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29 July 2010 - TIM TALYOR - Why winter is the hardest time of the year for a kayaker

Winter: the hardest time of the year for a kayaker. It’s hard to get out of bed for those early morning training sessions, your fingers get so cold they cramp around the paddle shaft, and you can’t enjoy a cold beer after a day’s paddling. Having spent the last 3 years jumping from summer to summer, I’ve found it particularly difficult to cope with this year. So what’s been going on then? For me the last two months has been all about balancing training, preparation, and work.

On the training side of things June was a particularly bad month. I found myself sliding from peak fitness to an all-time low. Using a much larger paddle than what I’m used to, and going for longer and harder sessions, my shoulders just simply gave up. It started with them feeling like a handful of sand was grinding around in the joints, but this rapidly progressed to extreme pain and no paddling at all. To put it simply I had over done it. However, after some good physio sessions and a change in technique I’m real stoked to be right back on top again and enjoying some of the awesome winter weather that we’ve had. As far as missions have gone, my biggest was a trip from Whangamata down the coast to Tauranga. My folks dropped me off on a frosty beach in Whangamata at 7am one Saturday morning early in July. I spent the next 8 hours working my way down the 60 odd kilometres of coastline, back to Tauranga. It was an amazing day to be out on the ocean and it really reminded me of what my trip is going to be all about. Another big paddle was the 5 days that I spent helping out with a group from Project K. We paddled approximately 40km throughout the Tauranga Harbour over the 5 day period (not big by my standards but I challenge anyone to try that with 12 half wild teenagers haha). It was an awesome experience and I loved being able to share some of our amazing coastline with a group of fun kids.

On the planning side of things I am now getting right down to the finer details. I’ve been working hard on my daily plan for the expedition and as soon as I get that finalised I plan to make at least some of it public. I hope to involve the media, all of my sponsors, and local kayakers during my trip so my plan of attack will be pretty key to getting their support. I’m also working hard on organising my points of contact around the country, so please let me know if you can help out along the way...a bed, a shower, even a cup of coffee would all be really appreciated.

Then there’s work. Yes, before you say it, I know I wasn’t planning to work this year. But reality struck and there are always bills to pay. Fortunately I can use this time working as a rest day from paddling. Everyone has been really sweet by allowing me to be flexible around the better winter days so I’m still getting in quality time on the water. Another plus side is being able to pay for some of the gear I need...I still find it difficult to ask for something when I’m so used to earning it.

Well that’s the short version of what I’ve been up to. Keep a regular eye on my website www.nzkayaker.com and you will be able to keep track of all of my regular trips.

Paddle hard, Tim.

20 June 2010 - TIM TAYLOR'S - June Update

So wow what a month May was. After nearly 9 months of drought, along came May and reminded us what rain was. So what have I been up to in my preparation for my expedition? Well the big news is that my website nzkayaker.com is now fully up and running. This was an amazing experience to learn how it all happens, and I’m ...proud to have a place to finally show off all of my sponsored gear. I also had my vehicle sign written. Apart from slowing down my driving a bit, it makes me feel like things are just that wee bit more professional.

In between all of the rain I managed to get a fair amount of kayaking achieved. The big trip for the month was to paddle out to Mayor Island, which has been a dream of mine for ages. So you may ask “what is so special about this island?” Firstly it is 21 nautical miles off shore from Tauranga. To you landlubbers this is a distance of 38.9km. Secondly it is a privately owned island with complete pest free status. This means landing is permitted only with prior permission from DOC and if a DOC quarantine officer is present on the island.

So roughly 40km, not a big deal under usual circumstances. But when you are this far off shore there is nowhere to hide, and no one to come to the rescue. The trip took me 5 and 1/2 hours, and I was buggered by the time I landed. I had to deal with 15kn winds and a 2m swell so it was a real battle but strangely the worse it got, the more I loved it haha. Even the kayak seemed to love the waves. So much so, that she earned her new nickname ‘Waverly’.

Arriving at the island around lunch, I got my kit sorted with DOC then spent the rest of the avo just cruising in around the island. I caught fish, played with the seals, and generally just enjoyed life. After camping the night in Sou West Bay, I had to endure the same trip all the way back. This time the swells were so big that a passing boat couldn’t even come along side me for fear of capsizing. But as we all know, you just put one stroke in after another and eventually you will get somewhere. For me that somewhere was a comfy couch and with a large pizza haha.

Paddle hard everyone.

Tim Taylor

15 June 2010 - We're you one of the 5 lucky winners of a Quest PFD?

20 May 2010 - Tim Talor to attempt to be the 1st person to solo circumnavigate NZ by sea kayak!

Hi folks my name is Tim Taylor, and it is my goal to complete the first solo circumnavigation of New Zealand by sea kayak. This is the first instalment from me so basically I thought I would let you all know who I am and what I’m about.

My background in kayaking started when I was 12. I was introduced into the sport ...by Rob Sperling, a teacher at Tauranga Boys’ College and from the moment I got into my first white-water boat I was hooked. I was fortunate to kayak throughout the country, and like most junior kayakers I was selected for the New Zealand Junior Development Squad where I represented NZ in Australia. I was also an avid white water paddler and it got to a stage where I would try almost anything as long as it was in a boat...
I can honestly say that I don’t know where the first idea of kayaking around New Zealand came from. It was something that I often thought about during some of the long slalom sessions. One day I mentioned this idea to a few friends and they all had a good laugh at me. It was casually remarked that it had been done before so it wasn’t worth doing. I promptly forgot about it.

