High Society Paddle Board Reviews – a comprehensive look at the entire product line.
Paddleboarding is more than just a sport or a leisure activity; it's an experience that connects us to nature's rhythms in a way few other activities do. Selecting the right paddleboard can significantly enhance this experience.
Among the many options available, High Society Paddle Boards have earned a reputation for quality and performance, making them a favorite among beginners and seasoned paddle boarders alike.
This discussion aims to provide a comprehensive overview of High Society Paddle Boards, as highlighted by user experiences in High Society Paddle Board Reviews.
Customers' reviews often serve as a wealth of information for potential buyers, providing genuine insights about product performance, usability, value for money, and more. They can help you understand whether a product will meet your specific needs and expectations or not.
Hence, this information is invaluable when considering a significant purchase like a paddleboard. When it comes to High Society Paddle Boards, potential buyers are especially interested in the brand's commitment to quality, variety, and customer service.
Here we summarize the High Society Paddle Board Reviews available across various channels to provide an invaluable resource to understand these aspects thoroughly.
These paddle boards from High Society, hailing from the breathtaking terrains of Aspen, Colorado, indeed live up to their name with their kind of quality and performance. Tailored by a small business dedicated to manufacturing exceptional products and committed to their customers, these boards have even captured the attention of iSUPReview, bagging multiple awards.
High Society offers five distinct models, each designed to cater to a different level of performance. These boards are priced between $800 to a higher-end $1,300. Regardless of particular variations between the models, they all have common measurements –each is 10’6” long and 6” thick. However, their width varies between 32” and 36”, allowing riders to choose their perfect fit based on stability preferences and their own profiles.
From our point of view, the fact that all of their models are 10’6” long is their biggest downside. This is simply because we often like a longer 33”-35” board to accommodate dogs, kids or two seated adult paddlers. We have never been able to make two seated adults work on a board that is shorter than 12 feet. Especially if we are going to be out most of the day and also want to bring food, drinks and other essentials if we plan to be out paddling all day. Therefore, we would love to see them make a 12’x33”x6” tandem -capable paddle board.
That con aside, we love their entire lineup.
Our three favorite things about High Society paddle boards are their design features, how light weight they are, and we especially like that their narrowest boards are 32” wide.
We have found that 31” boards can be a little too tippy for beginners or even intermediate paddlers that may run into the late afternoon winds and waves that seem to come out of nowhere when they are out touring a lake or reservoir. Going from 31 to 32” wide makes a huge difference when it comes to stability while at the same time we have not noticed any sacrifice in performance.
We also love that their boards are so light because we love to hike with our paddle boards into less accessible, and therefore less paddled lakes. There are so many great lakes to explore at the end of a one or two-mile hike. With the ZG, Elevation and Wolf models being only 19 pounds, we hardly notice them on our back.
No matter how you plan to spend your weekend, these inflatable stand-up paddle boards are a fantastic addition to your outdoor adventure arsenal. The beauty of paddling effortlessly in tranquil waters, taking in the serenity of your surroundings, sharing laughs with friends, or even engaging in paddle board games is incomparable. High Society Paddle Boards indeed set the perfect backdrop to creating unforgettable moments of fun and camaraderie.
While these paddle boards from High Society are priced slightly on the higher side, they truly reflect value for money considering the class, durability, design, and the incredible customer service. We have found their designs to be truly comprehensive, including all of the most important features you could want. All of their inflatable paddle boards come with a generous 3-year warranty for manufacturer defects, which they stand behind.
We also like that they are also advocates for Sit Down Paddle Boarding with three of their five designs being kayak seat compatible. This means that there are d-rings to attach a kayak seat or folding chair to.
High Society's paddle boards are brilliant for outdoor enthusiasts who are always up for an adventure and seek convenience and sturdiness in their equipment.
When we conduct reviews, we always look into the company, its location and manufacturing practices. High Society, nestled in the majestic landscapes of Aspen, Colorado, has been committed to the paddle board industry since 2003.
