First ice of the year.

The forecast for yesterday was mid 40s, so I decided to take the afternoon off for a bit of paddling. As some of you know, I have been very disappointed in winter paddling gloves. Every combination I have tried have kept my hands dry, but not warm. The last couple of years I tried the NRS Hydroskin gloves and NRS Reactor gloves. A couple of weeks ago, I tried the Hydroskin gloves with NRS glove liners and still nothing. So, yesterday I wore the Reactor gloves with the glove liners.

After loading the CD Storm GT and some gear, I proceeded to the causeway. I considered going around La Framboise Island, but it was a bit windy, so I launched from  the gravel area near the American Legion cabin and headed towards Dump Island (between La Framboise and Pierre).

On my way down, the gloves performed very well. When I was about 200-300 feet from Dump Island, I noticed the water around the island looked a bit odd ...and shiny. Thankfully I did not go around La Framboise, because the river between Pierre and La Framboise has began to freeze. As I tried to capture some decent pictures of the ice, the wind pushed me into the "ice field". I had to claw my way out with both my hands and my paddle. My hands did get cold on my way back to the Legion, but the Reactor gloves with the glove liners has been the best option for winter gloves thus far. The high in Pierre hit 51 degrees according to NOAA.

From 2010-12-09

From 2010-12-09

From 2010-12-09

From 2010-12-09

Perception Carolina 14.0

Today I finally managed to get myself out to Rapid City to demo the Perception Carolina 14.0.
I have been interested in this boat for some time. It seems to get great great reviews online, but finding one to demo was a bit trickier. Scheels doesn't like to let us demo boats and Dakota Adventures in Pierre can order Perceptions but they don't keep any in stock. I did find one place in SD that had the Carolina 14 in stock and would let me demo it. Global Market in Rapid City.

Barb with Global Market let me take the boat over to the pond in Memorial Park (by the Civic Center) to try it out.

I'll admit that it initially seemed very tipsy, but that was more my being used to the Hurricane Santee 140T's 31" beam. The Carolina 14's width is 24.5''. I quickly got used to it and it is a joy to paddle. It seemed to track well and I felt it was faster than soloing my Hurricane despite weighing more (probably due to better weight distribution). It turned very quickly too. I really liked the seat adjustments... the one disappointment I have with my Hurricane is that the seat adjustments (incline and height) have a tendency to slip.

Overall I though it was a great boat. Dakota Adventures in Pierre quoted me $900 to order one for me, but Global Market would not match it so if I decide to order it (I am leaning that way) I'll be getting it here in Pierre.

Product Review: Boat Carriers

Many paddlers have Thule or Yakima racks, some use factory racks (many SUVs and some cars), and some just use foam blocks on top of the roof of their vehicle. I use none of the above.

Before last spring, I carried my parents' tandem using their old Ford Taurus wagon. But last winter they sold it and I was planning on buying my own boat (the green Hurricane Santee 140T). So last spring, I bought a rack for my pickup. I chose the utility rack from US Rack for it's simplicity. Unlike most pickup racks I've seen, this one just clamps onto the bedrails instead of bolting into the bed. I can set it up or take it down in under 30 minutes.
This past winter I noticed that US Rack had added a new product, the Malone Auto Loader. I ordered this item, so that I could more easily carry two boats on occasion. I didn't use it for the Flandreau cruise, but since then I am gaining more confidence in it. I actually am using the Malone Auto Loader a bit different than what their website shows. The low side of the loader is shown on the outside edge of a factory rack on a car or suv. Because I am using it with a pickup, I can set it up opposite by loading it from the rear of the pickup rather than the side.

US Rack also carries a Malone cradle type carrier to attach to their rack. Also, I am thinking of purchasing a second Auto Loader for when I get a second boat. For more information, I have a link to US Rack in the links section to the right.