THE BOARDCOVER


Considering baggage chuckers the world over continue to thrash, smash and grate a surfer’s most precious cargo, a good board cover is a must for any travel. On recent trips to Sumatra and New Zealand, I took the Creatures of Leisure Triple Shortboard Cover along for the ride to see how it stacked up.

Creatures say this cover is “designed for serious surf travel”. It’s sleek, has multiple padded handles, plus a shoulder strap you can tuck away as you check the thing in. Here’s a few of the other key features:

Creatures of Leisure Triple Boardbag Review

Diamond Tech Fabric

A custom-made interwoven dobby fabric which is water-resistant, tear resistant, and resistant to UV degradation. (That’s a lot of resistance).


10mm Foam Padding

Providing plenty of cushion for those knocks and rocks that airline cocks throw at it along the way.


Air-Flow Ventilation

Allowing air to cycle through the boardcover, removing humidity and moisture to avoid stinky-towel syndrome knocking you out when you unzip.

WHAT IT’S GOOD FOR


The Creatures of Leisure boardbag is great for people who take multiple boards on a trip, but don’t want to lug around a massive coffin that will throw out your spine before you even get a chance to get pitched over the falls. If you’re heading to somewhere like Hawaii, where you for sure need more than three boards, plus a couple of 8ft plus guns, this is not the best option.

The version I tested was a 6’3’’ which is ideal for Indo strike missions where I don’t tend to take anything beyond a step up, unless the forecast is really solid. If you ride longer sleds, there are versions up to 7’6’’. It’s easy to throw on top of cars and tie down, without worrying about luggage wheels fucking up your Duco. A slide plate with little bubbles on it also make it super easy to drag through the airport, or across the road, without worrying to much about tearing the bag to shreds. Capacity wise, you’ll often get ‘triple covers’ that fit more than three boards. This doesn’t. At least not my boats. However, there is room to stuff in wetsuits, towels, clothes and more around the sides, plus a handy velcro pocket to store fins, wax, suncream and tie downs inside. I even slid in a first aid kit and it took the thing no sweat.

Big enough to fit what you need for a couple of weeks hunting waves, without wild bulk to weigh you down like an mid-summer flat spell.

Creatures of Leisure Triple Boardbag Review

THE IMPORTANT STUFF


CAPACITY vs WEIGHT

The 6’3’’ version of this triple cover weighs in at just 2.8kgs or 6.3lbs. Considering the capacity and durability the thing brings to your surfboards, that’s pretty freaking amazing. No worries about going over your baggage limits unless you’re dumb enough to slide a 10kg brick of heroin between your boards.

I fit in my 5’8, 5’10’’ and 6’0’’, 4 pairs of boardshorts, 3 walk shorts, a pair of jeans, 10 tees, leggies, wax, 3 sets of fins, a first aid kit, a knee brace, 2 towels, a wetsuit vest and a rash-vest. I did, however, need to remove the built-in board dividers to make this happen. Seriously, who needs those anyway? Show me a surfer who doesn’t travel with a towel or two to put between their boards and I’ll show you a hair-brained deviant. I’d give this section a whopping 9 out of 10.

DURABILITY

This one surprised me. I’m really tough on my boardcovers and generally end up with a fair bit of wear after just one trip. Not this time, even after two solid stints. That Diamond Tech fabric that Creatures of Leisure has used is super strong (I even cut up the swatch of it and tried to keep tearing it apart with no luck). The slide plate is in the perfect spot for dragging, which I’d do even if it wasn’t there.

The 10mm foam padding also means your boards are nice and protected. Throw in the extra packing softness of some clothes and towels and the only reason your board should get damaged is if it’s attached by those evil airport gnomes. For me this is a big 10. I’m blown away at how much thought Creatures of Leisure put into this aspect.

EASE OF USE

Easy to pack, easy to throw onto cars, easy to drag through airports. Overall this boardcover is very user-friendly. The one gripe I did have in this section is that the zip is pretty sticky. It’s a Marine Grade Corrosion Resistant PK Nylon Zipper, which means it’s tough as fuck, but also means the chubby teeth on it make for stop/start zipping. There were a few times it got stuck and had me wishing for an action that’s smooth enough to accidentally catch my foreskin during a post urinal stop.

On the brighter side, the carry handles are dreamily lined with neoprene, which makes for a nice carry feel. The shoulder strap also unclips on one end, but remains attached in the tuck-away pocket. Hello not losing that sucker on the road. I’d rate this as an 8 here.

HOW TO GET ONE

If you can work a computer machine, these covers are easy enough to order online via the Creatures Website (although at the time of writing, the 6’3’’ one I tested is sold out).

Given that these guys are tapped solidly into the core surf scene, I’d be surprised if you couldn’t get one at your local salty store.  At just $279.95 Aussie, if it saves your boards getting banged up then it’s a bargain in avoiding ding repair charges. For reference, Rip Curl’s triple cover weighs in a $350AUD, while O&E’s similar versions range between $270-$330AUD.

Creatures of Leisure Online Store
Creatures of Leisure Stockists List

Creatures of Leisure Triple Boardbag Review

VERDICT


Tougher than a prison tatt with space for 3 surf weapons, plus extras - The Creatures of Leisure Triple Shortboard Cover is a top-notch piece of travel equipment. Across two different trips, I put this badboy through its paces, dragging, throwing, tying down and zipping and unzipping. It stacked up beautifully.

The two things I think could be improved are the smoothness of the zipping action, plus the removal of the totally unneeded internal board-divider slips. They do come out easily anyway, but geez, maybe if they weren’t there the value price of the cover would come down a notch more. I also like the thought and attention to detail Creatures have put into this bag. From sourcing a dobby fabric that’s strong, tear-resistant yet still lightweight, to having the shoulder strap that you can tuck away, yet can’t be fully-removed and therefore lost. Really, really great. My new go-to cover for road trips in Australia and strike-missions to Indo.

Capacity vs Weight
Ease of Use
Durability
Overall Rating
Buy Now

Creatures of Leisure Boardbag Review

If you enjoyed this review you can visit our Product Reviews page for more, including a recent run of Winter Wetsuits. Boardshorts coming soon 🙂

Again, if you’re interested in buying the Creatures of Leisure Triple Boardbag Cover hit the links below ::
Creatures Online Store
Creatures Stockist List