The Infinity Everready
When I started work on this blog post, Donato Freens had just won the first race in the European SUP League on his Everready, and others from the Infinity Speedfreek squad have had victories and countless podium places in races around the world. In the 18 months it has been available (at the time of writing), this board already has a pretty impressive pedigree.Originally released at the start of 2024, it was a brand new addition to the Infinity Race SUP lineup, replacing the popular Blackfish dugout, a board that was only available for a few seasons. The new Everready was more than a name change; the Everready was a step away from its predecessor and left the iconic Blackfish flat deck as a stand-alone board in the Infinity range.
There were major, yet subtle, if that is possible, changes from the board it replaced and Dave from Infinity did a great job explaining the Everready at his Dana Point base
This Everready was loaned to me by Morten from Infinity SUP Nordic, it is one of his demo boards which I have encountered several times already, but never paddled. You can see it here on TotalSUP.
As one of Morten’s demo boards, it has been thoroughly wrapped in protective tape, which, after 18 months of paddling and racing by a variety of paddlers in a range of situations, is showing signs of wear. However, that tape has obviously done its job of protecting the board from clumsy moments and under the tape, the board looks great!
Here are my thoughts on this all-water race board.
The Specs
This Everready is 14’ long, 22,5” wide, has a volume of 292l.
The infinity website (link here) lists the weight for this size as 10,79kg, which is remarkably light for a solid board! This example registers 11,18kg on my scales for the board and all the tape. That is 0,39kg more than the weight quoted on the Infinity website, and, making a small allowance for the tape of 0,1kg, the weight of this board is 3,5% above that quoted, well within the tolerances of most brands.
The chunky fin supplied is the Infinity Blackfish Sprint fin, and this weighs in at 223g.
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| The team Elite Construction specification for the Blackfish, the Everready is made the same way |
The construction is described on the website as ‘Team Elite Carbon Moulded Sandwich’, which features a lightweight EPS core, a full PVC shell, full carbon fibre wrap with fibreglass reinforcement and reinforced high-density inserts for plugs and the fin box. From the life this board has had, I can confirm that this is a hardwearing finish that stands up to use. Even without all that tape! The parts of this board that are not taped all look great after 18 months of hard use.
This is the same construction as my Blackfish Flat Deck, which still looks great after nearly 3 years of use by me here in Sweden. You can read about my 'Fish here
There are no recommended rider weights or limits for this board on the Infinity website. Browsing through the specs for other boards in the Infinity Race SUP range with similar volumes, it seems that this board is aimed at paddlers up to 95kg, which might make me slightly heavy for this model, but it floated fine with me, and some kit on it.
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| Blackfish flat deck on the left and the very deep Everready on the right |
The Design
This is the most dugout board I have ever spent time on, indicative of how the SUP industry has evolved in just a few seasons; it makes slightly older dugouts look like recessed decks. Dave describes this dugoutness in the video linked above, which I recommend watching if you are tempted to get one.
The primary reason for a deeper dugout is stability, the logic being that the nearer your feet are to the water level, the more stable you will be and, to a point, this is true. There are challenges with making boards this ‘dugout’, and Infinity appears to have nailed it with this model.
Other than the dugout, what have we got with an Everready?
A nose that is halfway between a piercing flatwater style nose and an all-water planing nose. There is a pointiness to it that implies flatter water performance, but the rocker suggests it will be comfortable in more entertaining conditions.
Moving back from the nose, the board has a decent amount of volume up front, which helps with punching through bigger waves, small boat wake and the like. When water covers the nose, it flows easily back and to the sides most of the time, that big nose helping deflect water away from the dugout.
Any water that does make it back to the dugout vanishes! This is Dave’s greatest magic trick, and I am sure the Magic Circle will be in touch. There are three drain holes from the dugout area, one on each side and one hidden under the carry handle, and they do an incredible job of shifting water. This is the driest board I have used in a long time and puts my others to shame in the drainage department.
That carry handle is the usual Speedfreek-branded Infinity handle used throughout the range, super comfy to use and firmly attached to the board, this makes carrying the board any distance as easy as it can be. There are also several mounting holes along the side and nose, giving paddlers plenty of options for perfect handle positioning for beach starts and tech racing. And, if this were my board, to mount bungees to the board for cargo, something that some of the Infinity Pro riders have done!
The deckpad is grippy but not symmetrical, which bugs me aesthetically and grippally. Yes that is a made-up word for gripability. It is still cold here, and in boots, one side of the deckpad in the area paddlers are going to be standing most of the time, has noticeably more grip than the other side. From experience, I know that the slatted grip on my Blackfish works well in sub-zero conditions, and I suspect that this asymmetrical grip will provide two very different grip coefficients in icy water. Interestingly, the board in the video has a symmetrical deck grip…
Moving back from the deep, deep dugout in the middle of the board, the dugout-ness decreases towards the tail, an area we will now call the ramp back to the obligatory kick pad with a central ridge to help locate your trailing foot for pivot turns or surfing, if your skill level permits. The grippy deck grip extends all the way to the tail for slip-free footwork.
There are two leash points, one up front and one at the tail, and there is a single FCS-type slot for accessories, usually your action camera or Speedcoach.
