Glide Inflatable Paddle Boards 2022 Lineup
The most durable, eco-friendly SUP boards on the planet deserve a proper introduction! Here is our 2022 Inflatable Paddle Board lineup.
O2 Retro All Around Paddle Board
This is the classic stand up paddle board, the board that everyone wants to own, and all the other paddle boards want to be. As inflatable sup boards go the O2 Retro is the most common shape, but don't let that fool you into thinking that all paddle boards that look like the O2 Retro are the same as the O2 Retro. Like all of Glide's inflatable sup boards its is packed with top-of-the-line features and materials. I won't bore you with that as I have covered why Glide inflatable paddle boards are the best you can buy.
The O2 Retro is an all around jack of all trades paddle board. It is designed so that a first time paddler can jump on the board and have a great time standing up and paddling around. Or more experienced paddlers can push themselves into new areas like whitewater SUP, paddle board camping, or attending your first SUP yoga class.
The board size is a perfect blend of a longer board length with enough width to be stable but not feel sluggish paddling it. If I could only own one paddle board this would be the board I would get.
It would be very sad only having a single board, and I don't want my other boards to know that the O2 Retro is the winner, but look other boards you have to understand you guys are great and I love you all, but the O2 Retro is an all-around board that can do a little bit of everything. Sorry other boards, the O2 Retro is the one board everyone should own.
O2 Angler Fishing Paddle Board
The next sup board we are going to look at is the O2 Angler. This is a board I have a love-hate relationship with. There is no board in Glide's lineup that offers the stability of the Angler. This paddle board is about the most stable paddle board on the planet.
I also love that the deck pad has the wood texture look and all the tie downs and mounts for all your fishing great. If you attach a Glide Cooler to the board (other coolers work fine also) you have a super comfy seat and you if you pack enough food and beverages I think you could live on this board for a few days.
Fishing from the board is easy as it is such a stable platform and with the Scotty Mount plates and star mounts you have almost an endless supply of options to carry are your rods and do-dads you need for a day out on the water slaying fish as the kids say. This board was designed from the ground up to be a fishing platform that paddles well and will take you into spots that you can not get to by boat, or by hiking around the lake.
The Angler was a very fun board to design as I was able to work with avid anglers on exactly what they wanted in a fishing paddle board, and what they did not like from other fishing paddle boards on the market. If you are an avid fisherperson or just getting into paddle board fishing you are going to love this board!
And this is why I have a love-hate relationship with this paddle board. I know that this board is one of the best if not the best inflatable board for fishing and that it catches a ton of fish. I have seen it first hand, I have seen all the fish that people catch on social media on the Angler the board catches fish. Just not for me.
I have been out more than I like to admit and I have caught zero fish. Nada, nothing. And yet total beginners that go out with us the board, people who have never caught a fish in their life, let alone caught one on a stand up paddle board are pulling in fish left and right all around me and having the time of their lives meanwhile asking me "how many have I caught?" Zero people I have caught no fish, and I have even read all the guides on our site about SUP fishing. It makes me sad, but secretly a little happy as fish are icky and I really don't want to catch one.
Anyways if you are looking for inflatable paddle boards for SUP fishing the O2 Angler is going to be your board. New for 2022 it has stake pole holders on the side so you can anchor you board in shallow water quickly and as a bonus, you might even get to stab a fish as your setting your anchor pole.
O2 Lotus the SUP Yoga Board
This Lotus board is one of our oldest boards and is the first paddle board designed for SUP yoga. I know this is a bold claim, but hear me out! Back in 2010 or 2011 we had a bunch of pioneers of SUP yoga come to us and ask us if we could design a board that was specific for SUP yoga as the boards that were on the market just were not cutting.
Wait what, boards on the market, so how can you say you were the first paddle board designed for SUP yoga if there were already boards on the market? Great question! I am so glad you asked. So the "yoga" boards on the market at the time were just generic mass-produced shapes like the Retro, but to make it a "Yoga" board they added some generic yoga-inspired graphics and marketed the board as a yoga board.
What was a but sus is that you could also get the same exact board with a different paint job that was a surf model made for wave riding. And then that exact same board from the same company or companies that were painted a different pattern that was now sold as a flatwater paddling board that was also good at riding waves.
It was a way to take a single board and make many boards out of the same shape. And so with the expert advice of the nation's top yogis we built the Glide Lotus board which was the first paddle board designed specifically for paddle board yoga.
Working over the years on the Glide Lotus has been great, I have had the chance to work with yogis from all backgrounds and all experience levels to make what we believe is the perfect board for SUP yoga. Almost all yogis generally preferred a short size board that was wide and stable.
They wanted it to have a smooth ride and be able to paddle through chop well, but ultimately the number one goal was to make a board that made practicing SUP yoga enjoyable for beginners and advanced paddlers. And the Lotus checked all those boxes and has continued to evolve over the years and now the O2 Lotus is the standard by which all other SUP yoga boards are judged.
If you have not had a chance to practice yoga on an O2 Lotus you will love it when you do! The brushed EVA deck pad is extremely soft and comfortable and will invite you to savasana the entire class. SUP yogis this is your board.
O2 Lochsa White Water SUP Board
The Lochsa inflatable white water paddle board is a board that is near and dear to my heart. I was a professional white water kayaker for many years and I still spend the majority of my time on the water in white water.
For the Lochsa I wanted a wider board with both a large removable center fin and flexible rubber fins attached. The large center fin can be used in deep water and it helps not only with tracking but gives a lot of stability, and then for shallow rivers, I wanted to have the flexible rubbers fins attached to the board.
The board is super wide and has rocker on both ends to get over waves and punch holes. The center is a planing hull that makes the board spin on a dime and surf really well for such a wide board. When surfing river waves the board feels like a narrower board than it really is.
The width of the board makes running rapids easy and being right at 10 feet long makes the board more nimble than longer boards tend to be but still has the speed that you need to get through rapids.
The Lochsa is a great board for beginner paddlers or for intermediate and expert paddlers looking for the right board to push into harder white water. The Lochsa deck pads are diamond texture to give you great grip while wearing booties or barefoot. White water paddle boarding is a unique and rewarding experience and let me warn you that 0nce you start white water paddle boarding you may never go back to flat water paddle boarding. You have been warned.
O2 Quest Touring Inflatable Paddle Board
The O2 Quest is an inflatable sup board that is made for long-distance paddling. Touring boards tend to be narrower boards and longer boards that are just made to go fast and far and the O2 Quest is the board of choice if this appeals to you. I always love hopping on the O2 Quest as I feel so fast! And I am not a fast paddler.
The board is a great balance of length and width that gives you a stable platform that paddles very efficiently. The O2 Quest makes you want to explore every nook and cranny of your local lake, or explore new areas and keep paddling just a little further to see what is around the next bend. Stand-up paddle boarding on a touring board is such a rewarding way to paddle you will cover long distances and be able to enjoy nature is such a peaceful way.
The O2 Quest is also a great board to camp off of the board's length and board thickness allows you to carry a lot of weight. And unlike most touring boards the O2 Quest has full deck pads.
The full deck pads are great because they are comfortable, but they also give friction to any gear you want to carry with you and makes it much easier to load down the board with everything you need in case you want to go on your first overnight sup camping trip.
If you are looking for a touring inflatable paddle board then look no further the O2 Quest will take you on all your adventures.
Conclusion
As always if you want to help on how to choose a paddle board or have questions like what is the difference between a planning hull and a displacement hull board. Or why some boars are short boards and some are longer boards. Please give shoot us an email, hit us up on chat, or give us a call we would love to help you find the perfect board so you can spend more time out on the water!
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