A newbie to SUP, I'd always fancied having a go for years whilst on holiday and having looked at other packages (which were a lot cheaper) I decided on Red after having two lessons on Red boards at my local outdoor activity centre. My board was a collective 50th birthday pressie from family & friends :-). I chose the 10'8", rather than 10'6" for more stability, potential pooch and to share with OH & friends.
Super simple to put together and I knew I'd made the right decision. Unfortunately, my gauge didn't work, but that was replaced the next day no problem and following instructions from support team I didn't have to wait for new gauge and could get out on the water straight away.
As I don't have storage issues I will probably upgrade to a fixed paddle at some point, but looking forward to new adventures and trying not to be a fair weather SUP'er !