With their devotion to crafting exceptional gear and their dedication to rigorous testing amid the rugged terrains of the Rocky Mountains, their paddle boards are truly high performance, regardless of the conditions they're used in.
In the off season, when they are not manufacturing paddle boards, they manufacture skis and snowboards.
Over the years, High Society has received generous recognition from various platforms, attesting to their credibility. They've also garnered a generous set of positive feedback from users, especially for the high quality, outstanding stability, and the ease of use of their paddle boards.
With distinct models such as the Elevation, Shadowcaster, ZG, USS HS, and the Wolf Stand Up Paddle Boards, High Society has catered to a variety of paddle boarding preferences and requirements, further enhancing their popularity in the market.
The following applies to all of the High Society Paddle Board Models:
As we mentioned before, High Society has five models: ZG, Elevation, Wolf, USS HS and Shadowcaster. Here we will summarize the high society paddle board reviews for each model individually.
The ZG is their entry model and is priced the lowest. It measures 10’6” long x 32” wide x 6” thick.
Other than the fact it has a slightly lower maximum capacity (265 pounds) than the rest in the line and it lacks a few of the bells and whistles like extra d-rings to accommodate a kayak seat as well as extra cargo handles and action mounts, it benefits from the awesome construction that the rest of the line enjoys.
Not only does it track well thru the water, it is a generous 32” wide, making it perfect for beginners who want to stand up at least part of the time. At only 19 pounds it is also super light which means it is perfect for throwing in a backpack and going for a little hike to explore that mountain lake you have had your eye on that there is no trail around.
This is the perfect entry level board for paddling around and exploring the entire lake as well as for having a nice private picnic lunch out of the wind and a nice nap on in the shade after lunch. Your small to medium sized dog will love it too!
This board does not have the extra d-rings necessary for attaching a kayak seat, however, you can always use a folding stadium chair like we prefer if you want to sit down.
Based on the high society paddle board reviews we think the ZG is the equivalent of a Mazda Miata or Toyota Corolla when in comes to usability.
Not only is this paddle board our favorite width for all around touring, it is also super light. Most 33” wide boards are 21-23 pounds! This board had a 270 pound maximum capacity and cargo storage bungees on the front and the back of the board.
Interestingly, it only has carry handles on the nose and the center of the board, so it isn’t great for team carrying where you have someone holding the front and someone holding the back as you carry it to the water. But since it is less than 20 pounds, it is easy enough for an adult to carry and with the front handle, it is easy enough to use with a wheeled cart.
It does not have d-rings to attach a kayak seat to which is a shame. We use folding chairs when we want to sit down, and you don’t need to have d-rings for a folding chair since they sit nice and stable on the kayak without any attachments. However, we do like to clip our folding chairs to d-rings when we paddle down rivers. Why?
Well, take our paddle down the Slate River in Crested Butte, Colorado this past June. We had two adults sitting comfortably on folding chairs as we floated along (see picture below) …until John misjudged the amount of time he had to decide to take the right or left fork in the river and flipped the entire paddle board over.
It was a simple exercise to swim along to a near by gravel bar and flip the board back over. The cooler and the gear was still all secured under the bungees. One of the folding chairs was also attached by the leash. However, one of the folding chairs was not attached to anything so we never saw it again…
Despite the lack of d-rings, this is our favorite paddle board for touring lakes and reservoirs due to the width and the light weight. The extra inch width makes a big difference to a more mature paddler… say someone in their 50’s and beyond whose balance may not always be perfect.
Based on the high society paddle board reviews we think the Elevation is the equivalent of a Acura TLX Type S or Mercedes-AMG when in comes to usability.
This is High Society’s newest model. It has all of the benefits of the ZG since it is the same size and weight. It also has the same maximum capacity of 265 pounds and is the same ultralight 19 pounds to carry around. What the Wolf has that they ZG does not have are d-rings to attach a kayak seat as well as 5 cargo handles. In support of paddle boarding seated it also comes with a hybrid adjustable paddle.
