As a bodyboarding enthusiast, you will agree that a bodyboard bag is essential for a smooth surfing experience. Not only are these bags made to allow you to conveniently and safely carry your bodyboard to the ocean, but it also comes with extra room for other bodyboarding accessories.
This article will examine the advantages of a bodyboard bag, what makes a good bodyboard bag, and some of the best bodyboard bags on the market. Read on to get insights on the topic of bodyboard bags.
What Are The Advantages Of A Bodyboard Bag?
So why does it make sense to invest in a bodyboard bag? While you can easily tuck in your board underneath your arm, investing in a bag is important and below are some advantages associated with it.
- Easy to Carry
The essence of a bodyboard bag is to allow you to pack and carry your surfing items to the beach conveniently. Most of these bags come with two or more compartments; one for surfing boards and the other for things such as swimsuits, fins, and towels. These compartments allow you to pack and arrange all your surfing items in one easy-to-carry bag.
What’s more, most bodyboard bags have handles designed to make it easy for you to carry them. Moreso, those with shoulder and back straps allow you to keep your hands free from other activities.
- Protects Your Board
A bodyboard bag allows you to carry your boards in a safe compartment that protects your board from harmful sun rays, scratches, and any dirt that may cause stickiness. For one, they feature material with great resistance to sun rays to reflect harmful radiation. Additionally, the extra padding protects your boards from scratches from transporting and storing your boards, among many others. And also, they cover the boards from any possible dirt that might cause stickiness. Finally, the high-quality and double zipper incorporated in most bags allows you to lock them for additional security.
- Makes Traveling Easy
Not only do bodyboard bags form a safe compartment for carrying boards, but they also make traveling with your boards easy. For example, they allow you to pack all your surfing accessories in one bag, greatly reducing the number of bags you travel with. In addition, some surfing board bags are big to accommodate more than two boards. So if you are surfing with many family members, you can pack and carry all your surfing boards in one bag to ease traveling.
- Designed for Extra Comfort
The back handles, and straps are padded to provide maximum comfort while carrying your boards and surfing items over long distances. Another thing that makes these bags extra comfortable is the snug fit. Carrying these bags, you would forget there is something on your back or shoulders, thanks to the well-thought-out shape and design.
What Should A Good Bodyboard Bag Have?
So now that you know the many benefits of a bodyboard bag, what makes a good bodyboard bag? Below we shall look at some of the features that are essential to say a bag is good.
- Mesh Drains
Surfing by the ocean will leave your boards and gears wet and full of sand. So a good bag incorporates mesh at the bottom to drain water and sand. This is key because water and sand can make your gear heavy. Also, keeping items full of water in the bag can make them smell. Thus as a standard, a good backpack should come with a mesh drain to avoid these things.
- Comfortable Handles and Straps
As you buy a bag, ensure that it comes with a padded handle or strap as a standard. Remember, most of the load is on the straps and handles, so you want to ensure you cushion your hands and shoulders from stress arising from the area. Also, note that the more dense the padding, the more comfortable the handles, and straps are. So if you are looking for more comfort, handles with thicker padding would be ideal.
- Large Enough
A good bodyboard bag should be large enough to accommodate all your surfboards and accessories (e.g. your bodyboard fins or your camera). For example, if you go surfing with four other family members, you want to pick a bag that will accommodate all four boards, surfing gear, and maybe an extra compartment for carrying water. Remember, a backpack is only good if it can conveniently serve its intended purpose. So go for a large bag to accommodate all your surfing items.
- Durable Material
Like any other investment, you want something that will give you value for your money. And thus, a good bag should be made of high-quality and durable materials to provide you with years of service. For most bags, polyester is the best material. Not only is it resistant to wear and tear, but it is also waterproof and extremely easy to clean. Also, compared to other durable materials, polyester retails at an affordable price. So as you shop for a bag, check the material and ensure that it is durable enough to go for months.
- High-Quality Zipper
Investing in a bag with a quality zipper is important to keep your items safe. You do not want to go for a zipper that fails after a short period making it difficult for you to carry things in your bag. As a standard, a good backpack should come with a durable and rust-resistant zipper, more so because bodyboarding involves salty environments known to accelerate rusting.
