Go Stand Up Paddle

For my birthday I wanted to have a fun day at the lake with my family. I have a paddleboard but wanted to rent a kayak so everyone could have fun on the water with different options. I wasn’t sure about the water temp (end of April) or which lake to go to. I am so glad I chose to rent from Go Stand Up Paddle on Bartlett lake! They were friendly, accommodating and laid back. The lake is beautiful, clean and a comfortable temp. I would absolutely rent from them again… On a side note, when driving to the marina it’s down hill and the speed limit goes from 50 to 30 pretty quick and the sheriff is ready to remind you of this so slow down!

My girlfriend Elizabeth and I got there later than expected, so we only had a couple hours of daylight to enjoy our board rentals. Chad gave us some basic instructions and got us on the water quick. We loved the peace, quiet and beauty of Bartlett Lake. We had an absolute blast and really enjoyed chatting with Chad before and after our boarding experience. We would have stayed to chat longer, but needed to get going. Thanks for the good memories and we will be back to make some more!

I had my first SUP lesson today with Chad to get ready for a trip to Hawaii. He is a terrific teacher – very patient and lots of fun. I HIGHLY recommend taking a lesson – I thought that paddleboarding would be similar to kayaking, and it is a very different stroke. I had such a great time I am going again this weekend. Great workout too! Highly recommend Chad and Go Stand Up Paddle.

I say this with my paddle held over my head and firmly in my white knuckled fists. NEVER again Chad, Never! Here you will read about a great day that was almost ruined by a man named Chad.
I paid for five (you read that right) boards on 8÷18÷15, four days before we were scheduled to use them on Sunday 8÷23÷15. Everything, to my knowledge, went according to plan when my girlfriends showed up at the rental office. I own my board so I sent them to pick up the equipment I had reserved. The day went great! We paddled, we took pictures on beautiful Bartlett Lake and a couple of my friends got to experience SUP boarding for the first time. I decided that I would like to meet Chad since we had only spoken over the phone and paddled one of the Liquid Shredders to be returned. We hauled them out of the water, noticing that one of them was much heavier than the other. Only to find that water had seeped into the board. I immediately found Chad and introduced myself. We pointed out the leaking board and from there my friend I were met with comments and accusations from Chad that left us feeling belittled, disrespected and disappointed. I’m pretty sure that telling your customers that they aren’t REAL paddle boarders (what does that even mean) and accusing them of jumping up and down on the boards (while he literally jumps up and down in front of you) after you’ve told him how much fun everyone had is uncalled for.
This could have gone so much better. Instead of encouraging us and promoting the sport, we felt defeated. Treated as if we did something wrong, which we did not. Honestly, I was hoping to build a solid relationship with Go Stand Up Paddle, so that I could recommend my friends and return for more adventures. Isn’t that the point of owning your own business? Do what you love, build relationships/​clientele and make money. There will be no returning, there will be no way I ever spend another dime with this company. I would have rather paddle on a piece of driftwood covered in fire ants than ever go through that nonsense again!
I absolutely love paddle boarding. It is a way for me to reset and enjoy the outdoors. But this experience was awful. I choose to take the good and be done with the bad. This was no way to treat customers, at least if you want them to come back and spend their hard earned money at your establishment. Peace out Chad!

We had a great time with the SUP board rentals! Scott was awesome! We started with our lesson with him and he made sure we were comfortable before setting us loose. We had a hard time battling the wind on the lake which caused some tough water, but overall it was a lot of fun, lots of work, and we are excited to come again. Go Stand Up Paddle was really easy to use and they were very responsive to our calls and messages. The equipment was well kept and high quality. The lake is beautiful and SUP boards are a great way to see it! I would definitely recommend them! Price was great! $ 35 for 2 hours!
Other things to keep in mind:
I recommend going out during the week in the mornings when fewer boats are on the water. The boats make the water choppy and when you are starting out learning and getting familiar with the boards you really want to have calm waters!
Bring a bottle of water, they can put it on the board for you.
Sun block!
You don’t need a Tonto pass and you can park down by the marina. You just need to go up to the gate. Press the button and let them know you are doing the rentals. You can park down there for free. You don’t want to take the long hot walk back up to your car at the top of the hill.

Bad to worse by the hour!!! Before I begin with the review, it should be noted that this is the same business that was previously located at Lake Pleasant, Peoria, AZ where those reviews may be helpful.
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I have paddled at this business multiple times and I was very disappointed! While Bartlett Lake is beautiful you may want to rethink Paddling here. The drive alone is an hour from almost anywhere in the Valley, and paddling conditions are almost always windy. Once there, you will be greeted by the owner Chad who may, or may not remember you have an appointment (if you are late, be prepared for an attitude). Now onto prices… Chad will probably ask if you were on his website, or email, to determine what price you may have seen for paddling, at which point he will price you based on it. Apparently, the prices on the website or social media were a «promo» or outdated. If you want to pay with a card, Chad may direct you to the ATM machine, even though you can pay with a card in the Marina store (as cash is more beneficial to him). During your visit, if there is anything Chad disapproves of, he will let you know, as Chad has been observed talking badly about customers, competitors, and others in the paddling community. Finally, Chad may ask you to fill out a good online review for his business, which leads me to question the other reviews listed. You are much better off going with any other competitor in the Valley for paddling. This business may have changed locations, but service has not changed a bit!!!

This is the second time we stand up paddle at Bartlett Lake Marina. We enjoyed ourselves both times. We plan on returning again soon. Chad is cool and helpful. Thank you Chad for making your company available to stand up paddle at Bartlett Lake Marina.

Chad was awesome! He helped us out getting started while on vacation for a short 2 days. I would totally recommend him to anyone and have told all my friends in the Scottsdale area to go give him a shot and learn how to stand up paddle board. I think the next time I go out I will be purchasing one of his amazing custom handmade stand up boards and bringing it back to Orange county CA. Thanks Chad you rock!!!

My family and I had so much fun going paddle boarding on Bartlett Lake! We came in on a Saturday early afternoon without reservations, and were able to rent 3 beginner boards for an hour. There were a few other groups paddle boarding at the same time. The good news for beginners is you get to learn and start in a protected & calm area and then you can choose to go out onto the lake with the boats. It was my sister’s first time and with a few minutes of explanation from Chad, she was up and standing. I was a little nervous about getting run over by a boat but as long as you hug the shoreline, there is little risk for that. However you can get some serious wake from boats… fun but make sure you’re ready to fall in! It is an absolutely gorgeous way to experience the desert — the lake is surrounding by beautiful big boulder cliffs with cactus growing everywhere. We really had an awesome time.
Looking on their website, it seems that you do not have to pay the $ 6 Tonto parking fee if you are just going to the marina to rent paddle boards or kayaks. However you’ll still have to stop into the little trailer that sells the parking passes to ask them to let you into the marina area.
This company has some really bad reviews from their Peoria location but we didn’t experience any of the frustration experienced by other Unilocalers (thank goodness). My only complaint is that the business could greet people who wander in because there is no real office storefront and we wandered around a while trying to figure out who to talk to about rentals. We ended up just waiting next to the big stack of boards for 20 minutes or so before someone asked us if we wanted to do stand up paddle boarding. After we were done I noticed the same thing happening to other groups. So if it’s busy, just do the same and someone will help you eventually. It’s worth a wait!