Admundson 14’0″ SUP Board Review

Amundson Design 14’0″ TR-X Carbon (distributed by Aquaglide, shaped by John Amundson of Hawaii)

After purchasing a 12′ 6″ board, I knew that for any long distance stand-up I would need a fourteen footer. In August I rode several models at the Outdoor Retailer show and decided that the 27-inch wide boards were just a little too unstable for multi-hour touring. (This was also confirmed my several of the manufactures as they discouraged me from considering their narrow race boards for touring). They work fine for a short races, but trying to stay upright in variable conditions for hours on end seemed too difficult.

I was attracted to this board for the foll0wing reasons:

• It was lighter in weight due to the carbon construction
• It had built-in deck inserts for gear tie downs
• It was more stable with it’s 28-inch width than other narrower models
• It had a displacement-like or “canoe style” nose
• And although this is a minor point…I got special trade pricing direct through the manufacturer.

I have only used the board about three times now. My first experience was dreadful as I had very choppy conditions with winds approaching perhaps 15 MPH. Going straight into the wind, or in a downwinder direction was OK, but the minute I turned cross wind, I had a difficult time staying upright in the 1-foot+ waves.

Later tests proved that this board is about 9% faster than my 12’6″ board. Last week, I did a 19-mile Utah Lake “double crossing,” averaging about 4.7 MPH for this multi-hour paddle in decent (nearly wind free) conditions. My average multi-hour speed on the shorter board was 4.3 MPH in similar conditions. Unlike my shorter board, this board drains much better as little water accumulated on the deck. It is called a “TR” board as it is classified as a Tour/Race board.

This brand is not noted for their “race” pedigree as most of their current line of SUP boards appear to be for recreation use. But then…I was not looking for a fast touring board, not a so-called race board, so I figured that their designs would be OK for my needs. This board has a list price of about $2,100. It included a breather hole with a large Phillips screw (instead of a breathable “GoreTex” type membrane as found on some boards). It has a rated volume of 275 liters and is sold as a 7-1/4″ thick board, but overall it appears much thinner than this. The claimed weight is 27 pounds.

Author: Rando Richard

I’m an old guy (age 69 in 2023) who enjoys aerobic, endurance sports. I call myself a cardio-junkie. Perhaps the more appropriate term would be “ultra” endurance sports. Since I was a teenager I have always enjoyed “slow twitch” outdoor sports like backpacking, ice climbing, running, mountaineering, hiking, alpine skiing and randonnée skiing (alpine touring, backcountry skiing or skimo). In 2005 I starting running with more regularity — except this time it was not for the intent of getting ready for a mountaineering trip, but as an end to itself. From 2005 to 2007 I managed to eek out two seasons of ultramarathons — that is competitive trail runs up to 50 or 100 miles. Due to a nagging ankle injury from the 80s (an accident while ice climbing in the 1980s where my lower tib and fib were badly broken), I had to cease that grueling, but rewarding activity. I then migrated into ultra distance road cycling or randonneuring. The rides are called brevets (pronounced bruh-VAY, it’s French) and are minimally supported — they are similar to ultrarunning and backpacking where one must be self reliant. Although brevets are non-competitive, they do have have cut off times to qualify as a finisher. They are usually are done in groups, which can have a competitive slant to them. Today, I continue to participate in long distance cycling including some ultra-racing, randonnée skiing (a blend of cross country and downhill disciplines) and still get out on an occasional mountaineering trip. Since 1996 I have been designing, manufacturing and selling camera bags. That is Kinesis Photo Gear (kgear.com). In 2005 I started selling cycling bags under the Kinesis label and eventually expanded it to including other sports like SUP (stand-up paddle boarding and some skimo). Consequently, it become eoGEAR — the “eo” stands for endurance outdoor. My wife and I are empty-nesters now and we live and work out in the boondocks of central Utah, half way between Salt Lake City (great powder) and Moab (great red rocks). Well, I guess that is all for now. Safe travels mate! Perhaps I’ll see you on the road or trail. — Richard Stum View all posts by Rando Richard