Review: Badfish Wavo
Summary: The inflatable Badfish Wavo is a great river surfboard for beginners who surf small and shallow waves. Continue reading for the full review…
The Badfish Wavo is best suited for small, mushy, shallow waves/holes. The high volume allows it to surf even the smallest foam piles. Usually I surf these kind of waves on a SUP, but I found that I could leave the paddle on the shore with the Wavo.
Often small waves come with the hazard of rocks just beneath the water. The inflatable construction is a prefect match for these boney conditions. It is nearly indestructible. After a season of abuse, my Wavo looks like new. And unlike the inflatables of the past, the Wavo doesn’t feel spongy/floppy when surfing.
On higher quality waves or on shortboard specific waves, the Wavo feels out of place. At 6’2″ the board doesn’t fit well on adjustable waves like those found in Denver, Boise and Bend. On larger waves the high volume and lack of rails makes it hard to turn; you’re not going to be throwing buckets on this board. It’s more of a slow cruiser with a single fin feel.
I feel that the Wavo is best suited for beginner to intermediate surfers. It catches waves easily, and is stable enough to learn how to pop-up. As an inflatable, there is no stress about breaking the board while learning. After the board is outgrown, it can be more easily sold than a used hardboard that undoubtably will have several dings.
For advanced to expert river surfers I would only recommend the Wavo if you are planning on surfing small, shallow waves and are worried about dinging your hardboards. For SUP river surfers, the Wavo also works as a SUP for expert paddlers who don’t weigh too much. This can be a fun challenge.
The Wavo is a good board for beginners. It’s also worth a look if you’re experienced but find yourself surfing a lot of small and shallow waves.
Have you surfed the inflatable sk8? If so how does it compare to the Wavo? Great blog, thanks for all the work.
I have surfed the inflatable SK8, but never owned one. I always felt like the inflatable SK8 didn’t have enough volume to surf the really small, mushy waves that the Wavo can. The inflatable SK8 can surf better waves, but I usually want a non-inflatable for good waves.
Has anyone tried the new version with the “wiki” rail? I’ve only ridden the one reviewed here and was curious if it felt faster. We have a fairly slow wave most the year and Im 210lbs so I’m trying to decide if the wiki might work. The IRS is a bit to big for my liking.