WindSUP boards
The best inflatable windsurf SUP boards
SUP Boards »WindSUP Boards
We all know the jokes of die-hard surfers about Stand Up Paddling. From air mattresses is talked. The fact that all the equipment for SUP fits in a carrying case is only laughed at. The hardcore surfers are right: In the high-tech world of windsurfing, where one innovation chases the next, inflatable SUP boards look like better dinghies.
Material Windsurf SUP: „Everything fits in a backpack“
From the point of view of Stand Up Paddlers, windsurfing is absolutely overcrowded with the whole material. Whether kitesurfers, skiers, golfers and football players – no athlete needs as much material as windsurfers. For hardly any sport, a garage is needed to store the equipment. Not to mention that you almost have to take anabolic steroids to haul all the stuff. And still have to walk back and forth several times between the parking lot and the beach.
Let’s take a look outside the box, see WindSUP. The complete equipment for the combination of windsurfing and stand up paddling fits into the trunk of a Smarts. This is also possible with classic windsurfing – all you need is a junk press. Specifically, the equipment for WindSUP fits into a large backpack. This can be transported easily. When you arrive back home, the backpack is tucked away in one and it’s done.
The structure is really simple. Nothing can be done wrong here. The board is unrolled, and half inflated. Then Finn, Mastspur and sword box are used. Now you can inflate the board completely. Usually the recommended air pressure for windsurf SUP boards is 15 to 20 PSI. Unpacked, pumped up and set up in 15 minutes.
Driving characteristics of windsurf SUP boards
The driving characteristics are of course the most important element if we want to answer the question of whether or not WindSUP boards are suitable. You can not lump all the models together. In the earlier models, the manufacturers were a bit too lazy.
Essentially, some of the iWindSUPs built around 2013 and 2014 had a mast foot insert, but the design of the board was not designed for windsurfing at all. The round, thick edges of the tail of classic SUP boards were sucking deeper and deeper into the wind while windsurfing – there was no way to talk about weightless gliding over the water.
For the first time in 2015, Starboard introduced sharp tear-off edges on the Airplane model. Already with the slow bobbing a difference is noticeable. The power in the sail is converted much more efficiently into speed. The transition to gliding happens abruptly. The flow at the bottom of the board tears off cleanly. The holding of the sail is not always more strenuous, but suddenly easier from a certain speed.
Below I will introduce what I believe are the best WindSUPs. Then I’ll go into more detail on what makes a good windsurfing SUP.
The best WindSUPs
In my opinion these models are the best SUP boards for windsurfing. For some offers, one sail is included – not others. In another guide from me you will find the best WindSUP sails .
The short answer: The best WindSUP boards
- Aqua Marina Champion – My recommendation for beginners
- Z-ray W1 – The versatile savings offer
- Red Paddle co WindSUP – the right choice for professionals
- Mistral Santa Anna Wind iSUP – The High-End Board
- Starboard SUP Windsurfing – The Race variant
- Aqua Marina Blade – The too cheap model?
Aqua Marina Champion
- Sail is with us.
- Length: 300 cm
- Width: 75 cm
- Thickness: 15 cm
- Accessories: air pump, Magic bag, vest
The Aqua Marina Champion from the 2018 series with the Modelle Blade (also published in 2018) together are the only Windsurf SUP boards of the manufacturer that is always convinced by price-performance and whose boards are often among the bestsellers. The „champion“ carries paddlers up to a weight of 120 kilograms.
Above all, three aspects convince me of the champion of Aqua Marina. First, a matching sail is included. So you do not have to look for a suitable rigger. Here you get everything you need in one package. The best thing about the 3 m² sail is the comfortable transport. That’s right, because the sail can be divided into three equal parts.
Second, Aqua Marinas Champion offers foot straps. For other boards, non-slip topcoating is the standard. Corresponding crocodile or diamond decks are much more slip-resistant than the first models, but windsurfing needs more. I think it’s good that Aqua Marina goes the extra mile here, putting on four foot straps and trimming their boards more towards the windsurfing board than that it’s just a SUP board with special features.
