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

Category: Gear (Page 90 of 135)

What SD Card For My POV Action Camera?

18 December 2013 / / 4 Comments

One of the biggest areas that is overlooked when getting a video/camera setup for trips out is the speed of the your SD or Micro SD card. Now this doesn’t matter if your camera is a GoPro, Contour, Garmin, Sony or whatever because without a good memory card you may struggle to capture the video footage you want.

Which SD Memory Card For My GoPro?

The Speed Class Rating is the official unit of speed measurement for all SD cards, including both full and micro sized versions. Speed Class is a minimum speed based on a worst case scenario test and represents the minimum transfer rate of data that the card is capable of.

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Kayak – William Nealy

18 December 2013 / / 6 Comments

I can’t actually remember how many times I have read or flicked through the first edition of Kayak by William Nealy (Kayak: The Animated Manual of Intermediate and Advanced Whitewater Technique).

Kayak - William Nealy

It is my firm belief that this has to be one of the best kayaking related books around. Nealy has managed to capture something really special, a combination of wit, humour and instruction rolled into a single book. I guess what I’m really trying to say is that its fun to read whilst at the same time being informative.

I know that during my early days of paddling (some 20+ years ago) that this book made a massive difference to how I ran whitewater.

Kayak – the New Frontier: The Animated Manual of Intermediate and Advanced Whitewater Technique

Kayak has recently been updated. A few tweaks here and there. Still the same great book, same great humour.

If you have never seen or read Kayak, I would strongly recommend picking up a copy.

Other great Nealy titles include:

Whitewater Tales of Terror

Kayaks to Hell

Ladies Palm Element Drysuit – Review

17 December 2013 / / 2 Comments

Hitting my 5th year of paddling, I decided that it was high time I got a dry suit. With a free choice of the market, I was after something that fitted well, was tough and looked good! After looking at specifications and reviews of IR, Typhoon, DamX, Peak and Lomo drysuits, I decided to invest in a Ladies Palm Element.

Ladies Palm Element

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The Power of the Merino

16 December 2013 / / 3 Comments

Since buying a couple of merino tops a few months back I am completely sold on the stuff. For years I had been using Helly Hanson Lifa or Sub Zero Factor 1 thermals. All of which developed that characteristic kayaking odor.

The Power of the Merino

My current kayak thermal of choice is the Howies merino surf thermal. The merino is thin, the arms are nice and long and also include thumb loops. These are superb when your putting on your drycag or dry suit as they help prevent the sleeves rolling up. The neck is a turle neck so you get a bit of protection from latex dry cag seals. I managed to pick up two of these thermals before they stopped producing them, one of which was found new on ebay. They do come up now and again. The NBL or NBL Light are probably the closest match and are in the current range (I own a couple of these as well).

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Choosing A Paddle

13 December 2013 / / 1 Comment

You would think that choosing a paddle would be fairly straight forward. All paddles look the same and after all perform the same function. The difficulty lies in the huge range of paddles available. Walk into any kayak store and you will be presented with a wide array of what appears on the surface the same bit of kit.

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Shaft options:

Shafts are available in lots of different materials and each has there own set of advantages and disadvantages. At the cheaper end if the market is the aluminium shafted paddle. They can feel cold to the touch and often have some form of insulation or covering in the areas that they make contact with your hands. The shaft in such paddles will also probably be straight.

The benefits of a straight shaft is that they have a familiar feel and are cheaper to produce than their cranked cousins.

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Wavesport Mobius – Review

9 December 2013 / / 3 Comments

No I’m not a great freestyle paddler, I’d never be sponsored or make it on to any team. However I love paddling play boats and can throw the odd end on both the flat and in the rough stuff when the fancy takes me.

For the last few years I have been paddling the Wavesport Project X. It’s a great boat and I have loved owning and paddling one. However I had begun to get itchy feet and very almost switch to Dagger after a demo in the Jitsu. I managed to hold off, thanks to a poor bank balance but have over the last couple of months been paddling the Wavesport Mobius after saving up some pennies.