Flip the board over and you will find a HUGE infinity logo, just in case you forget if you fall and flip the board over. Dave can describe the hull best, from 4 minutes 50 in the video, my take is this: the underside is not fussy, a subtle V at the nose fades to a rounded area before flattening out. This makes controlling the board in chop and side chop super easy.
The bottom is then almost flat, I’d say there is a slight concave all the way back with a hint of a hard edge at the sides, this is, for those who are fast enough, a plane line. Paddle fast enough and you’ll find it. I did.
Smack in the middle of the hull is the drain hole shroud, which is proud of the hull and it is very robust! I strongly recommend that you be careful when carrying the board on your head, or you might get a shroud-shaped dent in your forehead. Best to trust me on that and not try this at home.
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| The underside of the nose of the Everready |
On the Water
I had this board for several weeks and multiple training sessions at the lake and on the local fjord, covering over 100km. Conditions ranged from virtually flat water to entertaining chop and one session in winds gusting past 50 km/h. Challenging. The board handled all of this without fuss, and no falls.
This is a 22,5” wide board, narrow for most paddlers and one of the narrowest boards I have paddled quickly. If you are new here, then I am a big unit, 193cm tall and 98kg, and my race board is a 23” flatwater special. I am too heavy for that, but it works. Narrow boards are a challenge for me, and I was nervous to collect this one from Morten at Infnity SUP Nordic in April when the water here in SW Sweden is cold!
However, after our first session at my training lake went very well, I relaxed and got on with the job of enjoying a new-to-me board. This is a VERY stable board, even when (possibly) slightly overloaded.
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| At my training lake |
Despite my weight being higher than what I guess to be the intended paddler weight for this board, my feet were always dry, no water came in via the drain holes, something that I experience on a lot of dugouts.
Having spent a lot of time on my Blackfish flat deck and some time on the Blackfish dougout, I was happy to hear the difference with the new nose design. The Blackfish boards slap through small chop and waves, it is not an inefficient slapping as you will know from my speed on the 27” flat deck, but it is not stealthy. It would be hard to sneak up on someone using a Blackfish. Not a problem with the stealthier Everready.
The Everready nose is much sleeker than its siblings and, to a degree, cuts through the water. It is not as sharp as a flatwater board, like the Whiplash, for example, but the difference from its stablemates is noticeable.
Many other reviewers comment on the 'glide' for this board, and if you go looking for reviews after reading this one you might notice that many use exactly the same phrasing "... holds glide speeds incredibly well...". I am sure that is a coincidence and ... I disagree.
The glide is good for an allwater board, but when you try a Whiplash (or any dedicated flatwater board), you will recalibrate your glide expectations.
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| 2024 Everready, 2022 Blackfish Flatdeck, 2023 Blackfish Dugout |
In side chop, the Everready is easy to paddle until waves are exactly side on, then I find that all boards get unsettled until the paddler can get an angle of attack sorted out, either positive or negative. Performance in mixed conditions is very good; you can lean this thing almost on its side and still stay dry, which allows you to get on with the important task of paddling. Leg fatigue is reduced as a result of the stability giving you, the paddler, more energy to use on going forward.
The tail works well with excellent small bump catching capabilities; you can feel the board accelerate from the slightest bump. As for surf, I have no idea! Let's be honest, I am not about to take a narrow board out in surf, even if I had the conditions, while I had the board. My skillset stops short of that.
Turning, especially pivot turns, are fine. Not as confidence-inspiring as my wider Blackish, but better than I expected for such a narrow tail. It was forgiving of my clumsy footwork and didn't chuck me off.
Speed is decent, not flatwater fast, but not slow either. I think that, given more time and a racier fin, in warmer water, I would reduce the 5km time for this board. By how much is hard to gauge, but I would be confident of getting the average speed up to 9,3 km/h and the time taken closer to 32 minutes 15 seconds.
This test was done using the SUP My Race Time Trial rules, out and back to the same spot, negating any advantage from wind or current, a true test of board speed.
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| The SUP My Race Time Trial on this Everready |
Of course, I put the Everready up against my Blackfish and the other boards in my garage. You can read about that here
Is this board Ever Ready?
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| The Everready at Kalvö in Kungsbacka Fjord |
The answer to that is yes, but then all boards are always ready to paddle if you are. The question might be better phrased ‘Ever Ready to Race’, and again, that gets a yes from me and most paddlers who have tried this board.
What don't I like about the Everready?
The colour is not one I would choose, but the orange nose against a predominantly white board looks sharp, even if it does need to be cleaned frequently. Magic sponge to the rescue for any marks on the white paint! I do love the orange, just wish there was more of it.
The deckpad is a minor irritation for my OCD and could be changed if my suspicions for ice paddling were proved to be correct. But the important one is the lack of storage. I get that this is a race board but even Pro racers take stuff with them when they are training. Check out Sprint World Champ Katniss Paris on Instagram, and you will see she has attached a bungee to the deck, just like I do! If only I were able to turn like her, or paddle as fast.
Conclusions
This is a light, very stable, decently fast SUP Race Board for mixed conditions. It appears to be well-made and demo-board proof. If you paddle anywhere that is cold, then the fantastic drainage might be as important to you as the stability.
This nimble board will leave you with no excuses when you get to the finish line.
The board is Everready, are you?