Paddling tips, tricks, news and gear reviews from an Unsponsored point of view
Name: Aaron Kendall
Location: Loggerheads, Mold, North wales
I’m currently a outdoor instructor for Kingswood, based at the Colomendy outdoor centre. What seems to be the perfect location, although I seem to of missed most of the rain due to other commitments. Still getting plenty of low water runs in and the odd bit of water too.
Name: Eddy Mead
Location: Cardiff, South Wales
Boat: Liquidlogic Remix 79
I’ve paddled the Remix for a year now and have loved every minute. It’s super long with a narrow hull so it accelerates quickly and maintains speed. It’s got soft edges so it’s really forgiving but at the same time carves into tight eddy’s and into strong currents with ease. The Remix doesn’t have masses of rocker so boofing can require a little more effort but if the boat is being driven it cruises over everything. What’s unique and cool about it is the scoop on the tail, if dipped in the green whilst punching a big hole, it will give you a boost and accelerate away from the feature. Also the LL Badass outfitting if fantastic, super easy to adjust and super comfy without adding too much weight.
Name: Ben Hawthorne
About me: Been paddling for a while now, maybe 24 years?? Christ I’m old!!! I have however been fortunate to take my passion all over the world and paddle in a whole lot of places including New Zealand, Nepal, Chile and Canada. For the last 2 summers and next I have been running the Sjoa Kayak Camp in Norway along with my beautiful wife and the Gene 17 boys. I’m lucky enough to be supported by Colorado Kayak Supply in the US, super cool guys, check em out.
Location: Currently, Chamonix for the winter. Stoked.
Boat: ZET Raptor. Now when these came out I thought they looked a bit industrial, rough around the edges and wasn’t that keen. Then I ended up paddling one for a bit, and after a couple of runs was completely converted. It does everything a creek boat should do. Fast (for a creek boat), boofs and rolls easy, light, comfortable and most importantly, bomb proof. I do think its not really a great beginners boat, it definitely needs to be driven around the river and will kick your arse pretty fast if youre not a pro-active paddler but I love it. It really suits my paddling style. I’m pretty excited to see the new boat they’ve got lined up, details boys details!!! Also a Bliss-stick Smoothy for my play boat, like a project in my size, love it.
The last few days here in the North East (UK) have been pretty cold. A couple of mornings have even included getting rid of some pretty thick ice from the car windscreen.
Keeping dry and warm becomes really important as it gets colder. Part of this is making sure the gear I am using does its job well.
This includes making sure that by boat has no leaks and that my deck is up to the job.
My winter paddling gear is as follows – PFD, helmet, boots/shoes and spraydeck don’t real change through the seasons, although if it is really cold I might wear a Playboater Titanium Earwig. The Earwig helps take the edge off that sensation you get when your head hits cold water.
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Spencer Cooke takes us through Immersions Research’s 2015 product line. Continue reading
Although this guide is directed at students in reality it will apply to anyone thinking about taking up the sport. Over the next few weeks many students will be starting Uni and will be looking at joining a club. In most cases the Kayak/Canoe club in a university will be the best club to join.
Sam Ellis is another big fan of Immersion Research decks. Here is an edit he has put together from a recent trip to Italy.
IR Royale from sam ellis on Vimeo.
My thoughts on the Immersion Research Royale are as follows:
Thanks to the guys at Immersion Research I was hooked up with one of the brand new Immersion Research The Royale spray skirts. Continue reading
Immersion Research have a number of new products and colour ways for the 2015 season. Here are a few shots showing some of the new kit on show at the Outdoor Retailer show. Continue reading
After reading through some old threads on liquid latex, I found some good reviews on the stuff but no pictures of how people got on, so I thought I’d share with you the pics of my repaired spray deck. Time for a little spray deck modification.
My spray deck had always been fairly loose fitting so I could get it off easier in a panic, but now as my confidence has built up, I wanted a tighter fitting deck to keep me drier in pushier water or waves.
Immersion Research have made some series tweaks to their Royale spraydeck. Here’s what they have done:
We have listened to customer feedback and put on a new grab handle that retains the high vis brightness and adds a little extra grip.
I’ve been using Palm’s Impact spraydeck for a few months now and am ready to feedback on its performance to date. Thanks to Palm Equipment and Northshore Watersports (for piggy backing delivery) I have a Palm Impact that replaces the Extreme as Palm’s top end neoprene bungee deck. First impressions are good. The deck looks and feels solid. It is well made and the black/lime colour scheme is bang on trend!
On the outside there is a protective 4mm Armortex reinforcement to increase the robustness of the deck. This should make the Impact of interest to those who put their decks through a rough time.
Check out my thoughts on the Royale here.
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