SUPing with a heavy dog

Advice
#1

I am looking into buying a SUP. I want to get one that can hold my dog and I. I weigh around 160 lbs and my dog weighs around 80 lbs (he’s a lab so fear of water is not an issue). I will be riding calm fresh water (lakes, ponds and slow moving rivers).



I have been looking at the Pelican line of SUP’s because of their durability and that they are reasonably priced.



The 3 boards I have been looking at are the Flow 11’6" 31.5" wide (weight cap 260 lbs), Flow 10’6" 32" wide (weight cap 230 lbs), and the new Baja 100 10’ long 31" wide (weight cap 230 lbs)



I have read reviews on the flow 10’6" and read that people had little to no issues when going over the suggested weight cap which is still why it and the Baja are in the running.



I’m just looking for suggestions on board specs for SUPing with a dog and any advice on riding with a dog in general. Thanks for your help!

#2

You might get more responses if
you post your question in the SUP section of paddling.net:



http://www.paddling.net/message/showTopics.html?fid=standup

#3

Go
check out the high pressure, drop stitch paddle boards from Saturn. A SUP member in our club has one and let me paddle it for a hour. My take away is I’m ready to order one! Performance is excellent, high weight capacity, very easy to inflate and carry, and due to them being lighter than a hard board, it’s slightly faster in my view. One heck of a SUP.



This is the one I paddled: http://www.boatstogo.com/inflatable-racing-paddle-boards.asp



They also list this one: http://www.boatstogo.com/inflatable-paddle-boards-SUP365.asp

#4

I’d ask
On http://www.standupzone.com/forum/index.php

#5

Good advice to post on stand up zone
One thing you have not mentioned is are you paddling now and what size of board are you paddling. If you are a brand new beginner paddler you need to be able to handle your board, turning, paddling in wind and waves before you put a dog on board. SUPs are actually measured more by volume and it depends a lot on where the volume is … how the rails are shaped. I would rent funky foam top as big as you can find ( 11 or 12 ft) and take your dog out and see that he/she enjoys being on the board and will sit reasonably still while you paddle before you invest in a board.