Paddling tips, tricks, news and gear reviews from an Unsponsored point of view
The Durance Whitewater Sessions are back! This year the event will take place on July 8/ 9th with a big novelty: “La Grande Descente” a multi-crafts mass float from the lower Guil through Embrun on sunday…
So yes, the Durance Whitewater Sessions organized by Kayak Session magazine will take place again this year in the Durance Valley, in the southern French Alps. This event is a celebration of whitewater paddling in every form: open canoes, kayaks, whitewater standup, raft, inflatables etc.…
Movie Monday 22 May 2017 is here with a bang. Still not enough rain up here in the NE of England, however there has been plenty of water elsewhere in the world and lots of folks filming it!
It may be time to hit the surf. These edits got me through the weekend. Check them out and please share via your social media channel of choice.
The Palm Zenith Dry top is a midweight whitewater jacket with a comfy GlideSkin neck (no latex)‚ made in XP 2.5-layer fabric. We’ve had the short sleeve version at Unsponsored HQ for some time and it’s our go to summer jacket. The long sleeve version shown landed last week, so we thought we would take a closer look.
As you would expect the long sleeve Zenith Dry top is very similar in both fabric, cut and freedom of movement.
The Palm Zenith is available in a mens and ladies version. The Palm Zenith shown here is the mens version.
Movie Monday 27 February 2017 at Unsponsored HQ has landed with a bang. We have a carefully selected batch of whitewater edits to distract you away from whatever task you would prefer not to be doing.
If you like what you see please hit the social media link(s) of your choice and share.
The vast majority of the edits within Movie Monday 27 February 2017 have been filmed using the GoPro range of cameras.
What gear do you use? Have you got an edit you want to share with the rest of the world? Contact us via the comment section below.
Watch Sonja Jones, Georgina Maxwell, Matt Haydock and Chris Brain attempt to circumnavigate around Malta on stand up paddle boards in The Maltese SUP Project.
Braving challenging seas and with fully loaded SUPs, they explore the island from the water, playing music (trombone, ukulele, kazoo and percussion) and laughing along the way!
It’s no secret that in the world of paddling, females are the minority. Therefore it is very hard for us to find comfort in most paddling kits, as they are generally tailored to a male figure. I’m sure many ladies will agree with me that finding a snug fitting yet practical drysuit is probably one of the most challenging parts of being a paddler. But as the female paddling community continues to grow, the increase in women’s kit means a huge improvement in the overall experience for us all.
When I first began kayaking, I was 13 years-old and strongly against cold weather paddling. It only took a couple of winter club trips to persuade my Dad that a wetsuit just didn’t cut it. When choosing my first suit, I felt DamX was the best option, as their suits are made to measure. I loved my suit, but as I progressed, I found it to be restricting, mainly due to its weight.
Christmas day is always a big visitor day here on Unsponsored. In previous years visits go up by around 30%+. Last year was the first time I did a special post and it was very well received. I hope this post goes down at least as well and offers a little bit of escapism to those who need it.
Merry Christmas and happy New year to all. Stay safe and paddle hard!
Looking to watch something?
Check out the edits below.
Palm Equipment’s new Arun Baselayer arrived at Unsponsored HQ in May 2015 and has been used on a regular basis since.
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.
A great deal of outdoor equipment passes through the halls of Unsponsored HQ. Some great, some good and some not so good. As we get closer to the 25th it has now become a little bit of tradition (and to save me answering loads of “What should I get ….. for Christmas, they have just got into kayaking/canoeing/SUP?” type questions via email) to put together a list of gear that paddlers and general outdoors type folk might appreciate as presents at Christmas time.
So here it is.
You may or may not have noticed that Immersion Research released details of their new designs and updates for 2017 just a few days ago.
What is even better is that if you are based in the UK or Europe you can get hold of some of the new 2017 gear right now, that’s well before the US of A.
It was surprisingly cold last weekend signalling that winter is well on its way and the winter gear needs to be dug out of the spare gear bag.
One of the items placed in the main bag ready for next week is a pair of the Palm Equipment Current pogies. Pogies or paddle mitts are a great way to keep your hands warm/dry. They come in lots of varieties but are normally made from nylon/fleece or neoprene. The Palm Equipment Current pogies are made from 200D nylon and have a micro fleece liner.
Dewerstone have teamed up with pro kayaker Bren Orton to develop the Orton wooden sunglass with Carl Zeiss polarised lens.
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