Author: Justine

  • Cliff top Paddling

    Today felt like a Summer’s day on Anglesey! I’m still recovering from my bike accident and paddling would hurt my ribs so I went for a walk along the beautiful Anglesey cliffs with Tara & Mark while Barry tried out the Valley Gemini SP (their new sporty short kayak with lots of rocker).

    Although I would have liked to be out on the water enjoying the salt spray and the waves, I had a good time seeing the sea from a different perspective – watching the tide flow past the rocks, smelling the coconut-odour of the bright yellow gorse bushes & spotting a curious seal watching Barry suspiciously as he surfed the waves at Penrhyn Mawr. Barry got some good rides in the playful Gemini which he says surfs very well.

     

    I’m hoping I’ll be out there ON the sea before too long! The ribs are feeling better every day.

     

     

     

  • First feedback

    The first feedback on “This is the Roll” is appearing on blogs, Facebook and in my ‘inbox’!

    Here is what people are saying about the new DVD.

    So happy , So happy, So happy. An awesome DVD showed up in my mailbox yesterday. Have been trying to watch between customers. So far it is the most descriptive tutorial i have seen. So to put it simply…it rocks!!!!! Or is that “rolls”

    Wonderful job on the new video. Maybe this will finally help me get that blasted storm roll. Thanks! ;-)
    “What a fantastic DVD ! I thought it was going to be good but it has surpassed my expectations. I hope I don’t look too silly now sitting in my kayak in the garden with the DVD playing on my laptop. Well Done !”
    “Just received and had initial viewing of ‘This is the Roll’ DVD …love it,entertaining informative and just makes you want to practice :-)”
    “Brilliant Justine – it is excellent! I like the pace and the way it is organised and the clear and detailed explanations from Turner. It looks great – love the titles”.
    “Got the DVD today and had a go at the first chapter this evening. Already have loads of ideas to look for during the next exercises. Spoken instructions are nice & clear, even for us non-english folks. The editing with highlights & arrows makes it even more obvious. Learning it this way would surely lead to less frustration, compared to the “sweep, hipflick and PULL” instructions I had in the pool”.
    If you’ve got a copy then please let us know what you think.
    If you’ve not got a copy and want one then you can order from our webstore – or from your local paddling shop.

  • DVDs are here!

    It’s here! “This is the Roll” DVDs finally arrived in Wales yesterday – and the North American DVDs arrived in Colorado at the fulfilment house. Hundreds of DVDs are now on their way to individuals and shops around the world and will soon be being popped into DVD players for the first time. I’m nervously excited about getting feedback on the DVD – Cheri, Turner & I put a huge amount of effort into making it and we really hope people enjoy it & that it helps people to roll, or improve their rolling.

    You can buy the DVD from my website, or you’ll find it in many shops in the next few days. If your local shop doesn’t stock it yet then please ask them to get in touch with us!

    In separate news, I am recovering from a punctured lung, after falling hard off my mountain bike 10 days ago. I didn’t realise how much I’d hurt myself and drove up to the Great Glen Paddle Festival in Scotland & back, before realising my ribs still hurt and I was constantly out of breath. While at the Festival I taught a session on filmmaking and helped make this film!

    I drove straight to Bangor A & E on my way back where I was admitted immediately and kept in for 4 days. I’m really grateful to the hospital staff and to my friends for looking after me during a tough time. Barry in particular has been fantastic, putting many things on hold so he could make sure I was OK.

  • Something for the weekend?

    The UK season of paddlefests / symposiums/ gatherings/ festivals and whatever else you want to call it starts this weekend in Scotland with the Great Glen Paddle Fest. The event is for sea kayakers and canoeists and has been planned to coincide with the launch of the Great Glen Canoe Trail – the first official canoe (and kayak) trail in Scotland. There are 2 days of workshops & guided paddles by some leading coaches. There will be lots of kayaking and canoeing gear for sale & a ceilidh on the Saturday night.

    On Friday night, a number of people will be giving half an hour talks and presentations. For the first time, I’ll be showing photos and some video from my recent trip around Tierra del Fuego.

    So if you haven’t made plans for your weekend yet, then why not consider coming up, or down to Fort Augustus, getting your paddle wet & having some fun with other paddlers?

    More info here.