The paramount challenge of the truly active-obsessed? Balancing the urge to do every outdoor sport you can without getting caught in an avalanche of costly gear. And for those of us with limited storage space for all that gear, owning a stand-up paddle board had been a bridge too far. Thankfully, as the sport has evolved, so has the gear, and now you can score an inflatable board for under a grand. The new NRS Tyrant 4 ($995), a nine-foot-long and four-inch-thick inflatable SUP board, boasts a grippy deck surface, a stomp pad, and interchangeable fins to match the conditions. At 21 pounds, it’s less than half your typical max-weight-allowance for check-in luggage and comes with a carrying bag, a high-pressure pump, a pressure gauge, and a repair kit. The pack size is still pretty big—it probably won’t slide under you bed—but but the shoulder straps make it a breeze to haul to the water,
-Nathan Borchelt
