Functional fun – Hypr Nalu Hawaii Kaimana 11’ x 29.5” x 172L
We’ ve featured a number of Hypr Nalu Hawaii boards with the Kaimana 11’, reviewed here, being a continuation of this trend. As is the case with all Hypr Nalu boards the Kaimana looks great with its wood veneer finish, dragon graphics and distinct( patented) deep hull concaves. It’ s also a light board, relative to its 11’ length.
Price:
£ 1500
Info:
http:// hyprnalu. co. uk / kaimana. html
CONCLUSION
A true chameleon of a board, with equal flat water paddling prowess and wave sliding performance Hypr Nalu’ s Kaimana 11’ holds big favour with us here at SUPM. Distinctive looks and user friendly it’ s a SUP that many intermediate to advanced riders will find favour with. For riders who dabble with all aspects of stand up – from surf to touring – Hypr’ s Kaimana 11’ could be your go to sled.
On first look the Kaimana 11’ appears to bear touring SUP traits, and while we did indeed put this to good use it’ s a much more hybrid board, with plenty of crossover potential than you’ d assume. Having spent a considerable amount of time aboard the Kaimana we found it’ s an impressively adept surfer. Waves up to around head high are perfectly applicable for the 11’. But more on this in a mo.
29.5” may not suggest the Kaimana a stable platform for some but trust us when we say most intermediate sweepers will have no issue keeping afloat. The overall design of the Kaimana adds a good deal of secondary stability and as such allows pilots to focus on the job in hand. From the off it glides impressively with efficient tacking. That said you can really liven up the ride on flat water by railing the board onto one side. There’ s room for stowing some essentials up front should you fancy a longer jaunt, although we suggest not fully loading the Kaimana – if this is your preference then you’ ll need a bit more‘ board’ to accommodate.
As mentioned the 11’ is an impressive wave slider for the type of SUP it is. The board’ s length ensures super early wave pick ups. You can, of course, sit a little more critically, but you’ d be missing some sliding time. Snagging waves from way out is extremely fulfilling – just don’ t be a wave hog when others are about.
Once on a wave you’ ll be surprised just how much manoeuvrability the Kaimana 11’ has – especially when riding right off the tail. Paddlers will have to push slightly harder through turns but spray chucking is certainly possible. We enjoyed a number of overhead days aboard the 11’, in some cases waves with decent shape which highlights how well it sits in the pocket. k g i e t a r s h e d: h a r d b o a r d s
89 s t a n d u p p a d d l e m a g u k