Review: Badfish MVP-S SUP

Short Review:

A well shaped board for both river surfing and river running, but the small details are lacking and there seem to be manufacturing and/or durability issues (see updates at end of post).

Long Review:

The Badfish MVP-S is a 7’6″ river specific board. It is designed as a river running board for a smaller person, and a river surfing board for a bigger person. I bought this board looking for a balance of both.

A couple months prior to my first multi-day SUP river trip, my go-to board (the Surftech B1 Bomber) cracked across the deck. I had just purchased a Jackson SUPerCharger for my girlfriend to use, and my plan had been to use the B1 myself. Now I needed to find another board. My criteria for a new board was pretty basic: it had to surf river waves well, and it had to handle class 2-3 white water. For my weight (155 pounds) the MVP-S met my needs perfectly.

River Surfing
As a river surfer this board is the easiest and most forgiving I’ve ridden. The hull of the board is shaped like a kayak, making it much easier to avoid catching a rail. The nose as a ton of volume keeping the board from pearling. For fins it has a 2 + 1 setup, giving plenty of options to keep the board tracking straight for the beginning river surfer.

Even though it’s a great beginner river surfing board, it’s still super fun to surf as an intermediate or advanced paddler. The MVP-S surfs with a more… flow-y feel than other boards. The rounded/chined hull and high rails allow you to make smooth turns on the wave, but never feels slow or sluggish.

Down River Paddling
Downriver paddling is a bit more of a challenge. The shorter length (7’6″) makes for a less stable board than most other white water specific SUPs. The short length is made up for by having a forgiving hull that moves across eddy lines easily and a high volume nose to keep the board on top of the white water. The smaller size also makes the board very maneuverable. The MVP-S is great for paddling white water, but may require more skill compared to other boards.

Despite seeming like such a great board, there are many things that I dislike about it. Let’s start with the deck pad…

Deck Pad
The MVP-S is 34″ wide, but the deck pad is only 23″ wide. That’s almost a foot of unusable standing space. When it comes to downriver paddling, I like to have my feet in a stance as wide as possible to help with balance. I was able add some extra deck padding and squeeze in an extra three inches of deck pad on either side of the existing one, expanding my standing space to 29.5″ at the widest point. I also added some deck dots to give me move standing space towards the front of the board.

Handle
The next problem I immediately ran into was the handle on the board. Badfish decided to start using the LiftSUP handle. The handle sits flush to the deck of the board when not in use, and can pop out when you need to carry the board. The idea is great, but is a poor choice for a river board.

The problem with the LiftSUP handle is it gets suck closed when dirt gets into the handle. On an ocean board, it wouldn’t be much of an issue. On a river board however, you spend a lot of time getting off your board, standing in the eddy, walking along the shore, and then getting back on your board. The dirt that ends up on your shoes, goes right onto the deck of the board. To make things worse the deck of the MVP is inset into the board, making it lower than the rails. This means that water, and the dirt from your shoes, ends up pooling on the deck and gathering at the lowest point… the handle. You can actually see in the picture, where dirt has gathered.

The first two times I took this board out, the handle got stuck closed. Once it’s suck, there’s no easy way to get it open or to carry the board. It required prying open with a knife to get the handle open again. I ended up tying a piece of webbing around the handle to keep it from ever fully closing. I emailed Badfish directly to see if there was a solution to the problem. They replied telling me they would check with Boardworks to see if they had a solution and get back to me… I haven’t heard anything from them in months.

Tie-down Straps
The bow tie-down straps are a great idea on a down river board, but the ones that come on the MVP-S are kind of a joke. They’re made out of stretchy material which is fine for securing something light… like a stuff sack with extra clothes. But for anything heavier, it doesn’t hold well at all. A water bottle (for example), will slip out from under the straps while going through rapids… and forget about trying to carry the board with anything “secured” by these straps.

Fins
While I like the fin configuration on this board, the choice to use FCS fin plugs for the two side fins I think was a poor choice. FCS fins are just not built to withstand a river environment. The first tiny rock I bumped into on this board, broke the FCS plug (despite the fact I was using flexible fins).

Longboard style fin boxes (like the one used for the center fin) are MUCH stronger. I’ve run into plenty rocks on different boards using longboard fin boxes, and never had one break. I think a better choice would be to use the stronger longboard fin boxes for all three fins. Using an adapter you can run FCS fins, but don’t have to worry (as much) about damaging your board.

Sharkskin
Speaking of damage to your board… I opted to get the Sharkskin version of this board. I don’t think that epoxy is strong enough for a white water board. Sharkskin is a coating that protects the bottom and rails from rock hits. So far, the Sharkskin seems to be doing it’s job. There’s no cracks in the outer shell, but there are some dents…

I don’t think these dents are causing the board to take on water, but they are concerning. I have a feeling that under the Sharkskin, the epoxy has cracked. This isn’t the end of the world, but it’s a reminder that even though there’s a tough skin, the board inside is still fragile and not designed to handle heavy hits.

The other thing to note with the Sharkskin is that it is a new addition to Badfish’s construction process. Hopefully it will get better, but on my board it looks like a 4 year old painted it on.

There’s drips, runs, and other various irregularities that I wouldn’t expect to see on a $1400 board! It’s a little disappointing to see a beautiful board coated in a thick ugly looking skin.

The Badfish MVP-S is a good board. There are just a few minor things that keep it from being a great river board. I’m sure mine will see a lot of good use this upcoming season.

UPDATE 1: The Sharkskin on my board had dozens of tiny in holes. These holes had been there since the board was new.

The holes didn’t seem to effect the performance of the board and I didn’t think they would absorb water, but after 6 months of using the board it became apparent that the holes were absorbing water and then allowing the water to leak back out after a session. After 4 months of going through the warranty return process with CKS, Boardworks, and Badfish I have a new MVP-S without the tiny holes. Hopefully this board will hold up better than the last one.

UPDATE 2: My second MVP-S started seeping water out of one of the side bite fin plugs. This was probably after only a dozen sessions on the board. After destroying a fin plug on my first MVP-S, I decided to not use the side bites at all on this new board. I can only conclude that this was another manufacturing defect that allowed water in and out of the fin plugs.

The offending fin plug has some delamination of the Sharkskin around it, which could be where the water is getting into the board.

The bottom of the fin plug also has some weird irregularities, which might have something to do with the problem as well.

After waiting for another replacement board for 10 months. Boardworks and CKS decided to refund me for the board. CKS did a great job representing me and helping me resolve the issues I’ve been having. Thanks Bobby and everyone else at CKS!