Wavesport Mobius - Review
Wavesport Mobius – Review
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GoPro Customer Service

9 December 2013 / / 2 Comments

A few weeks ago I sold one of my GoPro Hero 3 silver editions. I was contacted by the buyer a few days after the sale stating that it dead. All very strange as it was fully updated and A1 before being sent off. Any way I refunded the guy once the camera was returned and I began to diagnose the issue. The camera was simply refusing to switch on under USB or battery power.

GoPro Customer Service

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Peli 0915 SD And Micro SD Case

7 December 2013 / / 0 Comments

I have been using the Peli 0915 memory card case for quite some time now. It is used as the main storage for all of my SD and micro SD cards when they are not in a camera.

Case Features Include:

Water resistant seal
Stores 8 SD and 16 Mini-SD memory cards (not included)
Removable insert liner absorbs shock and protects memory cards
Made of tough Polycarbonate resin

The case is as well built as all other Peli products. Waterproof rating is IPX4 which is essentially splash proof and can hadle being out in the rain. If dropped in the water the chances are the case will leak. That said SD cards will stand up to a fair bit of abuse including being dunked in water with little in the way of damage. For me it’s all about keeping them in one pace and that dust/dirt is kept well away from them.

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Which SD Card For My Action Camera?

7 December 2013 / / 1 Comment

Updated: 20/10/2021

One of the biggest areas that is overlooked when getting a video/camera setup for trips out is the speed of the your SD or Micro SD card. Now this doesn’t matter if your camera is a GoPro, Contour, Garmin, Sony , Nikon or whatever because without a good memory card you may struggle to capture the video footage you want.

GoPro SD Memory Card Recommendation
Which SD Card For My Action Camera?

The Speed Class Rating is the official unit of speed measurement for all SD cards, including both full and micro sized versions. Speed Class is a minimum speed based on a worst case scenario test and represents the minimum transfer rate of data that the card is capable of.

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Keeping Warm

7 December 2013 / / 1 Comment

Staying both warm and dry makes any kayaking adventure that much more pleasant. I’ve been kayaking for over 25 years now and am amazed how much the kit has moved on during that time. Way back then getting soaked to the bone was pretty much a standard feature of paddling even if you didn’t swim. Even though staying dry is much easier and therefore makes keeping warm itself so much easier it’s important to get your insulation layers right.

I tend not to feel the cold as most folk but I still pick my insulation layers really carefully to make sure that I not only stay nice and warm but that I do not over heat. I personally find overheating way worse than being too cold.

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Zet Director – Review

5 December 2013 / / 3 Comments

Over the last year or so I have been making my way through all of the new creek boats on the market. This has included paddling the LL Stomper, Pyranha Nano, Wavesport Recon 83, Wavesport Recon 93, Dagger Mamba, Zet Raptor, and now the Zet Director.

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Zet Director – Review

Photo: Amy Elworthy, Paddler: Mark Allen

Zet are based in the Czech Republic and are a technical and design collaboration of the production engineer/kayak producer Zelezny, extreme kayaker Honza Lasko and the Czech whitewater slalom paddler Viktor Legat. I have paddled the Raptor extensively over the last year and was really interested to see how the larger Director would perform.

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Liquid Logic Stinger XP – First Look

1 December 2013 / / 0 Comments

Orinally designed for the Green Race the Liquid Logic Stinger gives a little nod to the boats of the past. The XP version takes the Stinger wheel and adds a rear hatch and skeg for true cross-over ability.

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It’s a long boat as can be seen in the image above. The blue boat is a Liquid Logic Stomper 80.

From Liquid Logic:

Crossover designs have established a huge following in the world of paddling over the last five years becoming the fastest growing segment in whitewater. The Stinger XP represents the next level in Crossover design. This game changing design combines the performance of its race-dominating sibling with the convenience and tracking of our award winning Remix XP design. The combination provides a truly one of a kind race ready expedition kayak for intermediates and seasoned boaters alike. The Stinger XP’s back hatch and spring-loaded skeg ensure it functions efficiently when loaded to the gills with camping gear for flatwater and mixed current expeditions.

Stinger XP on the Green at 10″ from Shaneslogic on Vimeo.

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