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SK Newsletter: September 11, 2007
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Doug Simpson, Feathercraft
I got the idea for Feathercraft while still in university, about 1970. Most summers I worked as a prospector for small mineral exploration companies. Flying into lakes, setting up bush camps, my old partner and I thought having a small boat to carry on our back was a good idea. He suggested an open canoe. I already liked kayaks from paddling a neighbor’s skin kayak when I was 7 or 8 years old. This is one of my best memories.
When I graduated from university in 1972 with a bachelor of commerce I didn't know what I wanted to do. I went back to the bush, prospecting; had an administrative job for an oil company. I hated the job but while I was there, I obtained my commercial pilots license. I didn't fly airplanes long -- too noisy. Eventually, I quit everything. I decided to forget the career and do something I wanted to do. I rented a small car garage and started designing a kayak.
By 1977, I had obtained a patent. I worked occasionally to pay my rent and to eat.  I moved from the car garage, and squatted in an abandoned building on what would become Granville Island in Vancouver, Canada. Development of the area began and I was discovered. I was offered a small, derelict shack in the area and became the first tenant of this now popular area. The place was heated by a small wood burning pot-bellied stove. In winter, I'd scavenge building sites for wood to heat the place. Sometimes there was more time spent scavenging for wood than building kayaks. In 1979, the first K-l was completed.
The rest, as they say, is history.
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Greg Barton, Epic Kayaks
Greg Barton stunned the world by winning 2 kayaking gold medals at the 1988 Olympics. He also has numerous titles in marathon canoeing, outrigger canoeing and open ocean kayak races.
Growing up in a family of canoeists in Michigan, Greg built his first paddle at age 13 and his first boat at age 15. He continued to optimize his equipment, building the paddles that were used in his gold medal winning kayak races.
Greg graduated summa cum laude from the University of Michigan with a degree in  mechanical engineering. Greg is currently the president of Epic Kayaks, Inc.
Epic Kayaks produces lightweight, high performance kayaks and paddles. They utilize materials and design principles proven in racing and adapt them to suit all types of paddling including touring and expedition use. |
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Tom Derrer, Eddyline Kayaks
Throughout our 36 year history, Tom's focus at Eddyline has been to bring advanced technology to the design and construction of kayaks and paddles. Starting with vacuum bag technology in 1971, many of his innovations are now standard features or processes used by other manufacturers. Tom was first to apply computer-aided design and use computer machined originals, vastly improving hull symmetry and performance over hand lofted hulls and decks. In 1995, Eddyline was the first to produce thermoformed sea kayaks, introducing Carbonlite 2000 and setting the standards for the future of Thermoforming. It is a major point of pride for us that all Eddyline kayak and Swift paddle designs and technologies are original and unique.
Tom has been deeply involved in the industry from the beginning of the sport; helping to form a trade association now called TAPS. He helped design the format still used at the annual “West Coast Sea Kayak Symposium” and helped develop the safety video “Before You Go” released by TAPS in the nineties and still in use today.
By Tom's choice, we remain a family company, supporting local jobs, focused on quality, rather than quantity. Our small size enables us to treat our customers as family too, allowing us to communicate personally with them. And in return, their passion for paddling continues to educate and inspire us. |
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Jim Koutros, Seda
Headquartered in San Diego, Seda has been manufacturing quality composite kayaks and canoes for over 37 years. We've utilized the expertise of several kayak designers over our many models and many years of production. Our focus continues to be on lightweight construction in fiberglass, Kevlar®, and graphite so paddlers are certain to find the right model to fit their needs. Seda's design philosophy can be seen in each model with a keen eye towards smooth water lines and minimized windage. Since 1969 Seda Kayaks have been tested worldwide in competitions and expeditions that have proven the speed and strength of our designs. |
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John Lockwood, Pygmy Boats Inc.
Thirty-six years ago John fled the stuffy halls of Harvard for the wilds of the Queen Charlotte Islands off the coast of Northern British Columbia. In his luggage he carried 70 photocopied pages of Eskimo kayak designs from the Peabody Museum. While in the Charlottes John designed and built his first lightweight “stitch and glue” wood/glass sea kayak, and for the next three summers he paddled along the wild coasts of the Charlottes.
