Paddling tips, tricks, news and gear reviews from an Unsponsored point of view
We have a couple of the Hercules Auto-Swivel Yoke Hangers in for review at Unsponsored. These units are designed to hold guitars but I had seen them used by Werner a few years back at PaddleExpo. If they can hold a bass guitar they can handle a paddle.
Corran Addison’s company Soul Waterman now officially owns Seven2 paddles. Way back when we had a few pairs of Seven2 paddles at Unsponsored HQ and were pretty impressed by them (even though they were all right handed).
Seven 2 are back with an initial 100pc run.
Don’t Leave Home Without It – that is your breakdown (split) paddle.
Chris Wing from H20 Dreams shows us a great way to store your breakdown paddle system within your kayak. It’s pretty neat.
Earlier this week we received a 2.0m Palm Paddle Bag for review.
Although paddle bags are really useful for keeping paddles safe when there being slung around on/off long haul flights, my prime use for them is actually to protect my car when the paddles are being carried inside.
There is no doubt that Werner produce some great paddles. We love the Sidekick and Powerhouse paddles here at Unsponsored HQ. But if you were after something a little different from red, orange or blue blades then you would have to search elsewhere. Last year we started to see a number of new colour and graphic options on some of the range. Werner have now stepped it up a gear and have a new option for some of the whitewater paddle range.
The Sherpa and Powerhouse glass range will be available with a new graphic.
For years now I have been looking for the ideal travel paddle, one I can throw on jeeps, horse carts and the odd local bus all across the Himalaya. It’s always been a pain to have 200cm of carbon and glass as well as my kayak. I’ve chopped paddles stuffed then in my boat, glued them in tea houses, tapped them on sand beaches and more.
Over the last 6 years I’ve gone from a simple tape join through the traditional push button which have always cracked under heavy use and by heavy I mean as my main paddle for a year on class five – nice repair with tash tape.
The Werner engineering team talks us through the features incorporated into the new Odachi whitewater paddles.
We are hoping to get a set here at Unsponsored HQ very soon for review.
We’ve have a new Vertical Element four piece breakdown paddle here at Unsponsored HQ for review. Vertical Element are a UK based company who design and manufacture their own custom whitewater and recreational paddles.
I reckon that if you need to use a set of breakdown paddles when on a river trip the chances are something epic has occurred, and in situations like this I would want a set of breakdowns that were at least as good as the set I had lost or broke.
I’m currently looking at the Unsponsored Archives and have found several posts from the 2015 Paddle Expo in Germany last September. I’ll be posting these over the next few days. In addition to the photos and videos that I took I had been sent a few other bits and and bobs. The guys from Escape Watersports were out and about at Paddle Expo. Here they take a closer look at the Werner Odatchi and Camino.
Double Dutch are a paddle company who are mainly known here in the UK for their superb slalom paddles. After spending some time checking out the rest of the whitewater range at Paddle Expo 2015 I’m wondering why we don’t see more of these paddles over here.
The whole range looks superb, a range of blade shapes made with different materials that are available on a range of shafts.
Werner has led the paddlesports industry with legendary paddles for 50 years. They’ve repeatedly set a high bar and now raise that bar again with a race inspired whitewater paddle called the Odachi.
Recreational whitewater paddles have put comfort and easy of use among the top of their priority lists and that’s why we see Werner’s “Neutral Bent Shaft” align the shaft, hands and paddle blade in a nice neat line. They also extensively use pronounced dihedrals to make the paddle feel smooth and stable in the water. These features are key ingredients of what makes Werners easy and predictable to use.
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