Uone launches limited edition inflatable SUP race board – The Sprint

Uone, a premium Polish stand-up paddleboarding and watersport brand specialising exclusively in inflatable boards, has released a limited edition of their high-performance inflatable race boards – The Sprint –  introduced for testing in 2023. There are only a few of these boards available and users who think of competing, won’t find them anywhere else on the market.

TotalSUP caught up with Wojtek Tadla, the Polish young gun-turned-SUP Coach at TADLA SUP Club, to chat about the latest addition and how it compares to Uone Viper 14″ x 27″.

Hi Wojtek, welcome back to TotalSUP! Uone has just realeased a limited edition inflatable racing board – The Sprint – which we had the opportunity to test in Poland. What are your first impressions?

Unpacking the Sprint

I was excited to unpack it and loved the look of this board! I wanted to inflate it right away and check how it “behaves” on the water. The board has a really nice finish and the orange colour just immediately pops up. It strikes as a SUPer narrow one though!

Launching the Sprint 

I felt a big difference right away compared to other Uone boards I’ve tested. I felt that this board “didn’t resist” and wanted to go forward. It was pure acceleration and glide even with strong headwind and some decent chop.

A couple of things that stood out were the handles, perfect for beach starts, and the tail kick pad! The width of 22.8” / 58 cm also worked really well for me.

Uone has already boards in its quiver designed for speed such as the Uone Viper. What’s the difference between the Viper and the Sprint board?

The Viper is a great board for open water paddling because of its width. (Uone Viper board review with Wojtek Tadla). The only downside of the Viper are the rubber holders on the deck that were added to mount a special carbon fixture to make the whole construction even more rigid but unfortunately the regulations did not allow us to do that.

Photo by: Artur Palka

Although the Sprint handled the choppy conditions really well on the day, I think of it as a flat water board for SUP speed freaks!

What are the key features you focus on when thinking about getting a board?

Speed, manoeuvrability and transparency. The seller’s warranty is really important and in this case it’s a 5-year board warranty which is great! It’s also good to know whether the seller has its own service or a friendly, affiliated one. Uone has its own SUP board service which is very reassuring when it comes to iSUPs. It’s also about that first impression and the feel when you grab the board by the handle, is the weight distributed well, is it comfortable to carry, things like that. And on top of that it’s the customer service and Uone’s has been repeatedly praised by the SUP community. It’s about trust.

What’s missing on the inflatbale SUP market when it comes to performance models?

What’s missing is reducing the weight and dropping unnecessary kilograms. For example, instead of adding the foam across the entire deck, a few straps at the tail area would do the job.

There’s still a limited choice of boards designed for specific paddlers’ needs. For example, if a user weighs 50 kg, why should they ride on the same board as a person of 100+ kg? It would be great to have inflatable racing boards with a wide range of volumes which I think could help many SUP racers with taking the podiums.

You tested the Sprint in some pretty gnarly conditions in Boszkowo, Poland? How did the Sprint handle that chop?

I think that the Sprint “behaved” very well because I didn’t feel any discomfort and all felt “natural”. I just got tired when we were pulling the pedalo 😉 – some of the crew on the demo day followed Uone riders on a pedalo and were struggling against the wind and waves –  which proves that this board can do what the wider touring SUPs can plus add a little bit of fun to the mix with goofing around on a narrow board.  I’m really pleased with this board, I believed it would perform very well in mixed conditions and it did.

Uone Sprint – Designed for flat water?

Yeah, nothing beats the tranquility of gliding on this board on a calm day which makes training easy as the board cuts the water effortlessly. Throw in some sunset and orange skies and SUP life is beautiful.

Can the Uone Sprint be a board for everyone?

It’s a pretty tough question that can be both answered YES and NO, but let’s look at it from this side. With what attitude are you approaching this board and what do you want from it? Due to its parameters / tech specs the board is aimed at lighter and fairly seasoned riders that can handle its width. But I also believe in scaling up skills and using a more advanced board to transition faster to the competitive side of the sport.

Uone Sprint – The Verdict

In my opinion, the Sprint “dominates” in many areas, the pivot turns can be done much faster than on the Viper, the acceleration and glide are a

Uone Sprint – Technical specifications

• Length: 14″ (427 cm)
• Width: 22.8” (58 cm)
• Height: 6” (15 cm)
• Volume: 262 litres
• Weight: 9.5
• Recommended rider weight: up to 120kg
• Design: Double layer / ULT (Uone Light Technology)
• Warranty: 5 years
• Accessories: The board comes with a large backpack, double chamber air pump, repair kit, leash and a paddle

To find out more about Uone, visit www.u1.net.pl and follow the brand on Instagram and Facebook

If would like to become business partners and part of the „uhlan” SUP family, get in touch with Hubert Tobis via email uone@road24.pl or telephone +48 600 934 216

Follow Wojtek Tadla on Instagram and his Coaching site Tadla SUP Club