Detailed comparison video of Red Paddle Co Ride, Sport & Voyager inflatable paddle boards

Reuben and the SUPboarder crew is back with an excellent video detailing the 3 main Red Paddle Co board ranges. The all round Ride family of boards, the cross-over Sport family of boards and the touring and adventuring family of Voyager boards.

Red Paddle Co Ride, Sport and Voyager inflatable paddle board comparison

Welcome back to another SUPboarder video. In this video we’re going to be talking about three board ranges from Red Paddle Co. The Ride range, the Sport range and the Voyager. We’re going to compare these three main Red Paddle ranges and help you understand which board would best suit you and your paddling needs.

Now some information about Red Paddle Co. They are a well-respected brand, they’ve been making top-end iSUPs since 2008. The boards are robust, rigid and they definitely use quality materials. They do lots of R&D into their products and they have a good range of boards, and many of their boards have patented features such as the RSS stiffening battens, like on the Voyager and the Sport, but it’s not just top quality boards. The overall package is great, comfortable backpack and all the boards are supplied with the super fast and easy to use Titan Pump. They have a range of good paddles to go with those packages too.

So let’s talk about the three main board ranges from Red Paddle Co and let’s help you work out which one is best for you.

Red Paddle Co Ride

The three boards in the main Red Paddle Ride range that we are going to cover in this video are going to be the 9’8″, the 10’6″ and 10’8″. They also do multi-person Ride boards as well, that are great for bigger families, but we’re not going to cover them in this video.

So with its rounded nose and stable outline shape and indestructible fins, the Ride range is designed for all-round paddling. It’s ideal for those getting into SUP and wanting to get a board that really can do it all, and also be great for the whole family.

Shorter than other models in the Red Paddle Co range, the Ride range is good for both flat water and surf because it’s a little bit more manoeuvrable, but the shortness in length does come at a compromise with the overall glide being less than the longer boards.

The three sizes suit very different people – the 9’8″ x 31″ is better suited to smaller paddlers or children with a max weight of around 90kg (200lbs). The 10’6″ x 32″, the 10’6″ is definitely the most popular board in the whole Red range, it can take paddlers up to about a 100kg (220lbs) and it’s probably the default family board. The 10’8″ x 34″ is a very stable board, it’s great for the larger or less confident paddlers. Tt can take weight to 120kg (265lbs), so it can also take more than one person. The shorter 9’8″ with its thinner rails and RSS battens down the side make it nice and rigid, better performing in the surf, but that doesn’t mean you can’t use the other ride boards in the surf as well, just with the thinner rails that 9’8″ makes it a little bit more optimum for that surf performance.

With the indestructible red PVC iFins that all of the Ride range have got, make the boards ideal to be used with kids and families. When they want to be paddling in the shallows or even standing on the beach playing about with the paddles, this also makes them really popular for schools and clubs, just because it makes the board really, really robust and they can handle any knocks and scrapes that are going to come their way.

All the Ride boards have a front bungee so you can easily paddle with your essentials, take drinks or small dry bags. Despite them being shorter, because they’re quite wide up at the nose, they are nice and stable, you can still carry things securely up at the front.

Read our review of the 9’8″ Ride.

Read our review of the 10’6″ Ride.

Read our review of the 10’8″ Ride.

Red Paddle Co Sport

Three boards in the Red Paddle Sport range: 11′ x 30″, 11’3″ x 32″ and the 12’6″ x 30″. Longer in length and the Ride range, more thinned down in the nose and squared off at the tail. Overall, a much sleeker outline profile which is going to give you way more glide, better overall performance, better speed. This means then, it’s way easier to paddle further.

Again, the three board choices the Sport range allows you to find the best board to suit your needs. The 11′ x 30″, a great board for riders up to 85kg (190lbs) looking for more gliding speed and general performance than the Ride range. The 11’3″ x 32 is ideal for slightly heavier riders, up to maybe 110kg (240lbs) or those looking for a bit more stability. Then the 12’6″ x 30″ is perfect for somebody wanting to paddle further or somebody looking for a slightly faster, but still stable board, maybe even want to give racing a go, the 12’6″ is a good board to look at. It’s able to carry riders up to 150kg (330lbs), so the 12’6″ will also suit those larger paddlers.

