into the Hudson River June of 2018. No one in my area was offering SUP yoga and paddle boarding locations were very limited. I was so excited (and nervous) to bring something new to the area. But I was fairly confident that people would love it as much as I did. And when you love something, you can’t help but share it!
Tara, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
Growing up, I spent most of my summers in Delaware on Indian River. This is where I developed a love for the water and first tried stand up paddle boarding & SUP yoga. Just being near water feels therapeutic. I have also always had a love for movement and how it can make you feel. As a former dancer, dance educator, and registered Dance/Movement Therapist, I have spent my entire career using movement to connect to others in a therapeutic way. Moving on the water with paddle boarding and SUP yoga brings all of this together. Being on the water can bring out so many different emotions and challenges for people and at the same time feel meditative and transformational. It certainly was all of these things for me. I developed Rivertowns SUP & Yoga to share this experience with others. I wanted to provide a safe environment where people could explore being on the water and maybe discover something new about themselves. I offer small groups in paddle boarding and SUP yoga so people can feel more connected to themselves and others in the group. This mentality carries over into my “on land” yoga classes as well. I love helping others gain insight into what makes them happy and guiding them to feel empowered by literally moving through physical challenges and identifying mental or emotional roadblocks along the way. This does not mean every class is a transformational experience. Sometimes it’s just plain fun!
Every year I challenge myself to step out of my own comfort zone and try something new with the business. In the past five years, Rivertowns SUP & Yoga has grown to offer private events like bachelorette parties, social paddles with the SUP’er Club, collaborative paddle events with other like-minded organizations, and my favorite event of the year… the annual SUP Witches Paddle. The witch paddle started with 16 people dressed as witches paddling on the Hudson River the first year. This was our third year and we had 80 witches on the water with hundreds of spectators in the park for the very first SUP Witches Festival, complete with vendors, food trucks, a Witches Brew ale from Soul Brewing Company and the telling of the Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Ian Berger from HVH2O! The event draws hundreds of people from various nearby states, and I have to admit, it’s spellbinding!
I put my heart and soul into Rivertowns SUP & Yoga. I’d like to think that’s one of the things that sets my business apart.
My classes provide an opportunity for self-discovery, self-awareness, and a reminder to face challenges with an open mind, with gratitude, and with playfulness. This is what Rivertowns SUP & Yoga is all about… taking chances, self-discovery, and having fun.
We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.
Having a vision for a business is one thing but bringing that vision to life is an entirely different experience. I live in an area with beautiful lakes and reservoirs. I thought it would be easy to find a location for paddle boarding and SUP yoga classes. Some of the lakes allow kayaks and small boats so I was surprised to learn paddle boards were NOT permitted. After many conversations with county officials, I realized two things: 1-there were a lot of misconceptions about what SUP really is and 2-the path I was on was leading to a dead end. I easily could have abandoned everything. I never saw myself as a business owner anyway. I was, in fact, quite comfortable continuing as a stay-at-home mom to my 3 boys. Instead, I focused on how desperately I wanted to educate people about SUP and offer these opportunities to others. There was ONE obvious, but intimidating, alternative…the Hudson River.
Every time I find myself hesitating to make a decision with the business I come back to this quote by Henry Ford, “Whether you think you can or think you can’t, you’re right.” I often realize my hesitation stems from self-doubt and fear of failure. When that happens, I try to flip my perspective. Besides, what’s the worst thing that can happen? Even if the business is not “successful,” I’m doing what I love to do…spending time on the water and sharing that experience with others. And I certainly won’t know unless I try.
Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?
During my 300-hour yoga certification program with Matt Giordano, he spoke about the book “The Noticer: Sometimes, all a person needs is a little perspective,” by Andy Andrews. I LOVE this book! It isn’t a book on yoga philosophy or theory or business development like most of what I had been reading at the time, but simply about perspective. The book tells a story about an old man named Jones who helps people change how they see things when on the verge of challenging life situations like homelessness, divorce, and bankruptcy just to name a few. The book was thought provoking and inspiring, and I couldn’t put it down! It helped me be more open minded about tackling life’s challenges, to see the value of the little things when looking at the big picture, and the importance of self-reflection and human connection.
I didn’t realize it at the time but when I had to select 3 core principles for the framework of my business, they came from this book! My website will tell you, “Rivertowns SUP & Yoga is about cultivating feel-good vibes through inspiring and fun experiences on water and on land.” These experiences are really about how you handle challenges and creating opportunities for curiosity, self-discovery, and playfulness. Why is this important? So that when you find yourself in challenging situations, you can view yourself, your experiences, and perhaps your relationships with a new perspective.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://rivertownssupyoga.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rivertownssupyoga/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rivertownssupyoga/
Image Credits
Image files are named with credit where applicable: photo 4 (SUP Witches on water w/ bridge in background) – Photos on the Fly photo 6 (black 7 white SUP Witches) – Beebatch Photography photo 8 (yoga class) – Jessie Mignone