And third, the accessories leaves nothing to be desired. Next to the board and the sails, the champion has a vest, a pump, the Magic backpack, the Finns and a paddle holder.
The hard-cutting edges in the rear ensure that the champion does not pull deeper and deeper under water while accelerating, but the current abruptly breaks off at a speed and you can go into gliding. For WindSUP boards, this is a fineness that is sometimes neglected but enormously important.
Conclusion: The champion is the optimal choice for windsurf beginners. As long as you have clothes, you do not have to worry about anything about your equipment. The champion is fixed, offers you thanks to the foot straps a super safe stand.
It’s not a performance monster, but provides the ideal starting point for the first time windsurfing. Apart from that, the board (only the rear fin stuck in) can also be used for stand up paddling. And that’s all there for a fair price.
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Z-ray W1
- Sail is with us.
- Length: 305 cm
- Width: 81 cm
- Thickness: 15 cm
- Accessories: sail, paddle, backpack, air pump
Z-ray is a SUP manufacturer of the first hour. But now you venture into new realms, if that is good?
First, the most important thing: The Z-ray W1 comes with a sail and is suitable for paddlers with a weight of up to 120 kilograms.
I really like the swordfisher as a dolphin-like „Dagger Finn“ by Aqua Marina. The reason for this is the much better directional stability in the elongated sword fins. This design also increases tipping stability, but slightly reduces the maneuverability. Looking at the overall picture of the sword fins, the SUP trims it more towards windsurfing than standing up paddling. For double use, the sword fin is removed in SUP mode .
The Z-ray unfortunately has no foot straps. You can do it safely thanks to an EVA deck. This deckpad does not differ from pads on normal stand up paddling boards. The grip is pretty good, but if you’re hanging right in the boom and the surface of the board is wet, I’d rather have foot straps.
Not convinced yet? That speaks for the Z-ray W1. According to the manufacturer, it has a universal thread, in which all windsurf sails fit, the W1 can also be used in three times as a kayak (a seat can be mounted), SUP and windsurfing board.
Conclusion: The Z-ray is my savings recommendation. For a very fair price you really get everything you need for Stand Up Paddling and WindSUPing. Board, paddle and sail in one allow you many different uses. It is very fitting that the SUP is an all-round board, with which you are very free in any case. From longer tours, to leisurely family outings, to a trip for which you convert the SUP into a kayak (seat + double paddle must be purchased extra).
Red Paddle co WindSUP
- Sail is not included.
- Length: 323 cm
- Width: 84 cm
- Thickness: 12 cm
- Accessories: paddle, leash, double stroke pump, backpack
Red Paddle co is one of the top manufacturers of SUP boards. In the high-priced segment, boards of this brand have often proven their class. But does that work on WindSUP boards?
With a capacity of 296 liters, the WindSUP carries paddlers weighing up to 120 kilograms. The buoyancy WindSUP receives not primarily by the thickness. The shape of the board of Red Paddle co is much flatter (12 cm instead of the usual 15 cm) and very wide with 84 cm. The large surface of the SUPs lets it slide much more over the water, which makes it particularly suitable for windsurfing.
Otherwise, the board is also fully designed for windsurfing. A US midfender box widens the tail fin and ensures a more stable run. The deckpad is an elegant crocodile design. In the back you have a special grippy piece of the cover, which is embossed in diamond shape.
You are looking for a luggage net here in vain. For WindSUP this is not used anyway. The design looks very simple and tidy and you can move more freely while surfing.
Conclusion: The board is really great. A big drawback is the high price, for which there is only the red board.
Mistral Santa Anna Wind iSUP
- Sail is not included.
