A lot of boards will do one or two of those things well, but the needs of each type of paddling are so different that it's hard to find a swiss-army-knife-board. The 10'6" MVP seems appealing, but I haven't gotten to paddle it yet and it's not an inflatable:

10’6 MVP | Badfish Stand Up Paddling Boards

IMO having a quiver ends up being better than trying to find one board.

 

A lot of boards will do one or two of those things well, but the needs of each type of paddling are so different that it's hard to find a swiss-army-knife-board. The 10'6" MVP seems appealing, but I haven't gotten to paddle it yet and it's not an inflatable:

10’6 MVP | Badfish Stand Up Paddling Boards

IMO having a quiver ends up being better than trying to find one board.

My problem would be smashing it on a rock. How well does the 9ft MVP paddle flat water? How good does the sharkskin work?

 

Yeh, it doesn't look like they're offering the 10'6" with sharkskin :/

I have a 7'6" MVP-S, and it's a pretty poor flat water paddler.

The sharkskin on my board has worked pretty well so far, no punctures or cracks. It has DENTED though, when taking fairly minor hits river surfing. It's kind of surprising, and I assume the epoxy underneath is cracked, but it's definitely not taking on water. Glide's surface shield seems to do a better job, no dents or dings in my Sesh.

 

The sesh is play park only right? Any other glide river boards for more river running?

 

Yeh the sesh is play park only. The Lochsa is their river running board, but it's kinda a slow beast when it comes to surfing:

Glide river sup the Lochsa | Glide Paddleboards

 

Yeh the sesh is play park only. The Lochsa is their river running board, but it's kinda a slow beast when it comes to surfing:

Glide river sup the Lochsa | Glide Paddleboards

Do you know of any inflatables? That would be good I'm the river?

 

I'm personally not a fan of inflatables. I'm sure someone else here could recommend some inflatable SUPs though.

 

Uli boards get great reviews. I would probably buy one of those if i did it again. Not crazy about the NRS boards i've tried.

I have a C4 waterman 10'6". great for river running (rockered ends easy turner) but it is thinner (less stable) than many of the newer designs. I also have 2 hard boards and they certainly are faster. But for river running and traveling (i have brought it on the plane 3-4 times) inflatables are great.

 

Sounds like the board you need is the Badfish 10'6" MCIT Inflatable. It's a great platform for everything you've mentioned except for surfing. Any inflatable board, especially 10'6" isn't going to be a great surfer, though you will be able to catch standing waves and play around.

The extra volume with the side tubes help hold in gear under the straps for loading camping gear in. It's incredibly stable. River running is what I've used my 90% of the time, but it's paddled well in the flatwater environment too. Having the side tubes keep the board from flexing while paddling, which is lost energy. I also get an extra fin or two, cutting some down for the rivers and keeping a long fin for the flatwater.

I've paddled one since they came out and have no plans of getting rid of mine. It's a solid board. Good luck in the hunt, and if you have any questions - lemme know!

 

I agree its a great board but I do not like on rivers. The second you get one of the side tubes under water it drops like a raft. I prefer the Hala Atcha and the new Starboard Stream looks great too for iSUPS. I am about to pick up a Streetfighter this week and am super pumped.

 

I have 2 Tower Paddle boards. they are inflatable. I glued a few extra d rings on it and it suits my needs well. Like others have said, you need a quiver, but I like what I have.

 

Starboard Whopper Deluxe. It's a little spendy, but it is a phenomenal board. You can surf bigger waves like Glenwood with it. It is a downriver machine and with a longer center fin it is great on flatwater. It also has deck rigging on the front to help with any gear carrying. 6 inch drop stitch construction and up to 17psi. Its a bomber board for the river lake or ocean.

 

Starboard Whopper Deluxe. It's a little spendy, but it is a phenomenal board. You can surf bigger waves like Glenwood with it. It is a downriver machine and with a longer center fin it is great on flatwater. It also has deck rigging on the front to help with any gear carrying. 6 inch drop stitch construction and up to 17psi. Its a bomber board for the river lake or ocean.

