Mis-print to latest Advert

We were informed this week (and have indeed witnessed today) that the latest advert for the Nookie Assassin Dry Suit has been mis-printed......
Keep an eye out for a rather elongated advert in the mags. However, if you'd like to know what it looks like then here it is.

Released on 1st September 2009. The new Assassin Dry Suit.....

Dan

The Californian Don!

After I had a wonderful time at the Nookie Creek Dayz in Switzerland I went to the USA for some more kayaking. The first week I spent in Vail, Colorado at the Teva Mountain Games. One week, 21 different competitions, partying all night long, good people and my 9th place in the creek race made this event one of the highlights of this year.
Then, two weeks later, I took my Teva van and drove together with Jakub Nemec to California. The rivers here are good stuff! Endless slides and drops. Every river is an adventure and takes mostly two days or more. But for those who don’t like hiking, portaging and driving a lot, it is not the paradise. I definitely prefer Switzerland with Team Nookie!
Enjoy summer buddy’s and the pics below!

later

Ron 'The Don' Fischer
Nookie Euro Team Rider

Nookie in Portugal Surf Magazine

Thanks to Luis Pedro Abreu of http://www.kayaksurf.net/ Portugese surfing mag 'Freesurf' has just ran an article about my adventures using NOOKIE Gear. Unfortunately i don't have a translation of the article, but here's the pages that Luis sent across to me! Life's been tough since the last trip, stood infront of the classroom to earn some pennies and hit the road again! The Portugese World Champs are approaching so the surf kayaking world is getting excited, more exciting for me though, is the trip to Tonga. Marc Holland, Naomi James and I head out in August!

There's been heaps of swell up in Wales, and the weather has been getting hot so life on mud island has been pretty good of late! I hope every one has a great summer. I'll report back on Tonga in September!

YB

Nathan Eades
Nookie Team Rider

Creek Dayz - Tessin

Creek Dayz - Tessin

Ron dropping in on the Lower Versazca, photo by James

Tessin is one of the most beautiful places in the World to go paddling and record snowfall over the winter has provided sweet water levels all through the spring, it seemed obvious that Tessin would be our next stop on the Creek Dayz tour.

Team riders Alex, Ron and James hanging out at the Ribo put in, photo by Hazel

Leaving the carnage behind the team headed to over the San Bernadino pass to hook up with team riders Ron Fischer and James Weir and with world renowned kayak photographer Raph Thiebaut. First stop was the Ribo, the river provided many opportunities for Raph and the other photographers to ply their trade and for the team riders to style it up, check it out.

Ron leading the team down towards the Ribo gorge, photo by Sanne

Ron styling on the first drop of the Ribo gorge, photo by James

Alex flying on the Ribo, photo by Sanne

Tim lining up for the Ribo fall, photo by James

James dropping the Ribo fall, photo by Sanne

Time is money and all that so after a session of high fives it was back on the road heading towards the stunning Versazca valley, first stop the James Bond dam all 220metres of it! We were lucky to find a beautiful riverside camp complete with firewood for a BBQ.

Shooting fireballs from the hand is a prerequisite for being a Nookie team rider, photo by James

As is catching MM's in your mouth! photo by James

There was no need to make a plan for the next day, the Versazca is one of the most beautiful rivers in Europe and yet other chance to mix top class paddling with great photographers, the results speak for themselves.

The Versazca, a beautiful place to paddle, photo by James

Ron at the Secret spot, photo by Hazel

Thanks to Nookie for great stuff and supporting us and thanks to Raph for some awesome photos and finally to Ron, Alex, Tim, Hazel, Raph, Sanne, Laura and Tim for a great few days in the magical Tessin.



Top tip from the team, safety first!

James

Nookie Creek Dayz (Part 1) - Graubunden, Suisse

I love working in the paddling industry, unexpected exciting opportunities crop up all the time, and the first Nookie Creek Dayz was definitely one opportunity I wasn't going to miss.

International Nookie Team Riderz gathered in the beautiful Swiss Alps for adventure and mis-adventure ; )

The incredible snow melt and blazing sunshine provided the best conditions we could have hoped for, things were off to an awesome start.

We warmed up on the Glenner near Illanz which was quite literally cracking! An incident in a stopper, combined with a temporary loss of paddles and a rock to the head. I finally rolled up, the inevitable amount of time under water proved years of squirting had paid off. (I think even the boys might have mumbled they were impressed I rolled after that length of time.)