- Length: 348 cm
- Width: 78 cm
- Thickness: 15 cm
- Equipment: –
Although the design of the WindSUP Mistral Santa Anna is suspiciously similar to a Hinkelstein from Obelix, the driving characteristics of the board have nothing to do with it. The unconventional design makes the Santa Anna namely a top WindSUP.
The wedge shape with ascending width to the rear makes the board very sleek. Who suspects that the tipping stability suffers, is also wrong. The wide rear makes the Santa Anna namely virtually inaccessible. The bow is bent so that it does not dive into the water at full speed.
In SUP mode, you will notice almost no difference to conventionally shaped boards. Only the Mistral Santa Anna lacks a bit of directional stability. With a little trick you can help: Just put both Finns in the board during the next SUP Tour. So you improve the straight-ahead driving enormously.
A criticism of my side remains. The luggage net in the stern can interfere with windsurfing and even become dangerous. With the feet you can get caught in the thin strings too easily. For good reason, no other manufacturer has attached a luggage net in the rear area.
Conclusion: Mistral’s board is perfect as WindSUP and SUP board. The form may seem idiosyncratic, but has advantages for windsurfing, without bringing disadvantages in stand up paddling. The clever design ensures that the board shoots like an arrow through the water. The board is available as a 10’6 „version (320 cm long) and as an 11’5“ version (348 cm long). Both boards are well suited. The longer variant falls rather in the category Touring boards, which are due to their strong straight-line better suited for WindSUP.
Customer feedback: The reviews of the buyers are mostly positive. The maneuverability and speed of the WindSUP is praised in it. Above all, there is criticism regarding the supplied pump, which would not reach the recommended air pressure of 19 PSI.
With air pumps, which are included, there are often complaints of this kind. Therefore, I quickly switched to a Doppelhubpumpe . With the pumping is faster and easier anyway. If you want, you can also buy an electric pump for the SUP .
Starboard Zen WindSUP
- Sail is with us
- Length: 350 cm
- Width: 76 cm
- Thickness: 15 cm
- Accessories: pump, carrying bag , repair kit , Dybag (waterproof bag)
The Starboard from the Zen series is a true-to-life racing machine. In my comparison, it’s not just the longest SUP, but also the shortest board at the same time. The enormous speed potentials of the normal SUP can be transferred to windsurfing.
The design causes problems with conventional boards because of the tilt stability, counter Starboard with a fin in the rear and a large fin in the middle of the board. For surfing at higher speeds, the spoiler lip is very important. For this purpose, Starboard has developed its own technology („3D Rail Edge“), which allows the board to slide over the water.
The difference of windsurfing on SUP should be even clearer on the Zen Windsup Board. For this purpose, Staboard has decided to make the US midfielder’s box removable. This will help you avoid unnecessary extra weight on your SUP tours.
Conclusion: With the Staboard Zen WindSUP you have a real power part. Hereby the highest speeds can be realized. The spoiler lip and two fins are given and allow windsurfing at high speeds. Foot straps, removable fins and top accessories further enhance the overall package.
As far as the laughing eye. The crying eye you get when looking at the price. Whether the price is worth it or not, you have to decide for yourself. If you just want speed, you have the right board with the Starboard Zen.
Aqua Marina Blade
- Sail is with us.
- Length: 330 cm
- Width: 80 cm
- Thickness: 15 cm
- Accessories: Air pump, sails with bag, paddle holder, Magic Backpack and repair kit
The Aqua Marina Blade is (beside the champion ) the second board of the 2018 series of Aqua Marina, which was made for SUP windsurfing. The blade is suitable for paddlers who weigh less than 100 kilograms.
The sail of the board is 5 m² and thus measures more than the sail of the champion (3 m²). That does not necessarily mean more speed, because the blade is also much longer and therefore needs a higher moment.
Aqua Marina is known for inflatable boards. The biggest advantage of the iSUPs – the comfortable transport – was also thought of in the Blade. The included mast can be divided into four parts. This allows the material to carry well to the water.
