Patrick Fishel was paddleboarding around King’s Point in Sandys when the tides switched on him and the winds changed.

On an ordinary board he could have had difficulty getting back to shore, but on his electric paddleboard, he just pushed a button on his paddle and was able to safely motor back to land.

Mr Fishel, a Bermudian who splits his time between San Diego and Bermuda, is about to launch Sea Venture Electric Watercrafts, an electric paddleboard rental business.

“I came to Bermuda for Cup Match two years ago and brought my electric paddleboard with me from San Diego,” he said. “It packs up real nice into a little bag so it didn’t cost me extra to fly with. I wanted to see how the paddleboard experience would be in Bermuda.”

He used it all around Bermuda, and found it to be very different from using a jet ski.

“Jet skis are more of a thrill ride,” he said. “You can’t get tight to the shoreline.”

He felt he saw more marine life on the electric paddleboard because it only made a mild humming noise. He has seen green turtles swim right under the board.

The boards use two lithium batteries kept in a sealed, watertight compartment. Even if the board turned over in the water, the batteries would not get wet. After taking two hours to fully charge, the boards have six hours of run time.

The boards sit very shallow in the water with a draft of about six inches, allowing the user to travel quite close to the coast. The weight capacity is about 275lbs.

Paddlers can travel at three speeds, 2mph, 3mph and 4mph, which is controlled by a button on the paddle.

The boards also have a light on their underside which allows you to see what’s on the sea floor if the water is shallow enough.

“It’s just clean fun,” Mr Fishel said. “There is no exhaust, oil or gas involved. It is quiet and a different experience.”

The boards are made by SipaBoards, a Slovenia-based company that developed the integrated electric paddleboard system Mr Fishel uses.

So far, he has been product testing, allowing friends and family to use the boards where his concession is based at King’s Point, Mangrove Bay. He hopes to fully launch by the middle of next month.

He found that setting up a business took a little longer in Bermuda, compared with the United States. He had to get permits from several different government departments including marine and ports, and the parks department.

While trying out the boards he has done his best to clean up the Sandys beach, picking up broken glass and plastic.

“It was not in a good state,” he said. “I did not want people to end up in the hospital after cutting their feet.”

He is a certified lifeguard. In September 2022, he made local headlines by rescuing three children caught in a rip tide off the South Shore.

Now Mr Fishel sometimes wears a red lifeguard shirt while he is working on the beach.

“Tourists pass by, see that a lifeguard is working there and want to stop,” he said.

People over the age of 15 can rent the boards. It is one board per person and costs $75 for an hour and a half.

The rental comes with a dry bag for personal items, aqua socks for getting on and off the board safely and a safety and boundary orientation.

• For more information, see www.seaventuresbermuda.com