How much should you spend on a paddle board?
Stand-up paddle boards can vary in price, ranging from about $200 to around $3000. If you are lucky, you will also have a chance to find a quality board for under $500. The paddle board price is generally influenced by materials, brand, size, features, and construction quality. To find the right stand up paddle board for you, consider how you’re going to use it, how it will fit your body and how you want it to handle in the water. The key decision points will be the shape of the board, getting the correct volume and capacity, as well as the proper length, width and thickness.One of the best components of stand-up paddle boarding is that all levels of fitness and body sizes are welcome to try this watersport. It is not limited to a specific fitness level, making the sport beginner-friendly and easy to learn.The Best Paddle Boards for Most Beginners are Inflatable If you later get serious about surfing or racing, you might then consider a fiberglass or epoxy board for those activities, but an inflatable is what makes the most sense for your first board in most cases.You can paddle board if you can’t swim, but it isn’t recommended, and it will hamper your SUP experience. You have to do it in shallow, calm waters, about waist-deep and with an instructor present. Deeper waters will require swimming skills, like how to tread water and hold your breath – skills that you may not have.For most adults, the ideal length for an all-around beginner paddle board ranges from 10 feet to 12 feet 6 inches. This range provides a good balance, making the board manageable and versatile.
Is paddle boarding hard for beginners?
Paddle boarding is not hard and is considered relatively easy to learn because paddlers can learn enough to have fun in no time with just a little effort. Anyone can learn to handle a SUP board in a short amount of time. Even if you’re not very athletic, you can still figure it out without any trouble. Inflatable paddle boards require a lot of labor during production, and you have to use high-quality materials if you want them to last, but at the end of the day, the inflatable SUP price is low because they are still less expensive to produce and ship than hard boards.To paddle with two people, you need a suitable paddle board, and it is often advisable to take an inflatable paddle board for two people. It will be necessary to have the right gestures not to hurt yourself, but also not to damage the sup board.High quality inflatable paddle boards are completely hand-made, so labor costs are high. Some lower cost inflatable SUPs are assembled in a more automated mass production process, which keeps the cost down but results in lower quality and performance.Durability. The durability of your blow up paddle board is important, especially when it’s inflatable. Once a cheap paddle board starts to break down, it tends to be more than just a simple issue and more than likely isn’t worth the effort of fixing so you’ll end up going and buying a new one.No matter how hard you try to stay balanced on your paddle board, you’re going to fall into the water at some point. Even the most experienced paddlers take the plunge from time to time. So, if you’re feeling wobbly, don’t worry about it and remember, SUP is a watersport, so it’s OK to get wet.
Can inflatable paddle boards go in the ocean?
You can take your stand-up paddle board to the lake or the ocean! Both bodies of water might seem similar in experience, but they are extremely different. Explore the key differences between lake and ocean paddle boarding so that you can determine where to go on your next SUP adventure. When we talk about stability on the water, kayaks edge out slightly ahead due to their lower center of gravity, making them inherently more stable, especially for those just starting out. With SUP, you’re standing up, which naturally challenges your balance more.Kayaks typically sit lower in the water than paddleboards, providing a greater sense of stability and control, especially in rougher conditions. This stability makes kayaks an excellent choice for beginners or those who may be apprehensive about balancing on a paddleboard.Speed and steering. Another difference between SUP and kayaking is the level of speed and ease of steering. Stand up paddleboards are generally faster than kayaks, as they have a longer waterline and can glide more easily through the water.Also – keep your paddle near the water and ready to help provide a bracing stroke to help you balance. Not only does this naturally lower your centre of gravity, but the paddle in the water forms a third point in a ‘triangle of stability’ that makes you much more difficult to spill off the board.