All around board for flatwater river

[JillRide45]

HELP!  I am looking for a board for paddling longer distances on the Colorado river where it is flatwater but with a current.  Not a race situation but I need to be able to paddle 20 miles on it.  I have been paddling my ULI but was thinking a hard board would be more efficient, what do you think. Once in a while I will be paddling with camping gear (say about 30 lb duffle behind me).

The Ron House Coastal Cruiser was suggested.  I love the idea but at 30" wide I am a little scared.  I am 5'7" 110 lbs and I have not paddled anything over 27" wide in forever.  My ULI is 12'6" x 27".  Do you think the Coastal Cruiser is the ticket or will it actually be slower than the ULI?  Any other long all around boards that are narrow, say 28"?

Thanks, Jill

[JimK]

Jill,

The coast runner will be more efficent than the ULI but I'd also look at other Touring boards like the JP Sportster, Fanatic Ray (proven design and super durable) and SB has a new interesting touring board out.
You know also these next generation Inflatables will out shine the older ULI construction too

Just some food for thought
JimK
www.extremewindsurfing.com

[JillRide45]

I love the SB touring board, just thought it was a lot at 29" wide. I think I need to decide if I want a displacement board or not.  I have to admit that I have never had an all around board so when the Coastal Cruiser was suggested I just brushed it off.  Now I am wondering if I am just too stuck on race/touring boards and maybe an all around shape would work. 

I think if the Coastal Cruiser is more efficient than my ULI I would get it.  I may just have to go paddle one. 

On another note...Does anyone know which board has less rocker Coast Cruiser, PSH Gun, or the SB Cruiser. 

Thanks, Jill

[DavidJohn]

One of these.. http://www.standupzone.com/forum/index.php?topic=21536.0

DJ

[PaddleAnything]

Rivers tend to have micro squirrelly currents so wider and rocker can be good in  a board.  The surf tech universal with harder chines would fit the bill in a 10 or 11 foot range.  For 20 miles, a shorter board on moving water is easy to do. A 12 foot board maybe over kill unless you want to bomb downstream in which case get the 12'6" board by Badfish. 

You'll have fun on anything that floats!


 

[Area 10]

One of these.. http://www.standupzone.com/forum/index.php?topic=21536.0

DJ

Ah, c'mon DJ - I know your blood runs yellow but that is stretching it, surely? JillRide45 weighs 110 lbs. An AST Naish Glide 12-6 weighs 34lbs. That is nearly a third of her bodyweight. It would be like someone suggesting a board to you that weighs over 60lbs!

In answer to the Q about rocker, I don't know about the Coast Cruiser, but the PSH Gun probably has less overall rocker than the SB Cruiser, but has more rocker in the tip of the nose. The PSH Gun actually makes a pretty good distance cruiser for a light person. I've paddled several long trips on it and I'm much heavier than 110. I'm not sure about loading it up with a 30lb pack though - there's not much volume in the nose or tail, but you'd be OK with a pack between your feet.

The SB Cruiser is amazingly durable but at your size would be a lot of board, and its pretty wide.

I guess I'm a bit perplexed as to why you aren't considering e.g. a SIC X12. At 28" wide and with deck rigging as standard, I'd have thought it would fit the bill pretty well, despite not being a surf shape? The SCC construction is very light - although I wouldn't call it durable, unfortunately. These SICS are SOOOOO easy to carry because of the unique handle and the loops for carrying them with the paddle. I can pick my X14 up off the ground by the handle and lift it right above my head with a straight arm in one easy movement one-handed.

But if you really want a planing nose board, another one to consider at your size might be a C4 Holoholo. It's 12ft long and 27" wide, with plenty of nose rocker for dealing with chop, and also has tie-down points as standard. The one I used to own had anti-chip rails which were pretty much bullet-proof and it even surfed really well for its size. If you are heavy it's a bit tippy in chop but at 110lbs it would be like a dry dock. A little heavy perhaps - I think mine weighed 12.8 kgs on the kitchen scales or something like that, but it also has the loops for carrying the board with your paddle which makes life so much incredibly easier in wind that it's tragic that all manufacturers don't do it.

But if I were paddling 20 miles on a river, I'd want to be on a displacement nose board, unless it was whitewater or similar. Planing noses in flat water cause enormous deceleration between strokes, and there's not much getting around that fact. Since you are an experienced paddler, I think you'd find paddling a planing nose board on a river frustrating after a while.