After a visit to the hospital where I was stitched and glued I was ready to paddle again.

Steri-strips courtesy of Team Rider Rob Yates. "Thanks Rob!"

If only Nookie made helmets : )

Team Rider: Hazel Wilson

Pic: Rob Yates

Over a tasty bar-b-q that included Ostrich we decided to head to the beautiful Cristallina for the next days paddling.

The put-in, Cristallina.

Team Rider: Alex Keller

Pic: Hazel Wilson

Due to my new found pirate (one-eyed) status I was elected to be team photographer for the day.

The boys were lucky with a great water level. They paddled the river and scouted their way into the gorge entrance with rescue support when necessary. This river claimed our next victim. Rob Yates broke his foot while providing safety at one of the drops and provided me with a second visit to the hospital in as many days, but not before he insisted the rest of the team finished paddling. I'm sure the team were grateful because they managed to squeeze in these two beauties:

Team Rider: Tim Copplestone

Pic: Hazel Wilson

Team Rider: Alex Keller

Pic: Hazel Wilson

This is just a taster from the beginning of the Nookie Creek Dayz. Keep posted for more pics and tales from our road trip down to the Ticino/Tessin region.

Hazel : )

Team Nookie in Corsica

Hi all,

As never before seen, the island of Corsica has been overrun by a huge number of paddlers this April. It might be because of the first kayaksession event organized over there, or because of the knowledge that one of the greatest rivers, called Rizzanese, will be soon dammed and it would be the last chance to run it, or even because the many tons of snow loaded on the mountains that promised perfect waterlevels, which you never really get on Corsica...

However, on the ferry it was showed on many car roofs, the paddlers invasion would be about to reconquer napoleons home and support the local querilla fighters against mother France's energy industry.
Waterlevels in fact were great - but on Corsica it doesn't means it wouldn't be pretty rocky.

As i took note, many Nookie Team Riders did visit this place this year, but only one did not crash his boat... (that wasn't me!).
The kayaksession event was pretty cool and had the paddlers feeling they had the island to themselves. In fact you couldn't run across any street, cross any town or cruise over any pass without making fingersigns to
many paddler cars crossing you.

One of the highlights of the event was to visit the Rizzanese an run it in memory and by thanking the local people for there fight over 20 years in trying to stop the plans of the water energy industry - sadly without results... the works already began and my mind was smashed over when i did first see the put out of the codi at the conclusion to the rizza: Last time i stood here, it was a place far away of streets, in the middle of nature, with the greatest slide of the hole island. Now everything was removed by huge trucks and other machines, several road ends and the slide is destroyed. Here will be the wall of the damm, and at the
takeout of the second gorge the pressure-piplines entry to the river.

So nothing will be well to paddle here when this guys finished their job... a very special fact about the hole project is that this river only brings a few cubics of water in April and May, the rest of the year
its dry anyway, so everybody wonders how they want to produce energy during the whole year.

So on the events last day, around 30 paddlers did get together and paddled down the standard section of the Rizza, and on shore many local people did serve us with perfect barbecue and other local specialities.
I never thought that local people - that normaly look pretty dusty - would be so open and friendly (including fishermans) in discussions and joining some time with foreign paddlers, but it's good to know that Corsica is full of pearls of steep rocky creeks that promise to make many more visits to great roadtrips!
i will be there again and again...

take care

Alex

Alex Keller - Nookie Team Rider

All pictures taken and copyright of Boby Frieser

Schweizer Meister

A few weeks ago Doug wrote a long and detailed blog of his antics running up to and during the GB freestyle team trails, I am afraid my attention span isn't what it used to so here is my short and sweet account of my preparation for the Swiss team trails...


To go to worlds you need to win a place in a national team, I decided not to paddle for GB but to paddle for Switzerland. There is no complicated political reason for the decision simply that the GB trails where held in the winter when I was busy snowboarding.


Swiss team trails where held in beautiful Bremgarten on the upper wave, I took some practice rides and was very thankful I remembered how to make freestyle moves in my canoe. I was able to keep the stiff competition at bay and scored enough points to qualify for the world championships in Thun this September and earn the title Schweizer Meister.

My Gran used to say "you are what you wear young man" so I suppose this makes me an airhead!

Big thanks to Ralph and Roland for organising a superbly chilled event, Beat for taking great fotos and the sun for shining on us all day long.

Play safe people of World and see you in Thun,

James