Werner Blog

Video update from Zac on the "Paddle to the Ocean" tour.

Finished with his paddling adventure, "Paddle to the Ocean," check out the latest video of some sweet Canadian countryside, beautiful paddling and some great music.  Thanks Zac for all your support and I hope you are recovering.

Southwest Report- Canoe Colorado's down river race for all crafts.

 
Earlier this month Canoe Colorado, from Denver, hosted a down river paddle event in the heart of state. The event was open to all paddle crafts from canoes to surf skis.  The course consisted of 10 miles of class I-II whitewater on the Colorado River from Dotsero to Hanging Lake through the beautiful towering Glenwood canyons.   There was a great turnout for SUP, quadrupling the numbers from last years gathering.  

 
The weather couldn't have been better, setting the perfect vibe for the event.  It was well organized and had abilities of all levels. Cheers to Jerry for putting together the event and gathering paddlers of all kinds.

Catching A Shark From A Kayak: Smart or Not?

A father and son who went fishing in the Gulf of Mexico caught something a lot bigger than they expected.

Kevin Stevens and his nine-year old son, Hunter, spent an hour reeling in a 7ft (2m) long black tip shark from their 12ft (3.5m) kayak.

After getting some good pictures the pair agreed it was time to cut the shark loose.

At least they had a proper Werner Skagit Paddle on board!  Check out the video here.

(S)up the waz(N)oo! SUP racing West Virgina style. Check it out September 15th.

 
Hope you will all joint the team at Adventures on the Gorge, in Fayettville WV, at this first year event on the New River Gorge—a little SUP race and after party we like to call (S)up the waz(N)oo! This is a freaking great addition to an already action-packed weekend here in WV. Gauley Fest weekend begins the day after the race, and there'll be tons of boaters in town, plus Monday will be the annual Upper Gauley Animal Race. (Will any SUPers will partake this year?!) 2011 is also the 10-year dam-inspection draw down of Summersville Lake, when they will release more water than usual. The Fri-Mon release will still be 2800 cfs, but we're betting the mid-week will be 800+ cfs. This means the park and play surf spot Canyon Doors could make for a great surf competion on Wed. email us if you have any interest in that. =)

What to expect:

1. An afternoon of demoes at Fayette Station (maybe a kids' race, too, if the weather is really nice and there's enough interest). Demoes start at 2pm.

 2. An attainment race at 4:00 from the upper beach at Fayette Station upstream through Thread the Needle and back down.

 3. A down-river race at 5:45 from the upper beach at Fayette Station to Teay's Landing (one class 3-4 rapid and 2 class-2 rapids).

 4. Shuttle provided for the down-river race from the finish line back to Fayette Station.

 5. Award ceremony after the race at Rendezvous Lodge at Adventures On the Gorge Mill Creek campus.

 (S)up the waz(N)oo! is sponsored by Adventures on the Gorge & MedExpress. All race proceeds will be donated to the local Red Cross Chapter, (a very involved group)!

 Need lodging? Camping and other options will be available at Adventures on the Gorge and Cabins on Miller Ridge.

 Also:

We need volunteers for safety boaters, video boaters and time keepers. This is our first race, so any feedback will be greatly appreciated. Email me back if you have any, if you just have questionsn or if (fingers crossed) you'd like to volunteer.

Demshitz Rockin' the Little White

 

Team SUP rider Dave Boehne finding some shade Indo style...watch the video here.

Here is a great video interview with Dave Boehne of Infinity Surf, sponsored by Werner Paddles, talking about why he wants to charge surf in Indo with an SUP.  The footage is from the feature film Dave stars in, H2Indo, coming out this fall.  Check out the teazer. 

Vote For SUP Woman of the Year

SUPConnect.com is hosting  a contest for "Woman of the Year."  While there are many talented paddlers in the running, Nikki Gregg is our choice for her prowess as a paddler, infusing fitness and proper paddling technique and her stoke at turning every person she meets into a SUP convert.  Vote for Nikki today at SUPConnect.com by liking Nikki.

Even the world's best have bad days on the river. Team paddler Dave Fusilli loses some gear.

In one day of running the Crystal Gorge in CO, with fellow Team paddler Nicole Mansfield, our hero Dave Fusilli lost his carbon Powerhouse, his throw bag and his Pyranha Burn!

 
Josh Bechtel runing the Inner Gorge, photo by Nicole.

Words by Dave Fusilli-"So I was letting some folks demo my Burn on the river, we were all swapping out above drops. Well one guy swims and in the process my throwbag washes out and is lost. Then at the end of the run there is a hole, then a slow moving pool that goes off of like 3 unrunnable 60 footers.  After a stout solo surf my Burn flushes and washed out of the back of the pool.  As the madness is unfolding someone is scraping down the bank and kicks a HUGE rock/boulder down onto my Powerhouse and smashes into pieces.  So pretty rough day for me or at least for my gear......"

 
 
Nicole shoots Dave as he runs Pine Tree Falls.

Bummer Dave but thanks for sharing the story and the pics!

White Water report with Team Paddle Nicole Mansfield.

 
Thanks to Team paddler Nicole Mansfield for some great photos with her white water update, travelling in the Pyranha RV with Craig and Dave and stroking the goods with their Werner Paddles.

"The last month we spent exploring Montana, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, and British Columbia.  With the high water year, many of the classics were still too high, which meant we had the opportunity to try out new creeks and playspots.  Some of the creeks were wood-filled portage-fests, some we hiked in to find too high or under snow, but many were rarely run gems."

 
Springdale Wave, Montana.

 
Kootenai wave.

"While the rest of the country was suffering in a brutal heat wave, we spent over a week camping in continuous rain.  We would have loved to spent more time in Washington exploring the creeks, but longing to dry out our gear, tents, and clothes, we headed to Hood River to lap the sunny creeks in that area.   After a week in Hood River, we did a quick lap on the North Fork of the Payette before heading to Salt Lake City for the Outdoor Retail Show.  Now, we're in Colorado exploring what's left of the water before driving back to the east coast."

 
 
Dave Fusilli on Icicle Creek

 
Top Tye, Washington.

Werner supports the Massie Creek Paddlers as they host, Reel Paddling Film Fest.

 
Check out the Reel Paddling Fim Festival hosted by the Massie Creek Paddlers this coming Saturday in Cedarville, Oh.  Read the blog below for more info.

http://massiecreekpaddlers.wordpress.com/

Our own Mette Mosquera will be supporting the event from a far with some Werner Paddles giveaways, I am sure our friends at White Water Warehouse, the supporting shop and home of white water boating in Ohio, will be throwing some goodies into the mix as well.  Have fun all!