- Scratch Resistant
Another feature that makes a bag worth trying is the great scratch resistance. As a surfing enthusiast, you know that scratches greatly reduce the effectiveness of your board. So, you want something that protects your board from scratches, especially when traveling. A good bag, therefore, should be well-padded to absorb any impact that might scratch your board.
Top Rated Bodyboard Bags
A bodyboard bag that best suits your needs is essential for a smooth sporting experience. However, with the many brands of bodyboard bags on the market, selecting one that best suits you can be an uphill task. Therefore this section will review some of the best bodyboard bags to guide you.
GLOBAL Padded Travel Bag by Curve: Sports & Outdoors
This is one of the top bodyboard bags by Curve. With many years of producing surfing board bags, Curve brings you one of the best-padded bodyboard bags. It features a quality water-resistant poly-canvas material and a big tooth rust-resistant zipper.
The bags have a large storage pocket that fits a 25” x 44” bodyboard or two 25” x 43” boards. It also comes with a large external compartment and full-width mesh drainage. Another wonderful feature of this bag is that it gives you the option of hanging on your shoulder or throwing it on your back. It comes with detachable shoulder straps, back straps, and a handle. They are all padded for extra comfort.
Generally, this bag brings you some solid features at a very affordable price and would make a perfect fit if you are looking for a simple and snug fit bag. However, one downfall is that the 5mm thick padding is extra light and thus might not give the protection required of a travel bag.
Pros
+ Waterproof
+ Has a rust-resistant zipper
+ Features mesh drainage for draining sand and water
+ Padded shoulder straps
Cons
– Extra light padding
BLOCK SURF Bodyboard Bag
Another bodyboard bag worth looking at is the one by BLOCK SURF. This one accommodates up to two boards and incorporates a durable design to give you long-lasting service. It also has an external zipper pouch for storing bodyboarding accessories such as fins, wax, wet gear, and towels. Additionally, it features adjustable back straps to allow you to carry your surfing boards comfortably on your back.
Another wonderful feature is that this bag has mesh at the bottom to allow water and sand to drain. However, the mesh drain only runs a few inches long and can be a turn-off if you want a drain that runs all through.
Overall, this bag is affordable and brings you many features at an affordable price. So, if you are looking for a simple portable back bag that can fit up to two surfboards, this one is a great product.
However, you should note that although the bag can fit two 42” bodyboards, one of the boards should be smaller. For instance, if you carry a 42” board, the other one should be a 37” one. Therefore, this bag is perfect if you are looking for a bag that will fit your board and that of your kid. Moreover, the fin pockets are too small for two pairs of fins and the mesh drain doesn’t run throughout the bottom of the bag.
Pros
+ It includes adjustable back straps
+ It features long lasting service
+ It features a simple, portable design
+ It is priced affordably
+ It can hold a 42’’ and a 37’’ bodyboard at a go.
Cons
– Non-padded, thus unsuitable for traveling
Pro-Lite Bodyboard Single/Double Deluxe Bag: Sports & Outdoors
This product by Prolite features a large, quality body bag ideally made for vacations and travel. As much as the product page states that it can hold up to two bodyboards, it can accommodate three. In addition, it features high-quality nylon,5mm padding, and 3mm gusset foam to give you boards extra protection.
Additionally, this bag features molded rust-resistant zippers to give you a durable way of securing your bag. It also has large external storage compartments with mesh drainage for storing your wet and sandy accessories. Moreover, this bag has padded back straps, and durable side handles to give you two carrying options. However, the back straps are made of cheap material, and unlike the side handles, they rip off faster.
Pros
+ It fits up to three bodyboards.
+ Two carrying options: side handles and backstraps
+ Non-corrosive zipper
+ External large compartments for accessories
Cons
– The material used for back straps is not of high quality.
Conclusion
Bodyboard bags make it easy to carry your surfing items to the ocean. In addition, they protect your boards from scratches and harmful sun rays that reduce the effectiveness of the boards. While it might seem convenient to tuck your board underneath your arms, it is wise to invest in a bag for a long-lasting board. And as you buy that bag, ensure it has most of the features that make a good bag.
We advise you to go for the bag that suits your specific requirements. However, our favorite is the padded Curve bodyboard bag, which fits two 42″ or one 46” boards. Additionally, it features quality padded back straps, detachable shoulder straps, and padded side handles, thus giving you various carrying options.
