A brave new world…sort of.
Several years ago a few whitewater kayak manufacturers decided it would be a sweet idea to put a storage compartment into one of their boats. The idea rocked but it was a little before it's time and sales were a little less than stellar.
Enter 2009 and it's a whole new world of boating. The market has finally arrived for whitewater boats with storage capacity. Source to sea expeditions are taking place on rivers around the globe. Very few of these rivers have epic whitewater or glassy flat water the entire way and kayak manufacturers have made note of this and two of them stepped up to the plate with new boats for the growing genre.
The first of which is Liquid Logic.
They took their uber popular Remix from last year, puffed it up a little, added some storage and a skeg (drop down rudder looking thing) and have a rocking new boat called the Remix XP. It comes in two sizes and looks quite capable of handling the big stuff while still being enjoyable for the paddle out.
The other boat is the new Jackson All Water.
Again quite a capable boat with a storage compartment and a stowable skeg. These two new boats are bringing back an idea that was a bit ahead of it's time at what we believe to be just the right time.
Wavesport Diesel 70
After spending all winter thinking about kayaking, the season is finally here. We started boating again in late March and have tried to make time at least once a week so far. I think this will be the year to get a new boat and after looking around on different boating websites, I saw some amazing news! My favorite boat of last year, the Wavesport Diesel 75, has undergone some changes. From the sound of things, everyone that's tried the new boat (the Diesel 70) is a huge fan. A few of the things I felt the old boat was missing, including the ability to quickly resurface after a drop, have been fixed in the new boat. Add to that some sexy new lines and the boat looks like it could be a hit. I'll try to find one to try out and I'll let you know what I think. Stay posted.
I did it all for the Nookie.
So at last summers' Outdoor Retailer, one company that stood out to us, was Nookie wear out of the UK. They are a pretty cool paddling company and make some amazing gear. I am still drooling over their 3/4 guide short that is just sweet. Well i just noticed that they are having a clearance sale on a bunch of their gear. So if you are looking for some great gear and don't mind paying a little more for shipping, head over to the site and check out what they have. It's worth your time.