Hello,
Costco sells the Body Glove Performer 11 online (https://www.costco.com/Body-Glove-Performer-11’-Inflatable-Stand-Up-Paddle-Board-Package.product.100306874.html), but in the stores, it sells a Jimmy Styks “Monsoon” for about the same price (also an 11’ x 34").
I’m new to SUP, would use primarily on Lake Tahoe, but possibly on the Truckee river when it is quiet. Any thoughts on one v. the other?
Thanks!
Paul
I would suggest that you visit one of the SUP dealers in Lake Tahoe (there is one right along the lake near the Nevada border in North Lake Tahoe) and talk to them about what you need. It is generally a bad idea to somebody new to a sport to buy equipment from a big box store.
I understand that perspective, but we’ll be buying a couple, and from a convenience, cost and return policy standpoint, I’m only really considering costco for new (perhaps I’ll get some used ones on cl if the community thinks both boards are crap).
To my surprise, a very cursory search was indicating that the Body Glove board was half decent. But really, don’t take my word for it because I’m prone to thinking that SUPs are a little silly in the first place. Oh, they’re great to show off your tanned beach body for sure, but that seems to be where the usefulness ends from my perspective.
Do some homework with Google. There are plenty of people talking about these boards online already.
Lake Tahoe is not a Florida beach. The water is quite cold once you get past the shallows. The average is 50 to 55 and this is NOT water that you want to be suddenly immersed in without full body thermal protection. This is another reason why I advise you to consult with a qualified outfitter and not buy an inflatable, put on your shorts and tee shirt and launch yourself onto waters that could prove dangerous to your health, even deadly.
@willowleaf said:
Lake Tahoe is not a Florida beach. The water is quite cold once you get past the shallows. The average is 50 to 55 and this is NOT water that you want to be suddenly immersed in without full body thermal protection. This is another reason why I advise you to consult with a qualified outfitter and not buy an inflatable, put on your shorts and tee shirt and launch yourself onto waters that could prove dangerous to your health, even deadly.
Willow is not wrong on this. Tahoe is not only cold, there are times where 4-6’ waves break on the shoreline. It isn’t your typical flat lake (wind and powerboats on many afternoons are an indicator why it isn’t called lake Placid 
). For this lake, a 3 mm farmer john is a minimum requirement, and some wind protection should be carried as well. It is likely that you will spend a certain amount of time in the water on a stand-up board and it is likely to be safer to have the thermal protection.
That said, you also need to be aware that beer, powerboats, and PWC make the water almost as dangerous as the temperature. Boards are slow and ungainly and have surprisingly low visibility (probably because the paddles tend to stay low to the water). I often can pick up a kayaker long before I can a boarder because the paddle motion is higher off the water and thus, more visible. Some boarders, depending on the background, can be very difficult to acquire visually, even though the paddler is high off the water.
Rick
I paddled LT 3x this year, last time was a week ago and yes, the water is COLD. It really does not warm up for comfortable swimming until early August. The afternoon winds almost always come up around roughly 3pm, but dissipate by 6-7pm. During these winds, paddle close to shore for extra safety. The N/W corner of the lake has the least amount of big waves, but it’s a YMMV. Emerald Bay is a must paddle, but heading out of the bay guarantees you will almost always see rough water from wind, boats, and the big paddle wheel cruise boats. Sand Harbor on the north end is another must paddle but can be very rough if the winds kick up.
Regarding the Truckee RIver: it’s moving fast and NOT the place for a newbie on a SUP. I expect you won’t be able to paddle it safely until August…just too much COLD water. Another tip: DO NOT paddle LT alone! Go with friends and especially those with experience on the water. Enjoy the scenery.
A better option for you might be Fallen Leaf Lake just to the south of LT…it’s one of my favorites. It will still be icy cold water, but it’s not affected too much by wind/waves and certainly boats.
I realize you are probably annoyed that none of us has endorsed your plan to buy a watercraft from a big box variety store. There are reasons for this. Many of us recognize and value the importance of dedicated and experienced outfitters in our favorite activities – these are the people who offer good advice, quality products, expertise, including instructional classes, and who have a deeply invested interest in promoting and supporting paddle sports.
The number of dedicated outfitters has gone down quite a bit in the past decade, in large part due to competition from on-line sales and from outlets (like Costco, Dick’s, various hunting and fishing chains, and even hardware and clothing stores) that know little or nothing about the products they are selling and offer no education or product advice and support.
The loss of real watersports outfitters disadvantages those of us who are already serious about paddling by removing convenient, local access to boats, accessories, instruction and community. But it is even a greater loss for newcomers to paddle sports, since that loss deprives them of a major resource for solid, informed introduction to kayaking, canoeing and paddleboarding.
So our reluctance to support your intention to buy from Costco is two-fold. First, you are not going to get informed advice on what would best suit your needs from them, including (an most importantly) instruction and safety recommendations. Second, call us selfish, but a lot of us would appreciate if you and all others new to the sports patronize the kind of dedicated independent outfitters who have been the backbone of introducing newbies to wilderness sports for more than 5 decades but are now struggling to survive. It would benefit both you and the paddling community to buy from them.
@willowleaf said:
Lake Tahoe is not a Florida beach. The water is quite cold once you get past the shallows.
I’m in Florida. I know that it gets cold and the water here gets to 50-55 degrees in the winter and I was looking for the news reports on the St Augustine paddle boarder lost last January . I found him and three more about that time. The common thread was that they were not wearing PFDs or leashes. Wear the pfd. At least get the belt inflatable kind.