East Coast Kayak Symposium aka ‘Charleston’  marks the unofficial start to the paddling season here in the south east…..for us that’s about six weeks late, but hey, it’s the south east and nobody’s counting.

Our 7th visit, and unlike Canopia and Jersey Paddler, it’s not about making a sale but more about making  a friend, a strange odd type friend maybe, but thats o.k. People don’t come to Charleston to be sold anything, they come to paddle, talkup, try out and compare every single frickin boat they can.

So what had their neoprene panties in a twist this year ? Well the hot boat on everybodies arse was our very own CETUS. Top coaches as well as a few bottom ones all agreed that the handling characteristics of this boat were outstanding for such a load carrying expedition boat..

Heeling over at 40′ Karen K effortlessly low brace turned across the pond minus the low brace part and we could only imagine what she could do with a better fitting LV Cetus. Bob F’s head was seen to nod. Nigel F came and checked it out… ” Is there a drain plug for the front deck hatch ?” he asked knowingly. Kevin Black said he would be unable to make a final assessment until he sees Freya H attempt downward dog on the rear deck.

A wide variety of shapes and sizes paddled the Cetus and all were impressed. We were impressed that everyone was impressed.

A final note. We saw a lot of people with high end foam core Werners. We also saw a lot of people using their paddle as a support device for entry and exit. It begs the question…’Who’s teaching the teachers and why can’t I have a foam core paddle?’

Later. Nigel & Kristin Sponsored by each other.

Come join Ben Lawry and Garth Schmeck for a dynamic educational clinic on the Sacramento River. (more…)

Had a chance to kayak in Antarctica recently……
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