Just back from a 5 hour round trip to pick up a pre-production final prototype. It was a great drive, crystal blue skies and mountain views. Anyway here is the kayak, but what is it?
Tag: First Look (Page 4 of 6)
Over the last few months we’ve had a fair bit of near gear at Unsponsored HQ lined up for testing. One of the hottest pieces of gear this summer has been the VE Explorer Aircore Pro Carbon Bladed paddles.
I had two sets of these paddles to test with different blade areas. These can be seen in the lower part of the image with a whitewater set at the top for comparison.
[UPDATE: GoPro have released the 5 series of POV action cameras including the Hero 5 Black Edition and the Session 5.]
We’ve known about this for a short while but couldn’t say anything – Today GoPro announced the launched the new Hero4 session. We have one here at Unsponsored for review!
Here is everything you need to know about the new 2015 GoPro Hero4 Session.
The Session marks a shift from the GoPro format that we have been used to since its first arrival many years ago. The Session is a much smaller format and is not dependent on a housing for its 10m (33ft) waterproofing. Gone are the two buttons (only one now) and in is a smart dual microphone system designed for better sound pickup in even the harshest of conditions.
Palm Equipment’s new Arun Baselayer arrived at Unsponsored HQ this week.
The Arun is part of Palm’s new 3 layer system and is available for both men and women. Both retail at £29.95.
From Palm:
Core 1 baselayers use Channel Flow technology to rapidly draw water away from your skin‚ helping to keep you dry‚ warm‚ and comfortable. Made from soft‚ supple polyester‚ with ActiveSeam stitching‚ the Arun moves and stretches as you do‚ for a new level of layering comfort.
Another new Palm Equipment product in for review at Unsponsored HQ. This is the new Palm folding knife.
The image below shows the Palm Folding knife with a Spyderco UK Penknife (Orange FRN), and Spyderco Ladybug.
The new NRS Crush Watershoe landed at Unsponsored HQ a few weeks ago. Since then they have been used both off an on the water.
Palm Core Layering gear range has been developed and expanded for 2015. We currently have a few bits of these gear for test here at Unsponsored HQ. In this edit Palm take us through the 2015 Palm Core Layering gear.
The Palm Equipment Fuse jacket has had an upgrade for 2015. The jacket is constructed from a new light weight three layer fabric and the Glideskin neoprene neck gasket has also been improved. Gone are the harlequin colours of 2014 and in is a very smart Jet grey colour scheme with aqua detailing.
The Fuse jacket is a fairly light weight number and from the couch test has excellent freedom of movement.
The days are starting to get a little longer and the sun seems to be out that little more. It won’t be long until it’s time to be out on the water with a short sleeved cag. For many years I have been using an Immersion Research cag which is simply awesome but is now getting a little long in the tooth. Last summer I decided to get a Palm Equipment Zenith short sleeved top but was simply far too late. No dealer within the UK or Palm themselves had a top left in my size. Roll on just under a year and Palm have released the 2015 version of the Zenith.
Yak are the kayaking/canoeing side of the Crewsaver company. In the past Yak have catered for the middle to lower end of the market with some fantastic hardwearing kit for centre and club use. Although functional and hardwearing they didn’t have the same appeal as some of the more well known brands. Over the last few months I have been testing a few pieces of Yak gear including the Riwaka dry top, Chinook dry trousers and Hallertau PFD.
Some of the colours used will put some off, there is no denying that the GREEN of the dry tops and PFD takes a little bit of getting used to.
Yak Riwaka Dry Top
The Yak Riwaka in a very loud GREEN has arrived at Unsponsored HQ. Now this is the third bit of gear from Yak that has landed here the HQ in as many weeks and once again Yak have made a really good impression (I need to find out who is designing this stuff!) – here’s why.
The new Crush Watershoe from NRS are now available. This looks a pretty good piece of gear and will be worth checking out if you are in the market for a new pair of shoes and were considering a set of Astral Brewers for example.
We are looking at getting hold of a pair for review here at Unsponsored HQ.
Hot on the heals of the Yak Chinook dry pants is the new Hallertau PFD. The Hallertau is a top spec river running PFD with QR harness and all the storage options you could ever want. Yet it remains really low profile.
Pure Land Expeditions
Northshore Watersports
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