Spring 2010

So it’s almost time to go again. A winter of snow really reminds you how good kayaking really is. We’re leaving BC in a week to get to the L6 Capital Cup and Dream Result premier in Ottawa on the 24^th of April and then into Quebec with the Bottoms Up crew to creek. Lets pray we get the water. Stay tuned for lots of pictures and video this spring and summer.

BC Mission

Summer was spent as per usual boating on the Ottawa with the odd trip to the Gat to catch High Tension. This yeah however differed in that I finished University and am now have a degree. No plans to do anything with that right now. For the past month I have been boating in British Columbia with a group of friends. It is a little different to driving at home in Ireland, driving from Ottawa to Vancouver takes the same amount of time as it does to cross Ireland 12 times, so you can only imagine to road rage... After finally getting to BC we have managed to get to Skook, through Squamish, Whistler, Revelstoke and Golden. It is always weird switching between creeking and freestyle, especially when you put 3 months in-between each switch. This year was no different in that switching was tricky, but boating out here has been amazing, once the snow begins to fall it is up to Big White in Kelowna to get on with making a living in the outdoors for a few years. Check in again soon.. DC

Nene Whitewater Coaching Day

At the end of July I helped run an coaching day at my local whitewater course. The course is a is a 300 meter long pumped whitewater course in Northampton, UK which is aimed at beginners/intermediate paddlers to improve their whitewater skills.

As part of the day we offered several 2 hour sessions which included intro & intermediate whitewater skills as well as intros to Whitewater Racing, Slalom & Freestyle. The event was attended by over 40 paddlers of all different ages.

We had positive feedback from all the paddlers and I am looking forward to an improved event in 2010.

The new Hero hits the UK

The new Jackson Hero has hit the UK and I took it out for a spin on the beautiful river Gamlan in North Wales.

This was my first time on this particular river and we were exceptionally lucky with the water levels, although the river was dropping off very quickly we managed to get in a great run and therefore got to put the boat through it’s passes.

The Hero I think is a massive improvement on the older style boat that Jackson brought out. The Hero is only 231cm long, not the longest riverboat on the market but that is why it appealed to me to get it out on some of the tighter steeper runs. The manageability of the boat is a godsend, especially if your main discipline is playboating. The Hero’s hull has been taken from the Jackson Fun range and has been lengthened, surfing waves in this boat feels like your in your freestyle kayak, which is again great for getting out of those STICKY situations.
Although relatively short the Hero still has 75 Gallons of volume which is ideal for the style’s of river in Great Britain, and weighing less than 20kg the boat is perfect for your trek to the top of any river.

Overall the boat work well, but what impressed me most was it’s ability to work its way down the river responding to your every move.

Stats:

Length: 231cm
Width: 65
Volume: 75 Gallons
Weight: 19.05kg
Paddler weight range: 52kg to 87kg

For more info check out jacksonkayak.com


Video of the hero

Last words of summer

So Im back at home in Dublin reminiscing on an unbelievable summer that has just passed, great times amongst some new great friends... read more...

Dave on the Ottawa again.

This is possibly one of the best places to spend your summer. I’ve been up here two months and bus eater only went out a week or two ago, it’s been pretty damn good.



It's at a bit of an inbetween level now but the level is beginning to drop and some of the other famous spots are beginning to come in.





Ive been surfing here, working for Ottawa Kayak School and enjoying all the other aspects of the river atmosphere. Enjoy these pics and I’ll have loads more as the levels change.

New JK HERO & The French Alps 2008

Here are a few photos from my recent trip to the French Alps. During the trip I had a good chance to put the New JK Hero through its paces. The Hero handled it self well in the large volume rivers but came in to it own on the more technical low volume runs. If you want a river runner that you can climb out of you playboat and feel at home in then the Hero is for you.

Chris Chapman