What’s On The End Of The Stick, Vic?

A couple of weeks ago I got in touch with Stu Morris from Vertical Element (VE) paddles as I wanted some custom carbon work done for an upcoming project.

I have been using a set of VE paddles for years and love the design, feel and robustness of the setup. So Stu seemed to be the ideal man to contact. After a few emails and quick telephone conversation Stu confirmed that he was able to come up with a solution pretty quickly.

In essence I was looking for carbon pole based system that would extend my reach when using a GoPro or similar action camera. When out on the river this is straight forward as I use a paddle with a GoPro mount attached. However if out taking photos or filming from the bank say at an event the chances are I won’t have a set of paddles with me. It’s a simple concept but it’s one that I wanted to be produced quickly and effectively.

I think we are all pretty familiar with the self-stick and what is available on the market, but they tend to be quite limited and didn’t offer the extended reach. So Stu has put together a custom pole made from carbon. The outer pole is 1.62 metres long, is hollow and is fitted with a VE paddle clamp on one end.

The inner shaft is 1.2 metres long and has been sealed so that it floats. I’ve kept the end of the inner pole pretty clean so various different clamps or mounts can be used. That gives the pole a reach of just under 2.8 metres. The one shown here is the new GoPro Jaws mount with the goose neck removed.

Whilst filming the camera was set to auto detect whether or not is was upright or upside down. This allows the camera to be rotated quickly without having to mess about with footage post production.

I have only had a 30 minutes using the new pole just to get a feel of how it works and to figure out what possible issues may arise whilst filming ‘at reach’. So far so good, it’s light enough and compact enough to carry/use. The clamp on the pole is highly effective and being carbon there is no flex with the gear being used.

GP Pole Unsponsored 1 from Unsponsored on Vimeo.

So far, so good. If you are after a custom paddle for C1, K1, Whitewater, Flatware, Sea kayaking and anything inbetween check out VE Paddles.

If you are wondering where the title of this post came from check out this.