WAPPA PADDLE BOARDS
  • Home
  • Our Bamboo SUPs
    • All Around
    • Wave
    • All Around / Wave
    • Touring
    • Wind SUP
  • Shop
  • Eco-Friendly
  • Bamboo Advantage
  • Technology
  • Wappa vs. Competition
  • Why Wappa?
  • 5 Year Warranty
  • Home
  • Our Bamboo SUPs
    • All Around
    • Wave
    • All Around / Wave
    • Touring
    • Wind SUP
  • Shop
  • Eco-Friendly
  • Bamboo Advantage
  • Technology
  • Wappa vs. Competition
  • Why Wappa?
  • 5 Year Warranty

Are Inflatable Paddle Boards Better for Beginners?

11/28/2022

 

Are Inflatable Paddle Boards Better for Beginners?

Are inflatable paddle boards better for beginners?  No.

Beginners of all sports should set themselves up for success. A larger part of success is to use the best equipment possible.

In the world of paddle boarding, that would be a hard paddle board. Inflatable paddle boards aspire to perform as well as hard boards. While performance might not sound important to a beginner, in reality the opposite is true.
 
STIFFNESS
The holy grail of every inflatable paddle board is to be as stiff as a hard paddle board. That’s why so many inflatable brands tout their products air pressure. It is the desire to be stiff. A good way to think of stiffness is to think of standing on a sidewalk versus standing on a mattress. A stiffer paddle board provides better stability.

For a beginner paddler, a board’s stiffness isn’t something they would think about, but it’s greatly appreciated on the water. Anyone who has experienced an underinflated iSUP understands the unbalanced feeling of standing on a mattress.  

unrigid_inflatable_paddle_board
This inflatable paddle board isn't very stiff.
STABILITY
The key to early success for every new paddler is board stability. An underinflated paddle board will be less stable than a hard paddle board because it will be less stiff.

A paddle board’s shape also plays a role in its stability. Especially when the board is static in the water. All water craft are more stable as they traverse through the compared to being motionless. Often, paddler boarders may stand while the board isn’t moving. Especially when just learning. That’s why it’s important to have a board that will be stable when you’re just standing on the water and not paddling.

A hard paddle board will be more stable than its inflatable counterpart. Hard boards have a concave bottom which offers better stability on choppy water, swells, etc.…

falling_off_paddle_board
FLAT BOTTOM
Inflatable paddle boards have a flat bottom which offers a different benefit compared to the concave or bottoms  of their hard board cousins.

Flat bottoms are actually very stable in calm waters and this can be beneficial for beginner paddle boards. In fact, in calm flat waters, these bottoms provide even more stability than the rockered concave bottoms of hard boards.

Unfortunately, the superior stability of the flat bottom ends once the paddle board leaves the idyllic conditions of calm, flat waters on a windless day. Once the wind picks up and water chop develops on, the superior stability of flat bottoms disappears.

Unlike the concave bottoms of hard paddle boards, the flat bottoms of inflatables do not provide any lift to help raise the board out of the water making it easier to skim over the top of the chop and maintain stability.

The lack of stability on anything but calm waters means that the vast majority of inflatable paddle boards should not go into the ocean on anything but calm days.

concave_bottom_sup
GLIDE
Glide can be viewed as a paddle boarding reward. It’s the feeling of movement and speed. It’s part of what makes paddle boarding so awesome.

Beginners may enjoy the glide experience better than most, since it is so hard to come by when starting out. The feeling of taking your first 10 good strokes without falling and feeling the speed you develop is a great one. It’s this feeling that helps develop the passion for SUP!

Because hard boards are stiffer, they have better glide than inflatables. Beginners deserve to reap the “glide rewards” for all their effort. Why lessen the joy with the experience an inflatable will provide?

From the practical benefits of stiffness and stability to the joy of glide, hard paddle boards are better than inflatables for beginners. It is easier to learn on a hard board and the feeling of glide is stronger on hard boards compared to inflatables. However, if you plan to only paddle on calm days on your small inland lake, the inflatable paddle board will probably be just fine.


Comments are closed.
    wappa_logo

    The Wappa Blog

    Written by Wappa's founder Layne Pennell, the blog's aim is to educate and share his love of stand up paddle boarding with anyone interested in SUP.

    Layne has been paddle boarding for 10+ years!

    Archives

    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    October 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    March 2017
    December 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016

    Categories

    All
    Health
    Learn
    Tips

    RSS Feed

    Wappa Paddle Boards

have a question?  1-844-go-wappa (469-2772) 


Company

about
warranty
return policy
terms of service
privacy policy
all prices USD

shipping

shipping
tracking

resources

corporate branding
board performance explained
board care & maintenance
blog
testimonials
FAQ
military discount
great for families
SUP for women
want a deal?

CUSTOM PROGRAM

overview
pricing example
pro design service
order a custom SUP

Contact            

support@wappapaddleboards.com
toll free: 1-844-469-2772
contact

RETAILERS

become a retailer
find a retailer

AMBASSADOR PROGRAM

become a Wappa ambassador
terms and conditions
Picture

ENVIRONMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS wappa SUPPORTs

Picture
Picture