| Cape
Falcon Kayak http://www.capefalconkayak.com 1-503-320-2168 capefalconkayak@yahoo.com Brians kayaking gear recomendations and sales. |
The Person
This is me, kayaking is what I do, I only sell the gear I use, and that gear has to be tough.
To check out a trip photo journal click here.
The Words
This is the only white page on my website, it's also the plainest, with a minimum of glitz or verbiage. My goal here is to inform you simply, clearly about choices in sea kayaking gear. I sell kayaking gear from Kokatat, spray skirts from Snap Dragon, Greenland gear from Bughead, and float bags from Spirit Line kayaks. All of these companies make excellent quality products here in America and pay their people good wages. No Indonesian child slave labor. If you called them you could probably talk to the person who made your gear. If you have a problem they will fix it. I've used the other manufactures stuff and there is a giant wet pile of leaking, chafing, failed gear in my shop to prove it. There is one word to describe my product testing, brutal.
My business is set up to provide gear for the people who build boats with me, I also take orders from people who like my site and want to support what I do. Buying from me supports all the things I am actively involved in: environmental conservation, sustainable agriculture, traditional kayaking. When you buy products from me I'm going to reccomend the products I think you need for your paddling lifestyle. Theres no upsell, no bull. I stock as much gear as I can afford and the rest is filled with a weekly order. The process takes 2-4 weeks. If you need stuff faster than that you can go through one of the big outfits.
You'll notice that some of the products here are made of Gore-Tex. You'll also notice that every time you look at the price tag little alarms go off in your wallet and you feel faint. Why is this stuff so expensive? Two reasons: One, it breathes keeping you drier. Two, and more importantly, it is significantly more durable than coated fabrics. When you buy a coated fabric (tropos) product it has a lifespan, then you can seal the leaks and eventually it's dead. With a Gore-Tex product you can keep sending it back for repairs for 10 years or more. The price difference reflects an equivalent or better value in how long your product will last. Buy the good stuff if you can, but if you're on a budget the cheaper stuff works too.
Pricing. I don't play the price war game. Everything here is listed at MSRP rounded down to the nearest $5.
You need immersion protection because if you take an extended swim in cold water, you could die. Seriously, it takes about 10 minutes in 50 deg water before your judgement is shot and your hands don't work properly anymore. On the other hand if you dress too warmly you will roast. We have to strike a balance. The smart money here is in a farmer john wetsuit, a torso layer, and a semi dry top. This will keep you reasonably cool in the summer, and reasonably warm in the water. You can buy all three for about 350 bucks total. Add a PFD, and a skirt and you're kayaking for about 550 dollars. Very safe and not too pricey. In the winter things get a little trickier. That damp neoprene that was keeping you so cool in the summer is now wicking heat away from you and it's easy to get chilled. Now we're talking drywear, a drysuit, or a drytop / bibs combo. It makes NO SENSE to buy cheap dry wear. A urethane coated drysuit is clammy and disgusting with a short life span. I will only sell Gore-Tex drywear. These suits start at 600 dollars but you need all the special order stuff like attached socks and a relief zipper or drop seat, and a fleece liner. Other dealers break all that stuff down to make it seem cheaper, It's not cheap, it's a thousand dollars, like it or not. Once you have your dry suit you can dive into icy water with impunity which is VERY FUN. Do that in neoprene and you'll get very cold.
The Stuff
