My goal was to remain upright on my first frigid river run on a Hobie inflatable stand up paddleboard, especially since the Upper Verde River by Camp Verde, Arizona was only running 230 cfs that morning. There was snow on the distant mountains and I thought perhaps I should have been wearing bright colors, as I could hear hunting gunshots in the distance. Yikes! I did manage to stay upright given easy rapids, and my fin scraping from time to time, and… That I was larger than some animal floating by, for anyone looking for target practice.
I was impressed by the rigidity of that inflatable board, and realized what an asset it would be in our quiver in this diverse Arizona environment. It was a 10’6 model, and since then I have upgraded to the 2016 6 i Series 10’8’ Adventure. My husband Nate has the 2016 12’6” Tour. We love that the updated features seem to get better and better!
There are so many reasons these Hobie iSUPs work for us. They come with a slide-in, snap-in fin, 3-piece paddle, pump with gauge, a repair kit, and a backpack with wheels for airline trips. The inflatables have four handgrips: at the nose, tail and on both side rails. These are in addition to the comfortable carry handle, in the center of the board. We use them for loading, tethering to a friend when we are doing stationary exercise, or for carrying with another person. It also comes with substantial storage bungees toward the front deck, and at the tail. We use them for our flip flops, clipping-in a cooler, gear or headlamps.
Being safe is a priority to any paddler or water person. I love the bright blaze orange color on the nose of the new iSUP boards, so we remain visible to oncoming watercraft. The complimentary blue stripe along the rail and deck and sleak black and white vertical strip down the deck, were great updates on the 10’8. Classy looking iSUP in my eyes!
The 10’8” Adventure iSUP weighs 27 lbs and is a stable 32 inches wide with a solid volume of 277 L. Nate can load us down with gear. No problem on long hauls.
My friend Tracy purchased a 10’8” this year. She says it is perfect to take down the river. Its stability makes it great for SUP yoga on the lake, another obsession of hers. And there is plenty of room for all her gear, even her dog Dakota! It is light enough she can easily get it on top of her Subaru even though she is only 5’2’‘. “Having its own bag-with wheels-storing and traveling with it is a breeze! I cannot say enough about how much I love this board,” she says.
