Wednesday, March 26, 2014

New SUP and Kayak Fishing Paddles from Werner Paddles

Last week Werner Paddles introduced some new products to their already stellar line-up of hand-crafted, North American-made paddles.

For the every growing kayak fishing market, they have added the very popular, Ultimate Performance, Kalliste & Cyprus to their Hooked paddle series.

Now kayak anglers will be paddling with these exceptionally light, buoyant and quiet paddles.  With this addition, there is a paddle that fits every kayak anglers needs, from performance to budget.

Lengths available: Kalliste - 220cm - 260cm, Cyprus - 220cm - 250cm


Hooked: Kalliste

Hooked: Cyprus

For the Stand Up Paddlers (SUP) we have the new Session.  The Session is the perfect addition to the whitewater line-up which is currently the Stinger.  The Session is our whitewater SUP Play paddle, built "bomber" as all our ww paddles are for strength and reliability.  The progressive rectangular shape is versatile, perfect on or off the river in bright translucent amber.  Available in 1 pce, 2 pce adjustable and 3 pce breakdown.  Adjustable sizes - 70-77.5in, 74-81.5in, 80-87.5in.

SUP: WW Play

The Session is our most versatile whitewater paddle, great for surfing and playing.  The Stinger is our "bomber" downriver paddle perfect for those paddlers who are moving from point A to point B and stopping to play.

All paddles are available to ship NOW so call your local dealer to place your order.


Monday, March 24, 2014

Team Paddler Luke Vollmerhaus and His Mexican Vacation



Okay, so clearly I am doing something wrong when in the last 10 days or so we've had two Nikki Rekman Sales team members reporting from sunny Mexico.

Here's a trip report from Luke Vollmerhaus that will having you yearning for Spring or hoping on the next plane to visit warmer waters!

Hey Paddlers!

I hope everyone’s winter is treating them well and anyone playing in the backcountry of the Rockies has been VERY careful.  We’ve seen some of the most reactive avalanche conditions in years this season.

Anyhow spring is just around the corner (it’s a marvelous +10⁰C here in Calgary) and I managed to make it down to Mexico at the end of February to hit the beach!


We stayed in a town just outside of Puerto Vallarta called Sayulita, less people more waves! We were super fortunate with weather and had blue sky days the whole week we were there. I was lucky enough to have both my family (Andy, Lori and my brother Jakob) and my girlfriend Allison along for the trip.

I could barely wait to taste the salt water so when we arrived my first move was to get a board and hit the ocean. The local surf shop had some great SUP boards. The waves were small the first couple of days but this was an excellent warm up and an easy catch for the SUP board. One comment I have to make at this point regards the ocean floor in this area. The bottom was comprised of oyster beds, for any non-surfers out there this means you’re surfing over a bed of small knives. This is a little hard on the feet and surf-wear, I was incredibly impressed with my Kokatat Surf Trunks which stood up to the beating without issue, no awkward streaking out of the water holding shreds of shorts for me!

During the first days of our trip we took a couple of small SUP tours out of Sayulita’s bay, an incredibly beautiful area, warm water and we even had the privilege to see humpback whales spy hopping!

As the week passed the waves got consistently bigger, nothing impressive but definitely more fun to ride! I got out on a surf board for a couple of days and went back to the SUP later on.  My family had their boogie boards as well as a play boat we dragged along with us, everyone managed a few great rides every day. I even managed to get Allison on a surfboard and after just a couple of short learning sessions she was up and riding like a pro! Her long board practice at home definitely helped.


I must really recommend this area for anyone looking for a sweet cheap vacation, there’s tenting spots right on the beach if you’re worried about accommodation blowing your budget and food is cheap!

I brought my own paddles down for this adventure and got to put Werner Paddles’ Stinger through its rounds in the surf and I must say I was very impressed. The blade surface area provided tons of acceleration when catching the wave and it’s shape made an excellent brace and rudder for cranking the big board through a tight turn.

I’m back in Canada now and eagerly awaiting the spring melt to start our rivers pumping! See you on the water!!


Cheers,

Luke


Thursday, March 20, 2014

Board the Fjord 2014 - Save The Date!

It doesn't get more beautiful than Deep Cove, BC for an end of season SUP race.  Spread the word and save the date!


Monday, March 17, 2014

What's new at Jackson Kayak?

There is never a dull moment at Jackson Kayak; our design and production teams have been very busy.

Whether it's whitewater, touring, recreational or fishing - we've got your covered!