This is a very durable, light and fast inflatable paddle board.
Like the ZG it also has rocker in the nose (meaning the nose tips up a bit) so it glides smoothly in rivers, lakes and streams. It is constructed out of dog friendly commercial grade PVC and has a large diamond pattern, no slipe EVA traction pad for the benefit of both dogs and humans alike.
Bottom line if you like to use a kayak seat and you want a durable yet lightweight paddle board for paddling alone or with a small or medium sized dog, the Wolf is your board.
Based on the high society paddle board reviews we think the Wolf is the equivalent of a BMW Z4 or Audi GT Quattro when in comes to usability.
This model trades off ultra lightness for extra durability making it perfect for recreational use at the lake, reservoir or river for the whole family.
Measuring 10'6''L x 35"W x 6"D, it is two inches wider than our ultralight favorite, the Elevation model. Because it weighs in at 24.5 pounds, instead of 19, this would not be our first choice to hike in to a remote lake in our backpack. It is also not your first choice if you plan to be racing. However, if you don’t like hiking that much anyway and say like Yoga, then this may be your board. 35’ wide is perfect for a yoga paddle board since it will be nice can stable even when you aren’t.
The extra robust materials also mean that if you have kids and dogs, you are less likely to get a puncture due to needing to follow your dog into a downed tree to rescue it and ending up with a sharp branch puncturing your board, for example.
This is one of our favorite High Society Paddle Board models because it has lots of d-rings so you can attach a kayak seat as well as other accessories, like a second seat for tandem paddling and your gear.
Another great feature are the 5 carry handles so that a couple kids can team carry it down to the water with no problem. Like their other boards, it inflates to 15psi in under 10 minutes (with continuous pumping) and is as rigid as a hard board!
Based on the high society paddle board reviews we think the USS HS is the equivalent of a Honda Odyssey or Toyota Sienna when in comes to usability.
This is High Society’s largest paddle board. It measures 11"L x 44"W x 6"D and weighs 32 pounds. While you aren’t going to want to roll this board up and stick it into your backpack ahead of a long hike, you are going to want to inflate this board and take it fishing! It comes with a robust carry backpack with wheels to make it easier for you to get it to where you want it solo. It also has seven handles that make team carrying to and from the water a cinch.
It is capable of carrying 400 pounds of gear, so it can handle your cooler, your cooler seat, your tackle box, and several rods without blinking.
Or if you fancy a camping trip down river, this is the perfect board to hold your gear in dry bags as well as a chair so that you can travel down river standing or comfortably seated.
A few of the features we really like are the fact the rigid part of the board is 32” wide so you are close to the water and the board is super responsive and stable under your feet while standing or sitting. This is super helpful if you are fighting a fish or carrying a heavy load. The remaining width represents 6” of side rail on each side that both stabilizes the board and keeps you dry. The pointy nose protects you and your board from logs, rocks and other pokey things that you may run into while you have a big one on the line.
Our dogs appreciate the outer pontoons since the are less likely to slip off the side and they make an excellent doggy pillow for naps in the sun. Read more about inflatable paddle boards with dogs.
Based on the high society paddle board reviews we think the Shadowcaster is the equivalent of a Ford Expedition or Chevy Suburban when in comes to usability.
In conclusion, it's clear that High Society Paddle Boards have proven themselves as a strong player in the paddleboarding landscape. The company's commitment to quality, product variety, and excellent customer service reflects heavily in all of the High Society Paddle Board reviews we found.
Customers commend the boards for their durability, versatility, and value for money, although some noted that prices are a bit higher compared to competitors. However, the superior performance and longevity of the products make them a worthwhile investment.
Whether you're a novice or an experienced paddleboard enthusiast, High Society Paddle Boards offer a comprehensive range of options to elevate your paddleboarding experience. With a High Society Paddle Board, you're investing not only in a product but in enumerable exciting adventures and unforgettable memories on the water.
We hope to see you out on the water!