How long have you worked with Palm?
For five years now, but my association with the company spans almost a decade.

Whats your connection?
Finance & Operations - which is anything from product approvals to company cashflow forecasts to product ordering. Although most of my time is spent ensuring our offshore deliveries are happening.

So do you have much experience of Asia and other countries?
I worked in Japan for five years and spent time between the head office and the factory in China. I was very lucky in that the role also allowed me to travel throughout Europe and USA.

What do you miss most about Japan?
I lived in Kyoto which is a beautiful historic city surrounded by mountains and the largest lake in Japan (Biwa-ko), so the journey to work each day was a wonderful experience with incredible views. Other than that the food (obviously) and the general courtesy people have for each other.

Coming up in May

16 – 17 May
Loch Ore Adventure Weekend
Scotland

17 May
Leam Boat Centre
Leamington Spa

25 – 30 May
Urdd Eisteddfod with Canoe Wales

27 – 30th May
Bath and West Show
Somerset

More events…

New Zealand based Palm pro Ben Brown sent us this clip of his adventures from last year (it’s got the Aldeyjarfoss drop) with a little note on his plans for the summer.

“Hey Guys. About to kick off another global assault. Heading to Quebec mid May, then a 2 week filming project with Matchstick in the Washington/Oregon area at the start of June before shooting over to Iceland for a month.”

We’re not jealous at all! Keep your eyes on the Palm Blog for Ben’s adventures.

The prototypes of this all river design have been really popular at demo events and with Team paddlers, so there’s a buzz that the moulds are due this month.

Combining classic fast down river speed with a modern manoeuvrable planning hull, the Axiom is excellent in surf, on the river, or to coach from. We will mould all four sizes which will be spec’d with our fully adjustable River Running outfitting. For more info see www.daggereurope.com.

More on the Axiom…

Hi Horst - you're our first international face, what links you to Palm?
Working for paddle-people.com, we distribute Palm in several European countries. I don't know of another company with a range of products that compares to Palm's.

And how long have you been working with Palm?
Our co-operation started in 1993, and is still growing.

So whats the best selling Palm product for you?
I am much more exited about perfection and details than quantities. Watch a paddler’s face when he tries the new Stikine Suit or the Sidewinder Combi for the first time. While his hands are on a piece of equipment, his thoughts are already on the water. This is much more important, sales numbers will rise automatically as soon as the paddlers are exited about the product.

You're also the organiser of the annual kayak industry trade fair Kanumesse- is that going well?
Yes, this event started in the backyard of a hotel in 2003 and is now the meeting point of our industry worldwide. However, I have just booked the hall and published the date in the internet. Without the support of the industry it would not have been successful, and we need all support from visitors and exhibitors in the future to keep it that way.

Finally you've travelled widely with your kayak but if you had to stay and paddle in Germany, where would it be?
This depends on friends and opportunities: We can paddle down the Rhine, do multi-day-trips in eastern Germany, have a photoshooting in a near nature reserve or get an adrenaline kick on the Murg (Blackwood Forest). Old saying, but true: so many rivers – so little time, even if you are talking about Germany only!

Come and see us
We'll be attending the following events in July.

4-5th July
Demo Day, Family Adventure Store
Herefordshire

16-19th July
Sjoa River Festival
Sjoa, Norway

20-25th July
Outdoor Retailer
Salt Lake City, USA

20 – 21st June
CLA Game Fair
Leicestershire


More events…

You can find out more about the team and follow progress on their blog. We’ll catch up with them when they get back.

We found ourselves at Heathrow airport this week rendezvousing with the British Universities Kayak Expedition team just hours before they hopped on a plane to travel to this year’s expedition location – Vietnam!

As we have done with all previous Uniyaker expeditions we are providing Palm kit for the team with most using Dagger Nomad and Mamba kayaks on this voyage of discovery. With so few major river systems left unexplored they have opted to head up into the mountains of Vietnam to see what they can find – an area as you can imagine that could hold a few surprises. “The possibility of armaments or traps left from the conflict could be interesting,” said leader Luke Farrington “but it’s the Tigers that give me the fear. I think the water might be the easiest bit!”

Palm: Hey Barney, where do we find you?
In front of my Mac in West Asheville, North Carolina. Home town of the mighty Green Narrows and some fantastic mountain biking.

Palm: So you’re a ‘remote’ worker – how’s that in reality?
It works very well. I work from my home office, but I could (and have) worked from anywhere there is an internet connection! I am constantly in touch with Palm HQ through Skype video which makes discussing products easy as we can see the product and discuss it as If we were in the same room.

Palm: This is your fourth year working in this way with Palm, but your involvement goes much further back. How did it start?
I started making kayaking gear in my garage at age 17, I showed a few pieces to Andy Knight at Palm and they took me on when I graduated university in 1998. It was, and still is a dream job for a kayaker.

Palm: So what was the first piece you designed that went into production and how did that feel? Well, the garage-built Fusion Vest prototype got me the job originally, and that was one of the first products we took into production.

Palm: And is there a piece of gear that you are particularly proud of? I am still very proud of the Fusion Vest concept.

Palm: We constantly work on R&D (you should know as it’s a 6 day a week job) – what’s on the drawing board currently?
Well, the great thing about Palm is there is always a wide range of products to work on at any one time. PFDs, apparel, luggage, footwear, paddles and even inflatable kayaks ;-)

The new Extrem and Amp PFD’s are in stores now! The first batch has arrived and we are massively excited about getting them out for you all to use. There is much going on with the design of the Extrem, so we have done a mini site, which amongst other things details its amazing fifteen-year history.

See the EV Evolution here.

Along with trade style activity there are also plenty of competitive events on in the early autumn.

Team paddler Andrew Holcombe went up against some of the best WW racers on the planet in the Sickline Extreme Race World Championships to finish in the top five, followed by a win and a new course record at the infamous Green Race.

Ed Smith as always has been a busy boy and a great multidiscaplinarian - first joining Matt Tidy to race his Nomad to second in the Etive Extreme race and then changing boats and again finishing in silver medal position at the British Freestyle Championships. Way to go.