Everybody Pogie!
Published October 18, 2011 | 
Sit beside the breakfast table
Think about your troubles
Pour yourself a cup of tea
And think about the bubbles – Nilsson
It’s pogie season again. It’s not necessarily that the water is too cold. It’s not that the air is freezing yet either. It’s the combination of wet hands and wind that’ll get ya. Now, let me go all “Back-in-the-day” on you for a minute. I’ve been paddling for a while now. Nearly 10 years. Being based here in Wisconsin, I feel like I’ve tried nearly every freaking glove the paddling industry has to offer. None, let me repeat that, none, have keep my hands warm on a cold, winter day paddle. Go look at the cost of heavy-duty winter paddling gloves and you’ll see that this is a very expensive failure. The silver bullet for me was a combination of Pogies and SealSkinz paddling gloves. Continue reading
A Tale of Two Undergarments
Published September 23, 2011 | 
I read recently that one big advantage to having bloggers review gear is that they can look at a product over time, and not just talk about stuff when it’s still all bright and shiny. So with that in mind I wanted to talk about 2 old shirts.. or two old bit of paddling gear… whatever. One thing is sure, the fact that I can still wear this stuff after 5 to 10 years speaks a lot to the quality of both. Continue reading
Tempest Teach Test
Published September 13, 2011 | 
Last Saturday I decided to leave my kayak at home and use one of our student boats, the Tempest 165, to coach the intro to sea kayaking class. One thing I’ve learned over the years is that when you take a kayak out to test paddle, you can sometimes be blinded to certain qualities of the boat simply by over focusing on reviewing the it in the first place. I’m not sure how that happens other than you are somehow out of your normal element when you test paddle and it can change your perceptions. I think that doing something you do all the time in your personal kayak and simply switching boats, then getting on to business can somehow allow certain things to stand out much quicker simply because you’re not really looking for them. So for what it’s worth… Continue reading
Sea Kayak With Gordon Brown V2
Published August 19, 2011 | 
As with my review of the first edition of Sea Kayak With Gordon Brown, let me cut to the chase here. Volume 2 includes a new trip, a bit of a history lesson, and lots of new skill work in real world conditions. V2 is a fun, tight presentation that will add to your skill set and keep you sitting in front of your TV from beginning to end… Well, unless you find yourself impulsively loading up the kayak to rush out and try something he’s just presented. For my part, I was able to take away and apply one new-found method to a class almost immediately. The new (to me) gem gave 2 students a much quicker success than they would have otherwise. For one student, it was the only answer that worked. As she was sitting back up in her kayak and smiling ear-to-ear.. I told her, “You have Gordon Brown to thank for this one.” I don’t think I can give the DVD a better compliment than that. There’s a lot of good stuff in there, even for us coaches and more experienced paddlers to take in. Continue reading
Posted in Learning, Paddling, Reviews, Video | 
dvd, gordon brown, Rowland Woolven, sea kayak with gordon brown, Simon Willis | 
6 CommentsSea Kayak Essentials DVD
Published July 25, 2011 | 
The Sea Kayak Essentials instructional DVD with BCU level 5 coach Nick Cunliffe joins an ever growing list of paddling DVDs. If like me you simply can’t buy every DVD out there, you have to be choosy. I’d certainly recommend that beginner and intermediate paddlers put this one on their wish list. Coaches might find a few gems as well.
Let me start out by telling you up front that I see lots of videos and lots of coaching styles. To be honest, I sometimes get a bit blurry eyed when I sit down to watch another instrutional video. Sea Kayak Essentials by nature does walk a lot of the same paths you’ve come to expect in an instructional video. The DVD moves through a series of skill building chapters that eventually lead you into real world situations and rough water paddling. ( I received a PAL version, so I found myself moving through a series of DVD players until I found one that would play it. ) Here’s what you get; Continue reading
Sorry Bear,
Published July 13, 2011 | 
I’m sorry Bear. I was hard up for a knife and I was nowhere near a paddleshop. In a moment of weakness I bought one of your Gerber Bear Grylls signature knives. I had to. I didn’t have time to order a real man.. Um, I mean, “real SEA KAYKER’S” knife. I should have known I was in for trouble when your knife cut my finger the first time I opened it. Luckily when I got to the Great Lakes Sea Kayak Symposium they had a real HE-Man Seakayaker’s knife. Continue reading
Posted in Camping & Camping Gear, More Gear Reviews, Outdoor Recreation, Paddle Gear, Paddling, Reviews, Safety | NRS | 7 Comments
Modesty, propriety can lead to notoriety
You could end up as the only one
Gentleness, sobriety are rare in this society
At night a candle’s brighter than the sun – sting
I can’t review P&H Sea Kayaks new Delphin. Yeah, I did get time to paddle one this summer when I was teaching in Michigan. Thing is, the Delphin is purpose-built. It’s a surfer. In any other conditions it simply will not be at it’s finest. Funny thing though, all the hype around the Delphin has a lot of folks who’ll never actually go surfing salivating, regardless of how it may or may not paddle on flat water. If nothing else, it does show that P&H Sea Kayaks is simply destroying their competitors when it comes to marketing their products. Hey, somebody should say it. In the last couple of years P&H has been dusting everyone in their wake. When you’re talking big waves, P&H is riding it and at the moment, from the cockpit of the Delphin. Continue reading →