Farther. Faster. Rover Aero Micro Skiff
Is it a boat or is it a stand up paddle board? SUP purists will say if you put a motor on it it’s a boat. And we get that. But the point of the motor isn’t to trail through backwaters at top speed and disrupt quiet coves; the motor just helps you get there faster so you can cut the motor and navigate honey holes the way they were meant to be discovered: stealthily.
PEOPLE WERE MOVING FROM LARGE BAY BOATS TO FLAT SKIFFS. SO, WITH THE PADDLE BOARD, I WAS LIKE, MAN, THIS IS A KILLER WAY TO GET SUPER SHALLOW AND TO BE REALLY STEALTHY AND HAVE A SIMPLE APPROACH TO FISHING. SO WE SCALED A SKIFF DOWN AND PADDLE BOARD UP, SMASHED THEM TOGETHER, PUT A MOTOR ON IT, AND THERE YOU GO.
- Corey Cooper, BOTE CEO & Co-Founder
The Rover Aero, the inflatable counterpart of the award-winning Rover (Best of Show, iCAST, 2017 and 2018), does all the things you’d expect from a micro skiff paired with AeroBOTE construction, so it’s light enough to carry. It displaces water sufficiently to get top-end speed like a micro skiff and it’s long enough to be a boat but narrow enough to paddle. Plus, the coast guard often wonders what the hell you’re paddling (or driving), due to the hybrid design that narrowly skirts the definition of what some might consider a boat.
So you like to fish, you like to paddle, and you like boating. And you’re telling us you want it all in one? Seems like a big ask, but it’s cool. We did that. We designed the Rover Aero for the angler who wants to do it all, and pack it up and store it in a closet at the end of the day.
For when you want to cover more distance but don’t want the responsibility or headache of maintaining a traditional micro skiff or more considerable boat, you need the Rover Aero.
WE DESIGNED THE ROVER AERO FOR THE ANGLER WHO WANTS TO DO IT ALL, AND PACK IT UP AND STORE IT IN A CLOSET AT THE END OF THE DAY.
GO FARTHER, FASTER.
Hey man, can you put a motor on that?
If you’ve owned a stand up paddle board long enough, you’ve surely been asked this question from passersby’s a time or two. The answer is, finally, yes.
The Rover Aero’s patented removable Moto Rac system carries up to a 6 HorsePower motor that can reach a top speed of 16 MPH. Use a motor to get from point A to point B really fast, then cut the motor when you get close.
IT'S A BOAT, IN A BAG.
Take it out in the Gulf of Mexico on a calm day, or drop in the water off the dock behind your house. Store it in a closet, or better yet in the trunk of your car so you’re ready to go at a moment’s notice.
Why pull a trailer behind your car for hundreds of miles or even down the street when you can store an inflatable skiff in your trunk? The Rover Aero packs down into the wheeled Rover Aero Bag, making it incredibly easy to transport. Every Rover Aero also comes equipped with the detachable Remora Bag, designed to carry your Moto Rac and accessories.
With a combined total weight of 110 lbs and 45” on its longest side, the fully loaded Rover Aero Travel bag fits into nearly every trunk or back seat; no truck bed required.
WE WERE LOOKING FOR A BOAT AND WANTED SOMETHING SMALL. I CAME ACROSS THE AERO BOTE AND THOUGHT THIS WAS A GREAT SMALL ‘BOAT’. THE ABILITY TO USE A MOTOR IS A GAME CHANGER. WE ALSO DON'T NEED A TRUCK OR LARGE TRAILER. WE CAN JUST THROW THEM IN THE CAR AND GO. WE HAVE USED THEM IN RIVERS AND WORK PERFECT DURING DRY SEASON WHEN THE WATER IS LOW. WE PLAN TO TAKE THEM TO SOME SHALLOW BAY AND MANGROVE AREAS AS WELL. SO GLAD WE MADE THE PURCHASE. WILL BE BACK FOR MORE!
- Jennifer Y., Verified Buyer
MAINTENANCE, MINIMIZED.
Buying a boat is often the worst decision you’ll ever make. Just ask any boat owner. Riding on a boat is always a good time, but owning a boat is far from it. Covertly veiled as the perfect vessel to explore and enjoy the area’s waterways, every boat owner soon discovers the hours spent maintaining and performing open heart surgery on said boat will far outweigh the hours spent enjoying the boat—especially in coastal areas where saltwater ruins literally everything.
That proud boat owner feeling lasts until your electrical goes to shit or the boat starts to take on water, but the proud BOTE owner feeling is harder to shake. The only maintenance required of an inflatable micro skiff owner is for the motor, but we encourage you to take it out without the motor from time to time for a good old fashioned paddle anyway.
Sure, there are tricks for extending the life of any paddle board, but you won’t have to deal with power steering, electrical, and all the other components that make up a seemingly simple, conventional micro skiff.
MAXIMUM STABILITY, STILL STEALTHY.
At its core, the Rover Aero is an incredibly stable paddle board. Made from a virtually indestructible military-grade PVC skin that’s rock solid when fully inflated, the Rover Aero clocks in at 63 lbs and can carry up to 500 lbs. Even the stealthiest micro skiffs on the market weigh 350 lbs.
I LOVE THE INFLATABLE. I LIKE BEING ABLE TO CARRY IT BY MYSELF, GET IN TO HARD TO REACH AREAS, AND DO EVERYTHING THE SOLID VERSION DOES. BUT I MOSTLY LOVE IT BECAUSE I BREAK EVERYTHING, BUT I CAN’T BREAK THE ROVER AERO.
- Sean Murphy, BOTE Director of Photography, Beneath the Surface Podcast, Episode 3: The Rover
IT'S JUST EASIER, BUT BETTER.
Here’s what it all boils down to: owning an inflatable micro skiff a.k.a. a motorized inflatable paddle board is just plain easier than owning a traditional micro skiff. You don’t need a boat lift, a marina, or a trailer; inflate it and drop it off a deck or at the nearest boat launch.