The RSS battens that are down the side of the board on the Sport, produce a lot more stiffness, give you a lot more response when you’re paddling, giving you that harder composite board feel, making the board bend less in the water, which means you can paddle further and faster for longer.

Now, in the Sport range, the PVC iFins that were on the Ride range are replaced with the FCS 9″ fin and US fin box. Much better at tracking, much better at performance. Again it’s a little bit more of a compromise because you’ve got to look after that fin a bit more. It’s not really the fin setup to have the kids jumping on the board on the beach, but it’s a standard fin setup you find on all top-end boards and it’s much better at that high performance, in getting you going in a straight line and paddling further.

Read our review of the 11′ Sport.

Read our review of the 11’3″ Sport.

Read our review of the 12’6″ Sport.

Red Paddle Co Voyager

The Red Paddle Voyager 12’6″ x 32″ and Voyager+ 13’2″ x 30″ being larger, slightly thicker, higher volume than the other boards in the Red range, the Voyager range of boards are not only ideal for larger paddlers, but also those wanting to paddle further with kit on your boards. The extra lengths of these two boards again offer additional glide, easier paddling moving up from the Sport range.

In addition, they’ve got tie-downs on the nose and you’ve got tie-downs on the tail which gives you plenty of opportunity to store your stuff, these boards are way more set up to take you places, paddling further and holding more weight on the board in general. And also remember, there’s a lot of space up at the front here so it can take a lot of weight with your carry bags, or in your dry bags, but you could also sit a child up at the front or you can take your dog up at the front and you can still paddle a long distance.

Now, it’s finished off with the same 9″ FCS fin and the US fin box that’s on the Sport, so you’ve got that great straight line tracking again, but it’s also finished off with two side runners at the back and a nose runner up at the front. That means then, if you’re running in really shallow water, maybe you’re touring and exploring, you can take the the US center fin out and you can paddle it just on the two side fins. It’s not going to get you going in a hundred percent straight line, but it’s going to help you enough to just track along those really shallow canals. The nose runner up at the front is fantastic when you put on extra weight on the front of the board to help the board go in a straight line.

Also the Voyager is finished off with the RSS battens which again, give great stiffness to the board making it super stiff, and also with the thickness, this board really comes out as a very stiff board when you’re paddling it.

Both boards in the Voyager range are designed to take you and your kit places, but for more competent paddlers who are after a real adventure based board, this the 13’2″, is longer, slightly narrower, and you are going to be able to paddle much further. You’re going to get much more glide per paddle stroke, so if you’re looking at really doing some distance then this is the board to look at, the 13’2″.

Read our review of the 12’6″ Voyager.

Read our review of the 13’2″ Voyager+.

Summary

So to give you a summary of these three great board ranges from Red Paddle Co. If you are really looking for an all round paddle board, to experience a bit of playing around the waves, a bit of flat water, practice your turns and have fun with the family then definitely the Ride range. It is the most popular range of boards so far and it’s the range that everybody should be looking at for that all round paddling experience. Definitely heavier riders or people that need a bit more stability, look towards the bigger boards, and the lighter riders and people that want to push into the surf, definitely look towards the smaller 9’8″.

The Sport range sits really well in between the Voyager and the Ride. You still will be able to catch tiny little waves on the Sport range, but it is definitely a bit more flat water-based than the Ride. If you’re looking at paddling further for less effort, then look towards the Sport, they are great range of boards, they are nice and light and they’re very easy to use.

If you really are sticking towards flat water and you want to cover a bit more ground and put a bit more weight on your board, then definitely look towards the bigger Voyager range. Way better at carrying weight at the front and the back. Remember that weight could also be a child or a dog, so it is still potentially a family fun board as well, but it isn’t going to be as manoeuvrable as the Sport or the Ride range.

Three great ranges from Red. Really well made products, definitely a good board to keep you on the water this year. If you need any further guidance in choosing the right Red Paddle Co inflatable stand up paddle board for your needs, call us on 1-888-252-4983 or email us and we’ll be happy to help. We pride ourselves on matching the right board to every paddler and have a pretty decent success rate!

Related posts:

Detailed video review of the 2018 Red Paddle Co Voyager boards Detailed video review of the 2016 Red Paddle Co Sport 12’6″ inflatable SUP Detailed video review of the Red Paddle Co Ride inflatable paddle boards