It is not hard to tie a bungee on a paddle board. The hard part is knowing what guidelines to follow.
There are a lot of articles online about how to tie a bungee on a paddle board. But I can assure you that none of them are as comprehensive as Paddle Board Nation’s guide!
Using this comprehensive guide, you can learn the right way to do it.
By learning how to properly tie a bungee, rope, or cord on your paddle board, you can head out to the pond, lake, or oceans, along with your paddleboard accessories or belongings, without any worries.
Uses Of A Bungee On A Paddle Board
Storage on Your Paddle Board
A paddle board does not have a storage compartment. Without a bungee, you have nowhere to secure your gears or bags. If you think you can carry your bag on your back, you may want to think again because doing so is dangerous. But with a bungee, it will securely strap your belongings on your board, keeping you safe from extra weight when you carry your belongings on your body.
Emergency Handle
A bungee can also act as a perimeter line. You can use the cords to create such a line: the rope you attach along the perimeter or outside edge of your paddleboard. When your paddle board sways or capsizes, causing you to fall underwater, the cord acts as your emergency grab line.
Your hands could also go numb. You usually experience this numbness when you have been underwater for quite some time. As a result, you would find it hard to grab your board. Holding the board may even be more difficult when it becomes too smooth to hold. An emergency grab line could be the answer.
Make sure though that the rope is large enough to let your finger slip under it. But it should not form catches or loops that may tumble or entrap you during a roll or exit. The line should not also sag but is flexible enough to secure your belongings.
A Handle For Kids
Moreover, your child can hold the bungee to keep them balanced. The paddle board has only one carry handle, and it is located in the middle. Your kid may not reach the handle, especially when they are sitting a distance from the center. Let them enjoy the ride comfortably and safely by making them hold on to the bungee.
How To Find The Right Bungee For Your Paddle Board?
While some paddle boards have static tie-down straps or stretchy bungee cords on the rear or front of the board, other stand-up paddle boards (SUPs) don’t have one. What this type of SUP has are the dedicated attachment points. Hence, you need to buy a bungee.
You can find bungee kits or cords at almost any home improvement shop; you may even see them on various online paddle board stores.
What’s interesting about buying your own bungee cord is choosing different colored ropes to make your board stand out from the rest. Your options are vast.
Choose from blue to orange to neon yellow, and you can make your board have a splash of color. You can even find reflective cords that glow when a light shines on it, making it perfect for a perimeter line or paddle boarding at night.
As a result, you won’t have to settle on a standard colored bungee that comes with your SUP.
The catch is, you may not know how to buy quality bungee cords. With such, you need to check that the cords have the following features:
- Elasticity: The rope or cable must be elastic enough to hold items.
- Materials: With ropes having latex rubber cores surrounded by polyester, your bungee could resist abrasion and UV rays.
- Sealed Ends: The plastic-covered ends can prevent the cords from fraying.
As mentioned, some SUPs may have attachment points. If you don’t have these points, you can add them, too; you can buy D-rings with epoxy or suction D-rings that can stick on your board.
Save more by buying them separately. It may seem as if you are spending much, but in fact, you are saving more. Paddle boards that come with attachment points and bungee cords are more expensive.
How To Install A Bungee Cord To Your Paddle Board
Get your equipment ready. Prepare your paddle board and a cord measuring 6-8ft with a quarter-inch diameter. You may also have to use a carabiner for securing your belongings to the bungee.
Next is to perform the following steps:
Step 1: Feed The Cord – Middle To Nose
Begin feeding the rope in a diagonal pattern from the D-rings near the middle of the paddle board. Then work towards the D-rings near the board’s nose.
Step 2: Feed The Cord – Nose To Middle
Now, work directly across the other side. Continue feeding the bungee on the D-rings near the board’s nose; continue it towards the ones near the board’s center.
Step 3: Make Ends Even
Next, ensure that the cord’s ends are even. Stretch them taut across all anchor points.
Step 4: Tie The Bungee
Lastly, use an overhand knot to tie the cord’s ends together. This knot is one of the easiest ways of connecting lines, and it is difficult to untie, making them perfect for holding your items firmly.
All you need is to form a loop using both the cord’s ends. Then, let the ends pass through the loop; tighten them, and you are good to go. Don’t worry because this knot rarely catches on an obstruction.
Types Of Paddle Board Bungee Kits
Bungee kits are more affordable, too. We said that individually buying the cord and the D-rings is cheaper, but you can also find some cost-effective bungee kits. Here are some of them worth considering:
Mini Bungee Deck Kit With Tri-Way Opening
Narrow paddle board? Not a problem. The mini bungee deck kit only takes a little space on your board.
This minimalistic kit comes with peel-and-stick pads with adhesive on the lower side, so you can quickly stick them on the paddle board’s surface. The sticking power of the adhesive stays longer, keeping the bungee in its place for an extended period. Moreover, this mini kit is perfect for plastic or fiberglass boards.
The cord is 10ft. It also has 10 lbs load-bearing capacity, which can be suitable if you are carrying light.
What’s even better is you can create your preferred mesh with the help of the tri-way opening. Configuring your bungee comes easy.
Standard SUP Bungee Deck Rigging Kit
For any paddle board, a standard SUP bungee kit is the one. This kit comes with D-rings and a cord with 4.5mm thickness and 3.6m in length, allowing you to customize your mesh.
Since the included D-rings are standard, your bungee can handle more loads and create any mesh. Moreover, the D-rings have a longer lifespan as they are made of stainless steel.
In addition, you can install, remove, and re-install it on your own without any damage to your board. No waste of money replacing your bungee after some time.
Elastic Bungee Cords With Cross Cord Hooks
Want to use bungee kits suitable for kayaks, too? Use a kit with cross cord hooks and elastic bungee cords that could help you create a mesh easily. These hooks are versatile, which makes them perfect for your paddle board and kayaks.
This bungee kit is also durable as it has a high load-bearing strength like the second kit; thus, you can use this kit for an extended period without a problem—all credits to the hooks’ material: solid nylon.
Most of these kits have a 25ft cord with a 0.25″ diameter made from latex rubber cores with surrounding polyester, making them highly stretchable, mildew-resistant, UV-resistant, and abrasion-resistant.
Like the other kits, this third type is also easy to install. You can do it by yourself, especially when you follow the steps above.
Ready To Tie A Bungee On A Paddle Board?
Time to tie the bungee now. With this comprehensive guide, installing your D-rings and bungee cords is as easy as pie. From understanding the uses of bungee to finding the right line and buying a kit to tying them on your board, this guide keeps you from wasting your time searching the web.
Start applying what you learned in this blog to shop for the most durable and suitable bungee cord or kit.
In case you need further guidance or have paddle boarding-related queries, drop your comments below. Or send us a message. We will respond ASAP and do our best to help answer your paddle boarding queries.
You can also check our other blogs if you want to learn more about paddle boarding; we have a lot that can surely help both beginners and professional paddle boarders. Keep on paddling!