After high school I completed a Bachelor of Viticulture and Oenology at Lincoln University, graduating in 2008. I then worked in various jobs in the wine industry, travelled, and generally had a good time. During one of those good times, somewhere on beach in Greece, I brought up my old dream with a mate. Once again it was laughed at. However this time I could not get it out of my mind so on my return home in December 2009 I decided to do something about it. All it took was a quick trip down to see my mate Blair at Waimarino Adventure Park and I had my first sponsor.

Since that day in December everything has felt like my first time on white-water...there have been new skills to learn, fears to conquer and laughs to be had. Over the Christmas break I decided to commit myself to the idea 100% so I left my job, much to the displeasure of my boss. I figured that I’m going to attempt a 5500km kayak around the country in a time frame of less than 6 months, so I better not attempt this half-arsed. I have been training ever since.

So what’s been happening so far? Well January and February were the learning months. Having never spent much time in a sea kayak there was a lot that was new. I basically just paddled for extensive periods of time and picked it up as I went. For each kayak that I tried, I tested it on flat water, in the harbour, and out in the ocean. From this experimentation I learnt some of the necessary skills and I started to figure out what I liked and disliked in a kayak. I also got very fit very fast. However this was not to last as I simply burned out. Late in February I was averaging 40 kilometres a day, sometimes pushing 50, and generally thinking about how I was the man (typical misguided male thought). But then one day I got smashed, really smashed. This happened as I was coming in through the surf. At the time I still had no significant experience in my sea kayak in the surf so when a wave picked me up, all I could do was hold on. First my deck got imploded, then I got rolled, but through it all I managed to stay in the kayak. Scrambling to keep a hold of everything and stay upright in the now submerged kayak I didn’t notice a second wave as it crept up on me. This time I couldn’t hold it. Final count for the day was the loss of my GPS and my Oakley’s while looking like an amateur in front of everyone on the beach. This was a very expensive day, and a hard way to learn the lesson that I have to tie every piece of gear on when sea kayaking. Just to add insult to injury, the following day I got knocked out while guiding a raft on white water. So much for being ‘the man’, as it was clear that I letting little mistakes do some serious damage. It took me a couple of weeks to get over that one weekend.

March and April were the professional months. I sat down, had a good hard look at the way I had been approaching things, and decided I could do better. To start with I scaled back the training but made it more efficient. A simple example of this was I started to use the quote “make every stroke count”. I learnt that it was better to do 30kms at sea and having to work, rather than doing 35kms on a flat lake and coasting along. I also wasn’t getting as burnt each time I went for a paddle so I started to look forward to it more. I also spent a lot more time practicing in the surf and so far this has been paying off. As well as training I started work on obtaining sponsors. This involved a huge amount of paper work, emails and phone calls. I had to develop presentations to give to potential sponsors and work out a plan on how to approach them. I felt like a school boy again when I came to ringing up Mission, asking in a squeaky voice if I could send them through a proposal. It was even worse ringing them back haha. Thankfully I must have been doing the right things because by the start of May I was sitting in a Mission ECO BEZHIG, and wearing a full kit of Hydraulics gear. Sweet.

So what is May all about? This month it is all about getting out there, being seen, and testing my new gear and so far that plan is working out pretty well. In the next few updates ill start to fill you in on my expedition, as well as any adventures that I have along the way.

At this point I would like to thank the team at Mission and Hydraulics for their generous offer of sponsorship and for helping to sort out all the gears, the new kayak, and for welcoming me into the Mission and Hydraulics Teams. Lastly I would just like to extend an invite to all of the kayakers of NZ to come out for a paddle. Winter is a great time to learn some new skills, test yourself, and realise that the water is normally a lot warmer than everything else outdoors.

Paddle hard.

Tim.

29 April 2010 - Tim Taylor to take on NZ!

2 Feb 10 - New Release CATCH 420

After the popular success of the Catch 390 fishing kayak the team at Mission Kayaking were busy during the winter month of 2009 working their magic and road testing their latest model, the Catch 420. In early 2010, the Catch 420 was unveiled with the aim of providing a longer, faster and features packed, yet still highly comfortable alternative to the Catch 390. The latest addition to the Mission Kayaking fishing range is 4.2m long with a bow that cuts through water like a knife and a seating configuration that is shaped to fit your body and therefore provides continuous contact with the kayak allowing for optimum paddling performance.

Paddle tests so far have found the speed of the Catch 420 to equal that of many other longer fishing kayaks on the market and the tracking is unbelievably straight even for novice paddlers. Although the waterline length gives the kayak speed, there is still plenty of stability, rocker and volume in the boat to make navigating surf a breeze.

The Catch 420 is packed with practical and useful features for fishermen. The front hatch has a bulkhead so can be used for either storage or your fish especially with the custom made fish sock. If you prefer your fish in the rear, the tank well is deep and long so will also suit dive cylinders. In the cockpit recessed storage areas keep your gear on hand but safe from going overboard or cluttering up your deck. Between your knees is a 10” hatch and forward of this an innovative wet storage area. Designed to take a fish finder the lid provides protection from waves, rain and sun and the transducer can be mounted directly into the custom scupper directly underneath. A comfortable seat, deck bungee’s, dual paddle parks, 2 flush mounted rod holders, 2 rod parks, 4 D-ring attachment points, deck lines and rear hatch with bulkhead are also included.

Mission kayaks are renowned for their good looks and superb finish and the Catch 420 doesn’t disappoint in this regard. Moulded handles add to the sleek lines and make lifting the kayak’s 28kg easy and comfortable. Overall this is a fantastic fast yet very stable kayak perfect for fishing. The Catch 420 is available in both ruddered and un-ruddered options.

Length: 420cm

Width: 73cm

Weight: 28kg

Max Load: 180kg