Kayak Noise

Monday, September 27, 2010

Kayak Noise_ Nootka Island

Alex's Video from His trip to Nootka....

Alex Matthews - Kayaking Nootka Island 2010 from Alex Matthews on Vimeo.

Kayak Noise_ Nootka Island

Kayaking Nootka Island 2010.........

Alex Matthews & Friends – Nootka Island 2010

Alex Matthews here, signing in on the ‘Kayak Noise’ blog.

Last month I had the chance to take off up the coast of Vancouver Island for a 10 day trip to Nootka island and the Nuchatlitz area, launching from the small town of Zeballos. Nick Castro of Active Sea Kayaking (http://www.activeseakayaking.ca/) was the instigator, with his partner Sandra, and their good friend Jen rounding out the gang.

I was paddling Spike’s newest sea kayak design - the Looksha Elite. I’ve logged quite a few miles in the Elite now, and it’s a cool boat that combines positively HUGE storage capacity with a very efficient hull for good speed, and tremendous maneuverability. Because the stern of the Elite has so much rocker it spins on a dime and is very fun and sporty to paddle (great down wind), but it’s quite rudder dependant in some conditions. I really like it and it’s become my “go to” boat for multi-day trips. If I was still guiding I would definitely be working out of an Elite: it’s fast, comfy, is really easy to swing around (ideal for doing a head-count when keeping track of guests behind you), and positively swallows gear! It’s also stable enough when loaded that I think you could put a client in it without worrying about them flipping.

The only downside I encountered is that when FULLY loaded, the Elite ends up weighing a ton (duh)! I wanted to see just how much I could stuff into the boat and went a little crazy. I ended up with my usual gear, plus enough food for over 2 weeks, extra water, extra clothes, and a full complement of camera gear. The kayak swallowed it all with ease but was of course really heavy. So it’s like the old backpacking adage: “be careful with a really big pack, because you will have a tendency to fill all the space available. And then you’ll have to carry it!”

At a measly 150lbs, I’m definitely small for the Elite, but it does a really good job of not feeling like a big boat. And while I am campaigning for a lower volume version, I must admit that all that cargo capacity is pretty corrupting (I’m getting old and soft, and luxury certainly has its appeal). I’m not sure that I’d be willing to give it up.

All photos by Nick Castro or Alex Matthews

Thursday, August 19, 2010

Kayak Noise - On the cover

Paddler Magazine Cover...

The Looksha 4 on the cover of Paddler Magazine. Not sure where the photo is.

Kayak Noise- On the Cover

Chatham 16 on the Cover...

The picture was taken out at Quadra Island B.C

Friday, August 6, 2010

Kayak Noise - Retail Dealer conference

Dealers get to check out 2011 designs....

A couple of weeks ago we had our dealer conference. This is where the dealers get a sneak peak at our new boats for 2011. The conference was at Stone Mountain which is near Atlanta Georgia. It was ridiculously hot but everyone braved the temperature to paddle the new boats. They seemed to be well received I heard a lot of positive feedback.
One thing I love about these conferences is to get a chance to talk to dealers as they always have so many ideas of new boats and improvements to boats. I wish we had time and money to do them all. So a big thanks to all you dealers who took the opportunity to throw your ideas out there it is so interesting and appreciated. Keep it coming.

New Camden for Old Town it comes in a 12ft version and a 10ft version.

Bow of the Camden and the new Necky Vector sit on top.Below is the Vector as well.

I was there to do a short presentation on our design process and kayak design. It seemed to go OK. Well no one fell asleep or heckled. Here are a few photos from the beach. I thought I was melting!