Some random information about me
I am a converted waterphobe who decided to take up whitewater kayaking in August 2010 after a lifetime of not being able to swim or go near water in any way shape or form. This is my little kayaking blog that will show my progression, and I also hope will serve as inspiration to those who also have phobias, particularly of water, and who would really like to overcome them. I also hope that those who want some inspiration to get out there and do something a little more than sitting at home watching TV or doing DIY at the weekends will find this blog of use.
I love all aspects of the outdoors, and I am just as happy walking on the hills in the pouring rain as I am in the sun or on the water!
In my ‘real’ life, I am a video producer, cameraman, and video editor of over 20 years industry experience supplying services through my company Five Element Productions and providing UAV aerial filming through It Came From The Sky I am also Deputy Editor for RedShark News, writing video industry based news stories, as well as reviewing the latest camera gear.
The Kayaking Journal 
Loving the blog, lots of really useful and engaging articles! We’d be more than happy to have you review any of our products if you’d be up for it… just give us a shout on marketing@pyranha.com 🙂
Kind Regards,
Mathew
Pyranha HQ
Hi Mathew, Thanks for the comment. I have sent you an email.
Cheers, I’ve seen it and will reply asap!
Just came across your blog…really good.
Hi Matthew-you written some seriously good stuff on this blog. In less than eight years you’ve gone from a newbie to some one who has a really good grasp of the whole WW industry.
Your info about river access is a point I often find myself discussing with our club members “oh you can’t go down that bit of river, it’s private…”. Yes you can! I’ve even offered myself up as the go-to guy to politely argue the toss with any landowner trying his luck.
You think you started late at 35, well I started in Sept 2015 at 51 and this year I have been actively learning playboating. You’re so right about this. Any playboater can run WW downhill but any downhill creeker can’t necessarily playboat. Keep up the good work.
Regards
Marc
Hi Marc, thank you for your kind words about the blog! That’s great to hear about the play boating!
Simon
Really enjoy the blog and has kept me busy reading for ages.
Any thoughts on what it is like to be little? Or big for that matter?
Some bigger guys just seem to bully their way through anything that gets in their path.
I seem to be about your weight – I am somewhere between 10 and 10.5 stone.
I rarely if ever look at a boat and think it is too small for me, in fact a small Waka, the Stout comes in at about 310 liters, feels massive.
I have a small Jed – is my weight against me? Should I jack up my sitting position?
Any tips at all for us “titchy uns”?
It’s a difficult one for sure. It depends on where you have a slight or stocky build and your general power to weight. Some smaller people can paddle quite big boats for their size, eg Noria Neuman. She’s a powerhouse despite her small stature. Jacking up the sitting position will certainly help, as will making sure your technique is developing as much power as it can, as efficiently as it can.
My criteria as to whether a boat is too big is whether I can hold it on edge properly. I’ve found that some of the Waka boats, despite their huge volume, actually feel like much smaller boats on the water. I paddled a Gangsta once, which on paper is about two sizes too big for me, but I had an absolute blast in it. So it really depends. The best way to find a boat is to try one (almost impossible right now though!) Don’t get too hung up on the paper specs.
Sometimes it’s about recalibrating the mind. Sometimes if you are used to paddling small boats then anything larger can feel huge. So it can be about taking time to getting used to something different as well.
Hello,
I recently found your blog and I have been debating on what kayak I should buy. I cannot decide between the Exo Party Rexy and the Small Ripper. I am 1.71cm tall and I weigh around 57kg. What would you recommend?
Hi Yasmin, I hope you are a bit taller than 1.71cm! 57kg would be very light for the Party Rexy. I would definitely take a look at the small Ripper, or depending on the types of rivers you paddle maybe even an Ozone (possibly one of the best boats designed yet!) As I say, a lot depends on what type of paddling you do or want to do?
Just discovered your blog trying to solve my rolling issue (short story: I lost my roll. Like that. One moment it was there, next it was gone…) and I have to say, THANKS! I am just going through what you describe as the “head game”, to the point where I thought and still think about giving up on kayaking sometimes (but of course I won’t) cause I’m just such a hopeless case, and it helps a lot to know that yes, even good paddlers can go through the same motions, and there is a way out of this … so I will go try your rolling tips, dust off my Playboat, cry and laugh a bit, and (hopefully) rediscover that person that could roll right in the middle of it and not give a damn, and that looked forward to flying instead of dreading the fall. Cheers from Rexy to Party Rexy!