Gliding along – Naish Glide Air 12ft SUP review
We bought the Glide because we were looking for a large volume board suitable for heavier riders on river trips – or for expeditions where equipment needs to be carried. We have been using Naish One boards for a few years and they are one of our favourite air boards. Their drawback is that for heavier paddlers (over 80kg) and nervous beginners they can be unstable.
It’s an important consideration for us as we often introduce people to SUP on the Thames and canals where they prefer to stay out of the water if possible. We have been looking for a few larger volume, stable boards to add to the Active360 coaching fleet.
The first thing I noticed was how light this board is for its size. At just over 11kg it’s easy to move around both in the bag and out. It comes with a large carry pack, which is upgraded from the earlier Air carry bags, it’s a strong looking bag which looks like it will last and is comfortable for carrying distances.
We like the colours and particularly the practical grey deck strips which will not show muddy footprints. For years we have been telling manufacturers that white decks just look really bad after a few weeks of urban / river use.
The pump is good. At last air board manufacturers have started producing thinner pumps, which make pumping to high pressure easy. We have been asking for these for years and had become increasingly annoyed with the ineffective pumps supplied with almost all brands. We were able to easily take the board to 17psi, which is slightly above the recommended pressure – a small thing but this makes owning and using an air board more practical.
On water the Glide was very stable with lighter paddlers. At 30” wide the Naish One offers good stability but for a nervous or heavier beginner, the extra four inches of width the Glide offers dramatically increased stability. Our heaviest tester was well over 100kg and he found the board slightly less stable but still OK to paddle.
The Thames can get choppy with wind against tide and wash from commercial boats so the stability is welcome. This comes at a cost as this is obviously not a fast board, however, it’s 12’ long and is therefore faster than the shorter wide boards available. It turns well and is generally fun to paddle as are most of the latest generation of top quality air boards.
Paul Hyman Active360
CONCLUSION
Handling is good and we look forward to taking this board on an expedition in future, we’ll just have to start planning another Greenland trip. Meanwhile we will soon be giving it a more thorough testing at home on the choppy days of the Thames and a few coastal trips.
Further info: Kubus Sports UK sales@kubus-sports.nl
Tel: 07748 186402
Prices: £1175
Hi, thank you for your review, which was one of the factors that convinced me to purchase the Naish Glide Air.
I would really appreciate your feedback on a small issue I have.
My board arrived yesterday so I took it out to sea today for its first test.
I pumped the board up to 14psi which is the maximum recommended pressure as is clearly printed on the board, while at the same time remembering your note about pushing it easily to 17psi.
Out on the water, it was immediately obvious that the board could use more stiffness. At 14psi it’s good but not great.
My question is whether you have been using this board often and at what pressure level? Do you think it’s safe to push it every time to 17psi? Is the performance clearly better compared to 14?
Thank you very much and greetings from Cyprus
Andreas
Hey Andreas. Best thing is to always over inflate – if you can. It’ll be a bit of hard work as you’re relying on physical strength. Don’t use an electric pump though as this may over inflate. If you’re still having issues then give the retailer, where you purchased the Glide, as shout. Let us know how you get on. Cheers, SUP Mag UK.
Hi again, and thank you for the reply. I copy the response from Naish regarding this issue, for reference.
Quote:
We say 14 PSI max in general, because over inflating it in a hot place can increase the psi and potentially blow up the board or stretch the material. We feel its just enough and doesn’t take away from performance. Check out the inflatable user guide for more detailed information http://www.naishsurfing.com/downloads/