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Paddling tips, tricks, news and gear reviews from an Unsponsored point of view

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Old Is The New New

Darren Clarkson-King is a huge fan of old school kayak designs and owns many of the classics. He gives us his take on Old Is The New New.

Should you buy new or used, will you enjoy your paddling more in the latest boat?

We all love the smell and feel of a fresh new boat – the latest design, latest color to match our PFD. We may tell ourselves that our skill base will increase with the latest design. Whilst this may be a half truth it is not the whole truth. Some of the worlds hardest runs were pioneered many years ago, at the evolution from composite to plastic. Sure you have all seen Stikine footage of Dancers, Eclipse or Overflows. Or the Indus footage in Stunt and Roto bats. What about the Tsangpo in H2 or classic Cali runs in the Diablo. Lets not forget the steep runs of Europe in the mighty Topo. You can still find these styles of boat on ebay, gumtree etc for less than a night out.

Old Is The New New
Old Is The New New – Dagger RPM

Why spend £1000 on a boat you are going to want to upgrade soon anyhow, or worse break and landfill, taking 500+ years to decompose. An older design will do he same job for a good part of your paddling than a latest design. It’s good to see some of the classic making a come back, on weekends around the UK, on longer multi day trips across the globe and on late night ebay shopping the rise of older boats is plain to see.

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Scottish Islands Peak Race 2016

We have another team of Unsponsorables taking part in the Scottish Islands Peak race.

Scottish Islands Peak Race 2016

This year the team will be carrying Yellow Brick gps tracker so you can check online how well or otherwise they are doing, the course they are sailing, and where the hell they are!

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Immersion Research Shawty Drysuit – Review

“Ooh I love the colour”, “Such a pretty drysuit!”, “It matches your boat!”

Immersion Research Shawty Dry Suit Review

These are comments that I’ve had about my Immersion Research Shawty drysuit which I’ve been using for the past couple of months. Don’t get me wrong, I love the colour but I also think it’s a great bit of kit and am disappointed that no one’s asked me why I actually bought it rather than assuming I got it because it’s purple!

Here’s my tuppence worth:

I’m 5ft 3, size 10/12 with short (T-Rex!) arms and I have a medium Shawty. I use my drysuit for coaching (when it’s cold), WW Kayaking, “freestyle” (being upside down a lot!), SUPing and bizarrely, rescuing sheep!

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Immersion Research – Arch Rival Rear Zip Limited Edition

The Arch Rival drysuit gets an upgrade and it’s looking pretty good. We are hoping to get one in for review.

Arch Rival Rear Zip Limited Edition

The Arch Rival Rear Zip Dry Suit is one of Immersion Research’s hardest working garments and certainly one of the best values. Maybe it isn’t as flashy as the 7Figure, or brooding and mysterious like the Devil’s Club but that is about to change. Introducing the Arch Rival Rear Zip Limited Edition!

We employed the Devil’s Club and Arch Rival Rear Zip pattern, which is well articulated for better paddling performance while eliminating extra fabric. Then we utilized our 7figure fabric in the body of the suit which offers excellent waterproofness and breathability. Finally, we included Devil’s Club Fabric Feet for increased durability. This is the culmination of our best dry suit qualities in one spectacular looking package.

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Movie Monday 16 May 2016

Half way through May. The sun is out and there is still water around, life is good. Movie Monday 16 May 2016 has a whole host of paddling action from across the globe.

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Enjoy!

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Werner Engineering Team

The Werner engineering team talks us through the features incorporated into the new Odachi whitewater paddles.

Werner Engineering Team

We are hoping to get a set here at Unsponsored HQ very soon for review.

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How To: PFD Health Check

Your PFD is one of the most important pieces of safety gear that a paddler owns. It’s got work right first time, every time. Time, UV and general paddler abuse can cause damage to your PFD that may or may not be visible.

PFD Health Check

This PFD related video from Palm Equipment gives a great run through on how you should carry out a PFD health check.

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How To: PFD Buoyancy Test

The guys over at Palm Equipment have just released this new video showing how to test the buoyancy of your PFD.

How To: PFD Buoyancy Test

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#WheresYakAt

Yak Adventure Equipment is delighted to announce that following the success of last year’s #WheresYakAtcompetition, the mischievous Yaks are back and this time you decide the winner. Herds and herds of squishy Yaks inthis year’s colour… blue… are descending upon selected Yak retail outlets and Yak sponsored events across the globe and we want to see what they are up to!

#WheresYakAt

#WheresYakAt – Win £500 worth of Yak gear

Get into your local Yak retail outlet or Yak sponsored event where the herds have descended to get hold of your very own squishy Yak! Snap the best pic of your Yak going about its crazy business and post it on the Yak Adventure Equipment Facebook page with #WheresYakAt, to be in with a chance of winning.

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Palm Equipment Cam Strap Upgrade

Late last year Palm Equipment showed off their new cam straps. I’ve been a huge fan of the colour coded strap since they were originally released a few years back.

Palm Equipment Cam Strap Upgrade

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Movie Monday 9 May 2016

It’s Movie Monday 9 May 2016. That is all.

Movie Monday 9 May 2016

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Sweet Protection Supernova 2016 – First Look

We had a box of goodies arrive at Unsponsored HQ last week containing lots of gear from Sweet Protection.

Sweet Protection Supernova 2016 - First Look

One of the first items out of the box was the Sweet Protection Supernova 2016.

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