The Aqua Marina Blade is nothing to complain about. There are foot loops, a non-slip EVA deck, two fins are attached, the board has a hard spoiler lip at the rear and the matching sail is included.
Conclusion: The Blade gets as well as the Champion a buy recommendation from me. Both are top boards for beginners. The Champion has the small 3 m² sail, while the 5 m² sail of the blade really gets you on board.
Price is very fair. Considering that you are buying a complete set with board and sail, the price-performance ratio fits. It is questionable how it relates to the production errors described by customers .
Customer reviews : The customer reviews are amazingly different for the blade. On the one hand, the driving experience is described as positive. On the other hand, several customers seem to have problems with the tightness of the attachment of the mast base.
Basically, this is in my opinion no reason not to buy the board, because usually only the people to speak, in which errors have occurred. Everyone else prefers spending their weekends on the water than writing reviews on Amazon.
Surely this is just a problem that affects only a few batches.
If something is wrong with the WindSUP, it can still be returned. My experiences in communication with Aqua Marina have always been very positive.
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WindSUP in the video
Windsurfing SUP Guide
Rig
In order for you to find the right kind of offer for you, the following factors are important:
- driving skills
- application
- Board type
- wind Range
WindSUP beginners
Windsurfing or WindSUP beginners with little or no windsurfing experience (for example, a windsurfing taster course visited) should always resort to complete sets. It can be either a set of board and matching rig or a wind SUP sail as a complete set.
For beginners, the benefits are clear. You do not have to deal with the material much, because the individual elements have already been coordinated by the manufacturer. In addition, the cost of the sets (ie each variant board + rig or only the complete set of the rig) are often well below the prices in single purchase. Typically, you can also build the complete trigs very easily.
In terms of maximum speed, the finished sets can not quite keep up. Instead of performance, the sails are geared for easy handling. Weak point are usually the items in the sets (mast, boom or mast base). However, I like the rigs of the premium manufacturers very well. At Mistral and Red Paddle co has top components that can be later combined with another sail.
Experienced windsurfers
Experienced windsurfers usually know the sails well. My note here: The WindSUP boards are larger than SUP boards and therefore react a bit slower. Looking for a sail with at least 5.5 m² for tricking in light wind.
The Golden middle
Have you already gained some experience in windsurfing, but you are far from being a professional, then there are now two options open to you.
- complete
- Board + individually built rig
Windsurfing is a real battle of material. You should consider whether you want to get into this technical aspect of the sport at all. The right material finally wants to be selected and then coordinated.
An individually designed rig, of course, also promises benefits. In addition to a higher performance you are often more flexible, because you can also drive another sail with mast and boom, for example.
Rule: Big board, big sail
You can not combine a 13’0 ‚long touring board with a 5 m² sail. Boards this length need counter moment, which you only get by much larger sails. That’s the only way you can reasonably jibe and turn around. The basic rule is: bigger board -> bigger sail.
The board
The basic rule of the board is that the longer and narrower, the better the straight-line stability that matters when windsurfing. Surfboards are already narrower than SUP boards anyway. The average SUP board measures 320 x 80 x 15 cm.
The different board classes at SUP
- Kids: 7’0 „to 8’6“ (238 cm to 258 cm)
- Wave: 9’0 „to 9’8“ (274 cm to 290 cm)
- Allround: 10 ‚to 11’5 „(304 cm to 330 cm)
- Touring: 11’5 „to 12’0“ (330 cm to 384 cm)
- Race: 12’0 „to 14’0“ (384 cm to 427 cm)
For a real surfing experience especially boards of the touring class offer, which are slightly longer and narrow boards.
When looking for a suitable board you must pay attention to the following thing:
- You can attach a rig: no joke! During my research, I also came across some wrongly categorized products.
- Has a central fin and a fin in the rear area: SUPs have not enough directional stability. For windsurfing you need both Finns. If there is a SUP tour, only the rear fin will get into the board.
