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(photo by Arlyn Agababian)
The crew over at LVM is posting photos and video submissions from regular paddlers showcasing their "golden stroke." You can check it out on the LVM site. Send in your sublime image or video and they will post it for the world to see.
This post comes from a participant at the Lumpy Waters Symposium. Read on...
Over the weekend we attended the Lumpy Waters Symposium here on the Oregon coast and we wanted to let you know how impressed we were with Danny Mongno and by association Werner paddles. Danny was coaching a class called " Fear to Fun in the Surf" where he displayed his seemingly boundless energy (does he ever walk anywhere?) and high degree of skill in teaching on land and demo'ing on the water. His coaching made everyone in the class feel safe and allowed us to progress a great deal in our paddling skills.
We're guessing you already are, but you should be proud to have a man such as Danny representing Werner. Because of Danny's professionalism throughout the weekend our image of Werner is one of strength, competence, and performance.
We also want to say thank you very much for sending Danny out here for the symposium. At a time when we have read that some symposiums are shrinking with hardly any industry participation, it is great to see Werner supporting our local paddling community. We noticed and appreciated that Werner didn't send a bunch of merchandise to sell and schwag to throw to the crowd, just a highly competent individual to help as needed; that will stick in my mind as an example of the type of company that Werner is. We realize that in a tough economy you are examining all expenses, but it's our opinion that sending your reps out to the field are worth more than years of glossy ads in magazines and hope you will continue to allocate your marketing efforts in that direction.
Once again, thank you.
Sincerely,
Roger Artigues and Claudine Veran
Portland, Oregon
All photos courtesy of Roger Artiguers and Claudine Veran
Werner Paddle's own Danny Mongno reporting from this past weekend's Lumpy Water Symposium, presented by Alder Creek Kayak and Canoe.
"I want to first say thanks to Werner for sending me to the event. Dan Gavere has things so well covered on the Left Coast I rarely ever get to head out. Thanks and kudos must go to the owners and staff at Alder Creek. Their focus on making sure each person was looked after and happy on the water and off was amazing, killer attention to every detail. I met so many great people on the water and can't wait to come back out and see you all again.
The Pacific did a great job of giving us "Lumpy" for sure, Friday and Saturday were full on. With a solid swell running and high winds creating interesting conditions for say the least, students did an awesome job building confidence and truly taking their skills to new levels.
Sunday's weather was perfect, warming up, no wind and much cleaner surf. Teams made it to the outside to share waves with the local surfers while others explored the Three Capes region on a multitude of tours and classes.
I made some great new friends and got to hang out with old ones I don't get to see enough. If you missed this one you really need to check it out for 2010 and between now and then be sure to stop by Alder Creek to see all the programs they have to offer to get you ready."
If you missed the West Coast showing don't blink. Danny lands in Asheville on Tuesday, jumps in the truck and drives right to Sea Kayak Georgia for some more rough water coaching.
Dan Gavere checks in here with a report on the Battle of the Paddle 2010..
The Battle of the Paddle has become the underground World Championships of Stand Up Paddling and this years event was proof positive. Over 600 competitors from all over the world came to the sunny shores of So Cal to be involved in what can be called a landmark event for the sport.
The open class course race consisted of a 5mile course with a beach start and finish. Werner Paddles team member Nikki Gregg got off to an incredible start outpacing her competition and rounding the first turn marker with a solid 10 second lead over the nearest female competitor. Making no mistakes and without ever looking back Nikki held the lead throughout the grueling race amidst the other hundreds of competitors, and the churned up sea, she utilized a solid and powerful stroke to claim 1st place in the entire women's open class.
Team Werner Paddles, Kainoa Beaupre (HI), and Dan Gavere (Werner Sales Rep) competing in the elite class against some of the best in the sport had respectable finishes with a 13th and 26th in the class. (They even found themselves paddling side by side for one complete lap.) Surfing prowess and endurance were the most important factors in this 6 mile race that required competitors to complete 4 laps around a challenging course that wove in and out of the surf and required a 50 yard beach run on each lap.
Grueling is an understatement for this particular course; broken boards, paddles, chins and feelings could be heard throughout the race as several competitors made contact with each other. The building surf and low tide conditions exposed the racers to head high waves, shallow waters and challenging turns on every mark making for an exciting SUP race. Werner paddles could be spotted everywhere in the hands of competitors and the Nitro is steadily proving itself to be the paddle of choice for racing. All 3 team members mentioned above used Werner Nitro paddles for the race, and can attest to their performance, strength, and reliability.
Photo: Courtesy Wardog and www.supsports.com
As many parts of the county are waking to cooler temperatures, there is still plenty of warm weather paddling to be had. Werner's SE Rep, Mette Begrvall got out to enjoy some time over the weekend at Sumersville Lake in West Virginia. Remember to get out and enjoy that perfect paddling weather while it lasts. Check back here for tips on dressing for cooler weather paddling in the next few weeks.
Photo courtesy of Joe Mosquera, Surf Tech Rep
Paddler Tayor Cote
Werner Paddles knows that the future of paddling depends on the youth of today. So here is some info about a program to get more kids off the couch and reconnecting with the water and land.
In an effort to encourage tweens (ages 8-12) to spend more time in nature, the U.S. Forest Service is joining the Ad Council today to launch an interactive photo/art sweepstakes that will engage families in experiencing nature first hand. As an extension of their "Re-Connecting Kids with Nature", the photo sweepstakes encourages tweens to head into the forest or river, explore and find their "other you. Learn more about the sweepstakes here.
