Our Story

Jim Weir, ULI founder and surfing legend

In 2001, Jim Weir had a vision to create the first inflatable board. First came inflatable surf boards then paddle boards soon followed. The need was there after countless damaged boards from flight baggage or just having an easy way to travel with a board. Being the inventor of the inflatable board, we had to create our own path and wouldn’t put out anything that didn’t pass our high standards. Every board was proudly hand made in Carlsbad, California. We built our boards from scratch, cutting, gluing and shaping every board by hand. We selected only the best USA sourced components to complete every board.

But could an inflatable board be as riding and stiff enough to perform and drop into a wave? That was the big question. We developed a Kevlar technology that creates a stringer that locks the overall shape and rocker, decreasing any flex. We then patented the WikiRail, a flexible “hard rail” that creates a hard edge that reduces drag (making our boards faster and more stable) and a creates a sharper edge from which to turn ­dramatically improving maneuverability.  At the time, ULI Boards only had this feature. And our inflatable surf boards were at a 2.5” drop-stitch, making a rigid high performing board that could roll up and fit into a duffle bag!

We Invented It.