mattdrayer

I'm excited to attend! I am planning to get there around 5:30ish and will bring cut vegetables + hummus. Matt

Reminder of our upcoming shindig!

Hello everyone! Save the date! Mark your calendars! The North Shore Surfski Community will once again be hosting our end-of-season celebration on Tuesday, September 12th from 6pm-8pm at Old Planters Brewing Company (232 Rantoul Street, Beverly Massachusetts). We'll have some pizza, tell some stories, hand out some awards and swag, and (for those inclined) consume a tasty craft brew or two. Friends, partners, and kids are all welcome! Please RSVP via Eventbrite so we know how much food to order -- here is the link: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/2023-north-shore-surfski-community-celebration-tickets-694823725467 Hope to see you there! Best, Matt

Agreed Joe we had a great time! Couldn’t have asked for a better day to be on the water, it was just gorgeous out there. Matt

The 2023 Blackburn Challenge is a wrap, and my summer paddling schedule is now 100% focused on messing about with friends and surfskis and wing paddles -- ping me via direct message if you'd like to get together for a session! In addition I'm still up for doing an NSPN Intro to Surfski workshop on a Saturday or Sunday morning or afternoon -- if you'd like to see that happen, let's do it! Matt

I haven't paddled the Epic 18X, so I can't really comment on how it handles in any sort of conditions. I do know that it is a Fast Sea Kayak design intended for touring/expedition use, among other things. I know some NSPN members have/had one so you might search the forum archive for pertinent threads. Best, Matt

Thanks @mhabich!

Oh man and here I am now realizing this thread is already about wing paddles and not the surfski sessions thread — haha juggling too many threads on too many forums I guess. Matt

Sounds like a good topic for a separate discussion thread — let’s keep this one about the surfski sessions.

Correct the lengths are adjustable. Epic offers two standard shaft length options: 205-215cm and 210-220cm. I have the 205-215cm version and I usually set it to approximately 210cm, give or take ~1cm — I’m 6’1”. Proper length is paddler-specific and depends on several factors, which we cover in the session @Paul Sylvester the larger wing blade sizes are normally used by K1 sprinters. The increase in force generated by a larger blade size is not linear and places a substantial amount of strain on one’s joints. Not saying you shouldn’t get one but I’ve been pretty happy (and fast!) with the mid size for a decade at this point. Matt

I recommend posting a WTB message in the classifieds section. Used Epic small-mids seem to be difficult to come by right now, maybe because everyone loves them. As far as wing paddles being better for your shoulders — it’s less about the shape of the paddle and more about the paddlers form. Touring paddles aren’t necessarily worse for your shoulders. I recommend watching Ivan Lawler’s excellent MasterClass video for more on this: Best, Matt

Hello NSPN members! Is winter done? The calendar says so, but the weather forecast says "not so fast" Either way, I'm pretty excited about the idea of thawing-out my surfski and getting back on the water soon. I'm happy to continue with our now multi-year tradition of putting on a free Intro to Surfski workshop at some point this summer. Late July or early August seems to work best for this. It would be great if I could work with someone to organize the session, which typically goes 9am-12pm on a Saturday morning. Let me know if you'd like to help make it go! In addition, I am continuing this year with my free 1:1 coaching sessions for any NSPN members interested in learning more about surfskis. I have an extra Epic V8 and a wing paddle, and I also have this sweet Epic V10 Double Let's have some fun this summer! Matt

I’ve worked for edX since 2014 — PredictionX is a popular course that has received a lot of positive feedback, although I haven’t gone through it myself yet. Definitely a good one to flip through for free even if you don’t want to pay for the full certificate track! Matt

Here is the AWSC's online White Shark Logbook -- it's a nice addition to their Sharktivity mobile app.

I often joke with my friends and family (particularly my mom) that I'm never concerned about sharks because I can easily look on the shark tracker apps and see exactly where they all are A shark was spotted near Nahant Beach earlier this week -- when a friend asked me if it was the shark I saw, I responded that I wasn't sure, because there are so many around here it is hard to tell . I connected with the Atlantic White Shark Conservancy a few years ago to see about having an acoustic buoy placed somewhere in Nahant Bay. There is one located just off Marblehead, and I'm looking forward to seeing the list of pings when it is pulled. The cost to provision and deploy a buoy seemed relatively reasonable (~$2500). It might be fun to see GWS activity in Nahant Bay...or maybe it wouldn't be fun at all and maybe it's better just to not know. Welp, time to hit the water again! Matt