Recently we did a blogpost about the Karma RG (Rock Garden) and the Karma Unlimited.  Check out this new walk-through video for the Karma Unlimited.



On the Recreational side, we want to introduce the new Tripper , this boat is based on our very popular sit-in style, Kilroy kayak.  The Kilroy is our sit-in, decked out fishing kayak.  The Tripper has the same stable and fast hull and tons of storage.

On behalf of Jackson Kayak we also welcome regional team paddler, Frank Pryce to the fold for 2014.



Frank is based out of Kamloops, BC with over 30 years of paddling experience, mostly white water in Canada, USA, Ecuador and Nepal.  You can also find Frank doing some flatwater trips and a little fishing along with his wife, who recently discovered Stand Up Paddling (SUP).  Frank's home rivers are the: Clearwater, Thompson and Adams rivers.

Frank is currently busy planning the Clearwater Kayak Festival July 26th & 27th for more details go the festival's Facebook page for more info.

Friday, March 14, 2014

Greetings from the SUP Race Scene in Mexico

Our very own Lina Augaitis has been quite the jet-setter in the first 3+ months of 2014 and here's an update from her recent Stand Up Paddle Race in Sayulita Mexico.



Sayulita is a quaint Mexican town with a perfect mix of touristy and real Mexican flare. Punta Sayulita a great venue for surfing and racing. The beach is perfect for spectators and for training. I am glad I got to experience this wonderful little gem of an event and town. 

Saturday was race day for the elite short course. I was on the SIC X12 PRO using my Werner small Grand Prix paddle. The waves were a good size with some of the sets a little intimidating for the race boards. During warm up I managed to score a cut on my heel and was feeling slightly flustered and intimidated by the waves... I think people could see it on my face (even though I tried to look confident:)) The course was 3 loops with two beach runs. Off the horn a huge set was rolling in..at least we were all in the same boat having to battle the waves:).. I got through most of the set but got caught on the outside wave twice. Its always a little frustrating when you fall and get up just in time to see another wave crashing  right in front of you just big and awkward enough to knock you down again.. This is part of racing and part of the mental challenge to never give up and push through the tough moments.  I think I did better than most though through that first set. I think everyone got caught up in the set except the beast Georges he made it through no problems. Once I got through I started catching some guys on the outside. The first surf into the beach went well. I stayed on my board and caught some guys... I had a clean exit off the board which I was totally stoked about. The next loop I fell on one wave going out... my luck had it that every time I headed out a good size set rolled in:) good practice anyhow. I managed to maintain my position among the men and women throughout the course. I had three clean surf entries onto the beach which I was totally pumped about and is what I am proud of myself for. I may not look elegant surfing in but I did it:) I managed to win the women's and come top ten among the men. 

The following day was the distance event. We had a beach start and finish with three loops of spectator friendly course. On this day I chose to try out my new SIC X12 PRO LITE board. It is 24" wide so less stable but faster than the PRO. We started in a slightly more sheltered part of the bay so the waves were slightly smaller but still big enough to cause some excitement. This time around though the horn went after the large set:) To the second buoy I was with a bunch of the SIC crew but during the first long section I managed to pull away from a bunch of guys and then was alone for the rest of the race standing in 6th place. By the third loop the conditions were not in our favor with tough wind and water conditions. I managed to stay upright through the sections but it was hard work mentally and physically. The loop went something like this (headwind, side chop plus weird conditions, side chop on the other side, head wind.... x3). It was big mental push to make it around the course and good practice for the balance skills. My legs were definitely feeling it. It was grand to paddle into the finish and be done:) I managed to win first female and 6th overall on this day. 

The event does a good job in bringing people together with a huge concert on Saturday night (G love and the special sauce taking stage right there on the beach)... so cool. I love beach towns. Sunday night awards was  up on the cliff looking over the water... what a gorgeous venue.

live, love, laugh,..DREAM!
lina
 

Wednesday, March 12, 2014

Henry Brothers Expedition Presentation Wednesday March 26th



Wednesday March 26th 7PM at the University of the Fraser Valley, Theatre Room B101
33844 King Rd, Abbotsford, BC V2S 7M7
  

Join us and our friends, the Henry Brothers for a special presentation about their epic kayak journey from the mouth of the Amazon River to Juno Beach, Florida.

This evening is sponsored by: Kokatat Watersports Wear, WernerPaddles, Nikki Rekman Sales and  Western Canoeing & Kayaking


ADMISSION BY DONATION TO YMCA 'STRONG KIDS' PROGRAM .


 

Green River, UT

Green River, UT
Photo: Shawna Franklin