I have just a few days left before I head back out to the Ottawa, to enjoy some of the best paddling in the world.  This year I have made some changes to gear set up which I am pretty excited to talk about.  

Firstly this year I am partnering with Jackson Kayaks to give me access to some of the best designs on the market right now.   My new whip for 2014 is going to be a 2014 Rockstar Medium, in Orange.  I decided to get the standard spec boat instead of the lighter and stiffer comp spec boat which has a lighter layup plastic and a carbon centre rail.  Although I would love the increased performance I think that because I am still recovering from my knee surgery I maybe want the option to drag my boat and seal launch from spots which are easier to get to even if that means scraping over a few more rocks.  

Next up I am repping some sexy new paddles from an up and coming British company, based in Nottingham called Vertical Element paddles.  Stu Morris has been developing these for a few years, he has an impressive list of achievements including designing kayaks for the GB olympic team.  VE paddles offer a full bespoke service, I can even selct how wide I want the grips to be, how great is that!  This year I am going to be using a set of carbon bent shaft Aircore paddles for freestyle kayaking and for creeking/racing I am using a straight glass shaft combined with the Carbon Aircore blades.  

So thats all to report for now, look out for more detailed reviews later on this year.  I am pretty stoked.  

See you on the river