Winter Newsletter

What! Already?! Here it is barely into December and the lakes are icing up fast. Of course we'd planned a slew of day trips to test out new products and get us out of the bookkeeping duties that call out for attention at the end of the season. It looks like real winter is here and that means finding open water on rivers if you want to paddle. And now that hunting season is over it's finally safe to get back out and paddle up and down the great streams and creeks we have here in Jackson County. But if overnight temps stay where they've been even some of these slow moving waterways will begin to ice up near shoreline and that makes getting your boat in and out of the water pretty tricky.

Speaking of product testing, we've had the new line up of paddles from Bending Branches since October and have given them a thorough testing. Of special note to us is the new crankshaft wood paddle that is now available. It is simply gorgeous to look at and delightful to paddle. We've always preferred wood paddles for aesthetic reasons and the fact that they are warm to the touch and have a natural flex. But converting over to crankshafts the past year meant no more wood. Once you've gone "cranked" you'll not want to go back to a straight shaft. Now Branches has developed the technology to produce lightweight laminated crankshafts from wood at a stunning price of $189. While this may not sound inexpensive to newbies to kayaking, most cranks start at over $300. And the amount of detail in the Branches wood crank would seem to warrant a much higher price. How does it paddle? Smoooth! Clean entry and exit and it requires the lightest of touches to execute the forward stroke. Draw strokes are particularly easy and graceful as your hands nest right in the crank bends for great control. Branches makes three different blade shapes so almost everyone can find one to suit their paddling style.

Also of note is Branches new Breeze series of carbon/glass ultra light weights. Impressive indeed and the swing weight is dialed in perfectly. Sometimes a paddle company will put a "piggy" set of blades on a light shaft and the paddle will wallow or over-arc in the feathered position. The Breeze paddles feature a new carbon shaft from Toray that mates with a new carbon/glass blade and they paddle like nothing we've used before. If you want the ultimate lightweight tool, check these out at your local paddle shops. The Breeze is slated to sell for around $229.

Walden coughed up a new Adirondack and it went through our school torture with flying colors. Our version had a rudder which we found pretty unnecessary as it tracks true and clean without one. This kayak will appeal to those wanting a spacious cockpit and rock like stability. We really enjoyed it on several river outings as it was really easy to crank around tight bends. The seat back is the highest we've ever seen and should appeal to anyone who wants to kick back and fish or take it easy. Putting a spray skirt on won't be a peach but we're sure Walden will develop a suitable one.

Coming in a few weeks will be some new composites from Swift, a Canadian builder known for their fine canoes. What is unique about their kayaks is that the Kevlar/glass versions are available in the lengths we prefer around here, 12 to 15 feet. And they look to be priced attractively for high-end materials. We'll report on how they paddle in the next newsletter.

You'll see we changed the format of our classes this year based on what you've asked for. The Beginner Quickstart is very much the same award winning format. The Beginner Plus meets the needs of those of you that have traveled an impressive distance to get to us and want as much as you can get from your initial intro to kayaking. By adding some river training and extending the water time another hour, we believe Beginner Plus will be a new standard for classes in the Midwest.

Special thanks to those of you who were the initial testing for our Chain of Lakes Tour this past season. We had some wild weather along with the hottest day on record for 2002 for one of the tours but everyone held up great and several Chain of Lakes tours are already filled for 2003. We had a number of people sign on for this tour who had never paddled before and are happy to report that they all did great and added a nice feel to our mix of super nice people aboard this summer. No one was held up and it made for a more natural experience as tripping involves a mix of skill levels and challenges for groups and it's good to see them in action on the COLT.

Todd would like to thank everyone that came out to Minard Mills for the color tour in October. With 25 mile an hour winds, some were convinced the paddling would be horrible but down in the valley that most rivers carve out all was warm and serene. We are sorry that some jerk took down our signs making us hard to find but next time we have a surprise for anyone that wants to play spoil sport. Todd is available for private tours around Jackson County next year and can be reached at 517-750-1276. He can give you a tour of choice from an hour up to five hours.

We're proud to announce a new affiliation with Thule Rack Systems, an official school sponsor. We converted over to Thule a few years back and have had thousands of miles logged with their kayak carriers and roof mount racks. Look to Thule for their Hull-A-Port carrier if your vehicle has a factory rack on it already. The Hull-A-Port solves several problems, one being the space challenge of getting two 28 in wide kayaks on a crossbar that is only 48 in wide. And the boats will be cradled and secure on the nicely padded J. My daughter installed a "short roof line" Thule rack on her two door Hyundai and blasted off to Nova Scotia for three weeks this summer loaded to the gills. With everything on top they looked like the Beverly Hillbillies going down the road but the rack didn't move a hair the whole trip and allowed them to carry bikes, boats and camping gear. See you on the water!

Bruce and Todd