Fourteen years later, in 1985, when John left his day job as a computer software designer to start Pygmy Boats, he brought twelve years working as a computer software designer, a background in anthropology and Eskimo kayak design, and his love of long distance wilderness kayak touring together to produce North America’s first CAD/CAM designed sea kayak. His new company produced and sold the first lightweight precision pre-cut boat kits manufactured in North America.
Over the years John’s sophisticated designs have revolutionized the look and feel of wood/glass boats. Thanks to John’s 21 years of pioneering effort, wood/glass kit boats are a significant segment of the sea kayak market. Pygmy Kayaks are paddled by some of the country’s most skilled and demanding expert kayakers who like the rugged, light-weight handling, and aesthetics of his designs. |
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Mark Hall, Delta Kayaks
Mark Hall, tour operator, former small retail shop owner and guide, was involved with management teams from Seaward, Riot, Azul, Langford Canoe, Waterstick, Confluence Watersports Canada, Skana Enterprises and finally the anchor is set on the west coast of Canada with Delta Kayaks.
 Delta kayak’s first design was drawn up beside the mighty Fraser River Delta which flows into the Pacific. Colin Beeskau initiated the company by contacting Mark Hall to lead the design team with their successful series of Delta Kayaks. Colin’s 25 years of prior thermoforming, combined with Mark’s thorough knowledge of both working and recreational boats, allowed them to form a solid and unique platform to enter the paddlesports industry. |
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Murray Hamilton, Johnson Outdoors
Murray and the design team at Johnson Outdoors Inc. are responsible for kayak design for Necky, Old Town, and Ocean Kayaks. It is a team in every sense of the word and is led by Spike Gladwin, Head of Design. Tom Swetish is the Director of R&D, and Gary Seaman, Larry Sinclair, Adam Bierschenk, and Murray are Design Specialists.
The answers to these questions are from our Team, as we work together on all designs. |
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Nick Schade, Guillemot Kayaks
Nick Schade started designing kayaks over 20 years ago by drawing his first kayak on a large sheet of paper on his parent’s dinning room floor. He had so much fun building and paddling that first boat that he kept on doing it. He started Guillemot Kayaks in 1993 to market his designs to other people who wanted to build their own sea kayak from plans.  In 1998 he wrote “The Strip-Built Sea Kayak”, a complete instruction book about building sea kayaks out of fiberglass-reinforced wood.
Guillemot Kayaks offers a complete line of kayak designs for do-it-yourself boat builders, from 10’ recreational kayaks, through high performance sea, surf, and racing kayaks. Designs include boats constructed using the strip-built and stitch and glue methods as well as hybrids. While the business does not directly make kits, they are available for all his designs through Chesapeake Light Craft and Newfound Woodworks. Over the years Guillemot Kayaks have been built by thousands of people in over 40 countries.
Nick continues to paddle along the coast of New England and takes that experience back to his shop in Connecticut where he refines his designs, builds more boats and takes them out paddling again.
www.KayakPlans.com/S |
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Nigel Foster, Nigel Foster Designs
 Nigel Foster has been designing kayaks for 30 years, beginning with the Vyneck (with Keith Robinson). Unwilling to follow a manufacturing career, he chose to license the building of his designs (not only kayaks) to a succession of different manufacturers, and has collaborated closely with a number of paddlesport companies as a consultant. His kayaks are now produced by Seaward Kayaks (Canada), Current Designs (USA) and he is working with Point65 (Sweden) on kayak-related projects.
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 Phil Cotton, Folbot
Folbot was founded in 1933 in London, England by Jacob Kissner, moved to Long Island, NY in 1935 and to Charleston, SC in 1953. Folbot was conscripted by the US Army in 1943 to produce black folding boats for use in WWII. Since Mr. Kissner's death in 1982, Folbot has been run by Phil Cotton, a graduate of NC State University with a degree in Product Design. He has served in the US Navy and is currently President of Folbot, Inc.
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