Just a thought.

[baddog]

Check out the new Amundson 11'6" x 29" TR-X.  It could be a winner.

[DavidJohn]

One of these.. http://www.standupzone.com/forum/index.php?topic=21536.0

DJ

Ah, c'mon DJ - I know your blood runs yellow but that is stretching it, surely? JillRide45 weighs 110 lbs. An AST Naish Glide 12-6 weighs 34lbs. That is nearly a third of her bodyweight. It would be like someone suggesting a board to you that weighs over 60lbs!

Nothing to do with it being a Naish..

IMHO I think it would be perfect.. Remember it's going to be loaded with camping gear.. You want thick and wide even for a light person.

Also the 12' Glide would be a good choice.. IMHO

DJ

[Adolfo]

If you are looking for a narrow all around board, I would suggest to look for an used Starboard 12’2’’ x 26 ¼
My wife is about your weight and loves it. I weight 160 and love it to. It does everything right.
It’s out of production, so you will have to find an used one. But it’s one of the best boards I've used.

[dietlin]

Ron House Coastal Cruiser, 170 lb paddler, 40 lb dog.

[robon]

One of these.. http://www.standupzone.com/forum/index.php?topic=21536.0

DJ

Ah, c'mon DJ - I know your blood runs yellow but that is stretching it, surely? JillRide45 weighs 110 lbs. An AST Naish Glide 12-6 weighs 34lbs. That is nearly a third of her bodyweight. It would be like someone suggesting a board to you that weighs over 60lbs!

Nothing to do with it being a Naish..

IMHO I think it would be perfect.. Remember it's going to be loaded with camping gear.. You want thick and wide even for a light person.

Also the 12' Glide would be a good choice.. IMHO

DJ

Thick maybe if you are loading up with a ton of gear, but even then a 110 pound paddler doesn't need a board that is an easy 265 litres in volume like the Glide. Wide isn't the ticket for light female paddlers who aren't really broad across the shoulders. On quick excursions wide is fine, but on long trips the paddle stroke becomes totally jacked and inefficient for female paddlers with a slight build. A female friend of mine who weighs 110 pounds herself is now looking for a board that is sub 30" wide after experimenting with various board sizes.

[Area 10]

Also the 12' Glide would be a good choice.. IMHO

DJ

Lol - I think you must be trolling - the 12-0 Glide Touring is even worse! It's 34lbs and 31" wide. 110lbs is the same weight as my 12 year-old son. I've never met JillRide45 but I'm guessing with those stats she is a very fit and enviably slim woman. She's used to paddling a 27" wide board. Anything much over 28" is probably gonna be too bulky and uncomfortable to paddle and transport. I've got a (slim) 6ft male friend who described his 12-6 Glide this week as a "bloody great kayak"... I take an XL size shirt and even for me 31" is as wide as I can comfortably go for long distances.

I guess that just as it's hard for nanopeople to appreciate the issues that giants like you have with equipment, so it is hard for giants to appreciate the issues that nanopeople face. We hear a lot on this forum from the 200lb+ set, but rarely from the sub-140 set.

Now, if you'd suggested that at her size even a Javelin might make a touring board, I'd have probably just nodded in agreement. But I guess that's what forums are for.

[JillRide45]

Thanks so much for all the suggestions.  I went and checked out the Costal Cruiser and it was huge thick and wide for me. 

Still trying to find a PSH Gun 12' to check out.

Still looking,
Jill

And by the way the Javelin would be a fun touring board, especially if it was 12'!

[JillRide45]

Just to close out the the thread, I was able to pick up a PSH 12' GUN on Friday.  Took it out for an 11 mile paddle yesterday, Newport Harbor out the jetty and open ocean. 

Really loved the stability of the PSH.  Also what I have to say is an all around board brings back some of the playfulness and fun of paddling.  On the race boards I seem to always paddle like I am in a race, fast paddle straight line etc.  On the PSH I felt comfortable exploring the shore lines and shooting the harbor docks.  Sure it is not as fast as a race board, but maybe more fun! 

Have fun and thanks for all the advice!  Jill

[JohnnyMaya]

Jill, I think you'd like the new Starboard Freeride 12'2x30 in carbon.
Light, fast and plenty of stability for gear.
You can even use a windsurf mast on it.