- Has non-slip base or foot straps: The stand is important when windsurfing. The SUP boards have non-slip surfaces by themselves. In my experience, diamond deckpads offer the safest possible stand. For example, Red Paddle Co also uses it. The board is covered by a normal non-slip deckpad. For maneuvers there is a diamond pad in the rear area for maximum grip.
fin
All WindSUPs offer the possibility to mount an additional fin in the middle of the board as sword replacement. For surf beginners and in little wind, this makes climbing extremely easy.
Your job with the Finns is very simple. When SUPing you need only the rear fin. For WindSUP, the rear and the fin must be inserted in the middle of the board. They are typically identical fins.
The Finn should have the sword shape. This construction gives Kippstablität and above all a safe directional stability.
What do you need for WindSupen?
The accessory is similar to the equipment for stand up paddling.
- board
- Sail (rig)
- Leash
- life jacket
Conclusion
Certainly no passionate racer, waver or freestyler will run to the nearest pawnbroker to order a WindSUP board with money. Nevertheless, WindSUP offers a huge potential. On the one hand, there is the possibility that inflatable windsurfing more slides into the mainstream. This would be especially the convenient transport. On the other hand, I expect the WindSUPs to make it easier for them to start windsurfing, and for the next few years and decades, we will always see new faces arriving with their packed backpacks and standing on the water fifteen minutes later.
FAQ
An inflatable windsurfing board? Who is doing that?
There have always been people and we always, who are critical of a new development and are looking for reasons why it can not be a good alternative. If we would always stick to these people and never listen to the visionaries and tinkerers who do not allow themselves to be distracted by small steps backwards because they see the big picture, there would still be horse-drawn carriages on the streets today: „Who wants to refuel? The horses can graze everywhere. And a gas station network does not exist!?! „.
On inflatable SUP boards we have all the characteristics of a true innovation: new technology that is catching up fast. In terms of performance (ie speed and maneuverability) WindSUPs are still behind. Whether that ever changes, remains to be seen. They do not have to be better than classic windsurfing boards and sails because they have massive advantages in terms of transport, construction and storage of the equipment. In addition, the double use as normal SUP is possible. And SUP is a sport for the youngest and the oldest. The whole family has something of that. Who can say that about his windsurfing equipment?
Are WindSUPs something for the family?
The inflatable combination of windsurfing board and classic SUP board is a great thing for kids and the family. The double use is especially great, because SUP is really a sport for young and old. So why not bring the kid on board? Even athletic adults have learned to stand up paddling in less than half an hour.
Furthermore, the WindSUPs are also a great opportunity for the sport itself. Windsurfing has slipped a bit out of fashion. A few young people away from the windsurfing hotspots are very interested in sports. Reason for this is in my opinion also the high material intensity.
This is associated with high initial purchase costs, much needed knowledge (what should I buy, how do I build that, is it broken or does it have to be that way?) And a lot of time flowing into the equipment.
WindSUP could be a cost-effective, easy and fast solution to tackle the most important issues and ultimately increase the flow of young people in particular.
How much wind do you need for WindSUP windsurfing?
That depends on the size of the sail. But even at 6 or 7 knots, light WindSUPs start to slip. WindSUP is the right choice, especially in light wind conditions. At more than 8 knots, first maneuvers can be given.
How fast can you get with WindSUP boards?
The boys and girls from surf magazine have already made it to 40 km / h. If you look at the development, higher speeds will surely be achieved in the near future.
Do you carry a leash in WindSUPing?
Yes, you wear a leash at WindSupen.
The leash is attached to the board and your ankle. If you fall into the water, this tether extends to several meters. But you’re connected to your board so it can not swim away.
When buying a Leah, be sure to look for the property coiled. These tethers are curled and correspondingly short. Only when falling do they expand. This is important because previous versions of the leashs often got caught in underwater plants or on rocks.
Further reading
- surf magazine, free article , 2016
- adventure travel, Wind SUP: is that possible? , September 14, 2015