Brian Schulz
Owner, Instructor, Designer
Whether it’s whitewater, surf, sea, squirt, polo, racing, fishing, Arctic, vintage, or any other type of kayak, chances are I’m obsessed with it in some way. I’ve been a multidisciplinary paddler for over 26 years, and a full-time skinboat builder for over 20. My very first skin-on-frame boat was an Aleutian kayak. It was light, beautiful, and surprisingly tough, and despite issues with comfort and handling, I ended up taking it everywhere I went. Being a paddler first, however, I needed a boat to suit my paddling needs, so I made it my personal mission to apply modern design to this amazingly versatile traditional building system.
Through a process of trial and error that continues to this day, I spent years experimenting, testing, and refining my designs, culminating in what is now over 2000 kayaks and canoes that have been built all over the world. In addition to building and paddling, I’m passionate about teaching and have personally taught over 100 skin-on-frame kayak building classes, which are now distilled into our easy, efficient online classes. I am available by phone, text or WhatsApp anytime during your build, and you’re always welcome to stop by the shop to borrow a kayak or canoe.
Liz Grotyohann
Operations Manager
Liz can be found behind the camera and computer at Cape Falcon Kayak, making sure all the moving parts keep moving behind the scenes. With a background in graphics, she’s worked in publishing, web development and environmental design, and has developed designs for many large-scale exhibitions and experiences for museums, educational spaces and architectural projects around the US.
While it’s true that she spends much of her time behind a computer screen, Liz is a builder at heart, and is always eager to pick up a new tool or learn a new skill.
Tom Moen
Custom kayak builder
Tom builds many of our custom kayaks in the US. Toms craftsmanship and attention to detail exceeds even my own, and more than once I’ve wanted to keep one of his boats as they pass through the our shop. As a longtime friend Tom has helped with many of our most challenging projects, including the (somewhat famous) Japanese Forest House and Bath House, and several exact copies of traditional Inuit kayaks, one of which we made from driftwood without power tools! Tom built his first boat in 2003, and has been unwilling (or unable) to stop ever since. Tom grew up in the South Puget Sound area riding motorcycles, boating, running, and hiking. And tinkering. He has a professional background in all types of carpentry, small-scale renewable energy, and arboriculture.
Milo
Shop Supervisor
Licensed Builders and Instructors
We work with a few builders around the world that are licensed to build and teach our designs. The builders that we license to build or teach our boats commercially have gone through extensive training to ensure the same quality of craftsmanship and student support that you would expect from the Cape Falcon shop itself. If you’re considering purchasing one of our designs from someone outside this list, feel free to get in touch to confirm that you are getting a boat that is built to perform. If you’re a builder interested in teaching or selling our designs commercially, please get in touch to learn more about our licensing process.
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United States
David LaPaglia
CLASSES + CUSTOM BOATS
Evanston, Illinois, USA
Living next to Lake Michigan in Evanston, Illinois, two of David’s interests – boats and wood – came together after making his first Cape Falcon kayak in 2012. A retired master carpenter, David is drawn to the inherent challenge and satisfaction of creating things by hand which are both beautiful and functional. Whether making a custom boat for a client, or teaching people to build their own, David enjoys the process as much as the final product. A lifelong learner, his passions include skin-on-frame boats, stained glass, and wood turning.
davidlapaglia.com
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United Kingdom
Ant Mace, Shipshape Boatbuilding & Woodwork
CLASSES + CUSTOM BOATS
Bristol, UK
Ant is a wooden boatbuilder who loves skin-on-frame boats and runs kayak & canoe-building courses from the historic Underfall Yard in Bristol Harbour. He grew up kayaking on the sea and whitewater in Devon, then further afield in Europe, British Columbia and Asia. Prior to retraining as a wooden boatbuilder in 2015, he worked as a designer and taught design at university. He loves helping other people to gain confidence through learning new skills, especially the reward when he helps people build a boat and they can proudly say “I made that!”
You can see a bit more about Ant in this short film: https://vimeo.com/350576574
shipshape.works
@shipshapeboatworks
John Wilkinson, Valkyrie Craft
CUSTOM BOATS
Castlerock, Northern Ireland, UK
John has been building and outfitting canoes professionally since 2005. Initially he worked with fibreglass and plastic hulls but very quickly put this aside to build with timber from scratch. He builds classic cedar and canvas canoes as well as skin-on-frame canoes and kayaks and works with school and community groups to build traditional style coracles and Irish curraghs. John also makes Greenland paddles to order and runs courses in paddle making and boat building. For a good number of years his boats were built using his own designs and systems but in recent years he has adopted the Cape Falcon system for sea kayaks, the F1, and the for his skin on frame open canoes.
John grew up in Australia, settled in Northern Ireland and was originally a teacher of history. He has a love of anthropology and archaeology, which was his original motivation for exploring traditional skin boats. He is an advanced open boat paddler, canoe and kayak leader and a registered canoe guide.
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Australia
Peter Ingram-Jones and Greg Simson
CLASSES + CUSTOM BOATS
Otago, Tasmania
Greg and Peter have been teaching people to build our kayaks in Tasmania for over 10 years. Greg is a highly experienced coastal paddler, and Peter has been building kayaks, canoes, and the odd baidarka for over fifteen years — and has been paddling for much longer. Peter’s website, canoesandlampshades.com.au, highlights other builds carried out in his workshop including Geodesic Aerolite construction and an art installation at Pennicott Wilderness Adventures on Bruny Island, as well as a lampshade or two….
canoesandlampshades.com.au