Ya, what MoMo said. That board is sick. You can paddle class III+, tour around all day or surf it on either a small steep wave (great rocker in the nose) or a big ass glassy one at G Wood.

The Red Paddle 9'6" All Water is really good too. Same goes for their 10'6" - they have some pretty unique features...super stuff, good designs for doing it all, and a really nice travel bag.

 

We have a Badfish 10' 6" and a NRS big earl. Both of these are inflatables. The badfish is more stable and can hold some gear but is not the best at surfing. The nrs turns faster and plays better but my kids fall off more so they always want the Badfish. I stay in the raft close to the beer. If you come out west I know many of the local shops rent sups so you could try several out before you buy.

 

I'm gonna dare to be different here and vote for the Hala Hoss BT. It is a great board in that it is super stable at 36" wide, 6" thick so you can be sure it inflates wicked hard (that sounded weird). I tried about 5 boards before I pulled the trigger on a used Hala demo board from SUPCO. The thing is fun fun fun! I tried the BadFish MCiT and thought the board was too short for me for sure (i tried the 9' i think and I am 6' 190#). I felt like the way the MCiT board is designed that the deck would hold water while the Hoss BT is bone dry when on flat water...if you are ever in the Roaring Fork Valley I'd be happy to let you take a spin on either the Hala Hoss BT or Straight Up.

 

Hi Have the Uli 11 foot. Mine is 6 years old. it is very bomber, it is made in the USA, (not from a river polluting factory) It is made by and for surfers and also works in rivers and lakes.

My son (80lbs) is on a 8' C4. C4 is designed by surfers.

The bad fish inflatable would be ok for downriver, but many of the other boards out there are not designed for surf, or speed, so they are not as useful if you ever want to get better.

We also have the sevelor. it weighs 20lbs (vs30 for the Uli) it is a raft/mattress. That is a good beginner board, but not for ocean surf.

My wife has a starboard hero of the ocean but the sevlor is just fine for her in the river.

I recommend a $300 paddle. the cheap ones don't work.

cheers m

 

I have been doing alot of research and going to look at inflatables. We are also in the same boat/sup that we would like a board that can kinda do it all but most of the time on the river. From the previous post I looked at the the Star-board whopper deluxe.

The two question I have are:

who in CO acutally stocks them? I look on there website says a ton of local shops have them, then went there and they act like they have never heard of them
how does everybody feel between the 4in and 6in boards. I can find a 2013 Star-board whopper for $950 but it is a 4in. We will mostly be doing down river stuff class 3+.

I am 6'3 190 and my Wife is 5'5 I understand the 6 in will give us more stability but is it worth $600

Thanks buzzards

 

I have been doing alot of research and going to look at inflatables. We are also in the same boat/sup that we would like a board that can kinda do it all but most of the time on the river. From the previous post I looked at the the Star-board whopper deluxe.



The two question I have are:



who in CO acutally stocks them? I look on there website says a ton of local shops have them, then went there and they act like they have never heard of them

how does everybody feel between the 4in and 6in boards. I can find a 2013 Star-board whopper for $950 but it is a 4in. We will mostly be doing down river stuff class 3+.



I am 6'3 190 and my Wife is 5'5 I understand the 6 in will give us more stability but is it worth $600



Thanks buzzards

For you I would go with 6" board and nothing less. Issue with thinner boards is they tend to flex instead of punch through white water. Even woman say they prefer thicker boards because they edge better and eddy easier.



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The hala playa looks like a good do-it-all board. Any thoughts???


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Have not been on playa by have used all the other Hala boards. I just sold my Atcha yesterday and it was/is a killer river board but I am going to plastic now.


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I just picked up the Starboard Astro Fun Whopper. Its pretty friggin awesome for a single board "quiver". I looked at the Hala Playa and Straight Up as well and liked the specs and few reviews I could find.