Ahnu Footwear

I just want to say thanks to Eric Adams, sales rep for Ahnu Footwear. He has fixed me up with a gorgeous pair of Lodi sports shoes. Not only is Ahnu a local Bay Area company with a great philosophy - check out: http://www.ahnufootwear.com/philosophy/index.html but they also make superb shoes!

Thanks Eric!

Olympic travels

Hi Folks,

It's over a month since my last post which is some indication of how busy I have been. The paddling season is in full swing which means lots of demos and events up and down the west coast. I have travelled well over 20k miles in my trusty Ford E250 van so far this year!

I have just got back from another road trip: this time to Washington State, for the Puget Sound Sea Kayak Symposium near Tacoma beneath the towering 14,410ft Mt Ranier an active volcano encased in snow and ice.

I stayed with Rob Avery and his wife Kris for a few days on Bainbridge Island which gave us an opportunity to talk business and plan for the future. Rob and I then taught a couple of classes for Tammi Hinkle at Adventures Through Kayaking in Port Angeles before heading even further up the Olympic Peninsular to the Hoebuck Hoedown Surf Kayak Festival at Neah Bay close to Cape Flattery, the most Northwesterly part of the contiguous continetal USA.

The surf was uncharacteristically tiny but we had fun all the same. There is a solid bunch of talented surf kayakers in the Pacific Northwest and it was good to hang out with them for a couple of days. Neah Bay is a beautiful beach that belongs to the Makah Tribe whose village lies on the northeast (sheltered) side of Cape Flattery. I couldn't resist taking a couple of photos of the local watercraft. Bald Eagles are as common as seagulls in the busy harbor and osprey regularly flew past the beach, talons clenched around their catch.

I want to thank the Olympic Paddlers for hosting the event and especially Rob Casey and Deb Volturno for their hard work. It was a really worthwhile trip for me and it was good to be able to support Tammi Hinkle, the owner of Adventures Through Kayaking in Port Angeles. I can certainly recommend the Olympic Coast of the PNW as one of the most beautiful I have yet seen.

Shea Bella's 1st Birthday Party

Hi Folks,
Here are some photos from Shea Bella's first Birthday Party on the beach at Sausalito. We were blessed with perfect spring weather and Gina and I want to say a big "Thank you" to Sea Trek Ocean Kayaking Center for their help and to all our friends and family who made this such a very special day for Shea Bella and us.

Update on Container #3

I have just had notification that container #3 has arrived in Oakland and is awaiting Customs clearance. So just when I thought I was going to get a few days at home it seems I will be heading up to Portland next week. I will keep you all updated on the ETA for Alder Creek.

Busy Days!

Since my last post I have been as far south as Albuquerque, New Mexico delivering an Aleut II and aquanaut to Sandia Prep School. It was my first time to the high desert. Fascinating drive across the Mohave Desert into Arizona and over the continental divide to New Mexico. The I40 Freeway reaches over 7000ft - strange to see snow on the ground in a desert! The dogs came with me and gave me the perfect excuse to stop and take in the scenery.

Almost as soon as I got home from NM, it was time to head south again, this time to San Diego for the SW Sea Kayak Symposium on the beautiful Mission Bay. Hosted by Jenn Kelck and the staff from Aqua Adventures this proved to be a really successful show for us with a lot of interest in the boats, especially the Valley Aquanaut and North Shore Atlantic as well as Gath Headgear and Barz Sports Goggles. It even rained a little to help promote interest in the Kokatat gear!

I also gave four surf kayak clinics which were well attended and we had some big waves - a little too big at times!

Thanks to professional photographer and surf kayaker Dominick Lemarie for the photos!

Thanks also to Jenn Kleck for a great event and to all who made it possible by either volunteering or attending. I will be back next year for sure and hopefully next time I will be able to join you for the post-event trip to Baja.

Update on the Rush 7' 2" and Nemesis

Jared and I got to test the new Rush 7' 2" last week before the SCKSF. It is a pocket rocket! The conditions weren't that great at Davenport but I still managed to pop a couple of small aerials. It bottom turns much faster than the Rush but lacks the down the line speed. If you surf steep waves and like going airborne then this is the boat for you. Despite its short length it has plenty of volume in the back end and more in the rails than the Rush so I would have thought it will float someone up to 200lbs fairly well. I will post some photos of it in action as soon as I can.

One of the hot juniors, Alexander Stubbs will be testing one on the East Coast US and I have one on the west so if you fancy giving it a try just let me know.
We have some more work to do on the Nemesis International Class design now that the World Surf Kayak Association has published the new rules. Standby for a radical new design and a finned High Performance version.

Santa Cruz update...

Jared Licht at Steamer Lane. Photo by Larkin Donley.

Well the Santa Cruz Kayak Surf Festival at Steamer Lane certainly lived up to its reputation as the best surf kayak event in the world. As always, the organising committee led by Dennis Judson staged a fabulous event and we enjoyed fantastic waves all weekend.

I was frustrated not to reach the quarter finals despite some reasonable wave scores in the High Performance category. I was beaten by a couple of juniors, Chris Hobson and Sam Davenport which though disappointing for me, bodes well for the future of kayak surfing.

But Jared Licht did the River and Ocean Team proud by reaching the semi finals before being slammed by a HUGE wave, even bigger than the one he's surfing above. He broke his paddle across his face and smashed his boat but earned the respect of his peers when he rolled up with half a paddle, before having to bail out of his sinking kayak. It was really tough luck but he will be back next year and we had all better look out - the lad is ripping!

And my wife Gina showed our daughter Shea Bella how to do it by achieving a 2nd in women's High Performance and a 3rd in the International Class.

Peter Orton, one of the co-owners of Valley Sea Kayaks flew over for the event. It was great to have his help manning the booth and it was really useful for him to see the sort of punishment we give the surf kayaks. He has gone home even more committed to providing us with not only the highest performing but also the strongest surf kayaks on the planet. I know Jared will appreciate that!

I am off to Albuquerque, New Mexico tomorrow to deliver some kayaks and then I head down to San Diego for the SW Sea Kayak Symposium next weekend. Hope to see you there!

Sean Morley