Tahoe SUP boards - sold

These WERE sweeeeet boards... sold!

2009 Tahoe Woody, used for demo events for less than a year

2009 Tahoe Rubicon, paddled just a couple times

Located in my warehouse in Anacortes.

Alki transforms to M2S

Many further congrats to Greg Whittaker and the crew at Alki Kayak Tours, firmly established as Mountain to Sound Outfitters in their new retail location at 3602 SW Alaska St. in lovely West Seattle. Skis, boots, a mountain shuttle service and a tuning shop dominate the winter scene, to be replaced in Spring by Tahoe SUP, Eddyline, Emotion, Bending Branches and Stohlquist gear for the paddlin’ season. Check out the transformation in less than a month from this…

To this…

And inside from this…

To this happy holiday scene with visitors mulling over what to buy their loved ones…

The heater in back that wanted to wack you in the head…

Still works and will still wack you in the head but it takes a little effort to get back there amongst all the cool stuff…

Greg and crew are waiting to greet you!

Tahoe SUP boards

Standup paddling is a little like Facebook. It's gone from "huh? What are those kids doing now" to "wow, look how cool I am trying something new" to a mainstream thing that everybody's doing. And the hottest part of Standup is the touring, flatwater board style that's being led by Tahoe Boardworks.

Happy Paddlin' with a Dog!

Starting with the speedy Zephyr that's been winning races and turning heads, to the gorgeous Woody that looks like it should be in a gallery, to the durable, not-so-pricey, carbonlite-skin Rubicon crafted by the thermoform masters at Eddyline Kayaks, Tahoe took off in 2009 and made a big footprint in this growing market. New for 2010 will be the Grom kids' board, and the Bliss for the ladies. Along with the hottest boards, Tahoe's paddles and accessories fill out the selection of goodies that go along with this great line of gear.

Washington's first Tahoe dealer, Chris Fry (R) of West Bay Paddleboards in Olympia, joins Doug Erwin (L) from Tahoe and Bryon Dorr from Next Adventure on the Cowlitz River. Yes you can do it on moving water!

Dealers benefit from low minimum orders, sweet deals & long dating on demo boards, and reasonable shipping rates. Paddlers dig the speedy, stable ride... and being part of this big hot wonderful thing to do on the water. Don't miss it!

Happy Paddlin', even on his head... Ethan thrills the fans.

Alki Kayak Tours to open new location!

That sign's coming down... soon to say "Mountain to Sound Outfitters"

Congratulations are due to Greg and Kara Whitaker, our friends at Alki Kayak Tours in Seattle, for taking the big plunge and opening a retail location in their home neighborhood of West Seattle, to augment the success of their beachfront rental operation on Harbor Avenue. Grand Opening is Friday, November 27th. Hope you can make it!

Psssstt.. top secret new exterior color. Won't be a secret long.

Operating under the new name of Mountain to Sound Outfitters, Greg says the shop will leverage our seasonal outdoor life in the winter as they emphasize snow sports sales, rentals, and tuning, with plenty of resources available for paddlers as well. When Spring comes, it’s full-on paddling. Come visit any time!

The new shop is at 3602 SW Alaska Street, just West of 35^th Ave SW. It’s convenient for anyone residing, visiting, or just passing through West Seattle on the way to the ferry. Evidently Greg and Kara, who are also expecting their first baby in the Spring, decided to get all the big steps in life out of the way at once.

These pictures were taken just a few weeks before the scheduled opening on November 15^th. That’s a lot of work to do, and everyone who knows anything about this operation knows it couldn’t happen without the butt-busting efforts of Alki crew like Avery, pictured here proudly dodging incoming shipments of skis, rental boots, and of course the very first kayak in the new inventory – an Emotion Glide. Good luck to this first-class bunch. You guys rock!

Standup Paddling grows again

Just saw this link from Ruby Creek supplier Doug Erwin at Tahoe Board Works...

Check it out --

Sweet! Standup Paddle TV!

Dealers & Suppliers come together for planning & partying

Our host gets set to grill up some of the 30 lbs of salmon provided by Don & Pam at Boston Harbor Marina.

Planning & partying...or was it the other way around? What a time at the officially-named "Pickin' & Paddlin' Retreat", and many thanks to my bro Ethan Ebersold for putting the whole thing together. Ethan's River House on the Cowlitz, which he maintains for events just like this one, served its purpose well for 5 solid days.

Training for a crucial boater skill... the 11-person shuttle in a 5-seat Land Cruiser.

Preliminary pictures are here (click to enlarge for a better look), provided by Tom "Big T" Strauss of Emotion Kayaks. Meeting Tom was a highlight of the event -- he definitely lived up to the hype -- and he was joined by industry giants Ed Vater of Aquabound/Bending Branches; Tom & Lisa Derrer from Eddyline Kayaks/Swift Paddles; Doug Erwin of Tahoe Board Works; and Stohlquist Waterware's Jake Wisse. Ethan's dad, Mike, helped out with grilling and general hospitality; and canoe instructor/Esquif pro boater Nick Jacob filled out the host crew.

This grin never left Big T's face.

Paddlesports dealers and outfitters from all over the Northwest and California joined in the fun for some dee-lectable food, two nights of rockin' to the Moon Mountain Ramblers, paddling in the unseasonably warm fall weather on the Cowlitz, and some gittin' down to business in the Ebersold showroom, all tricked-out in the garage.

Zack and Elizabeth from Bellingham's LFS Marine find shopping for paddling gear can be pretty fun when you bring along Big T.

If you were there, thanks for coming! If you missed it, enjoy the pictures (click any pic for better detail; more to follow) and stay tuned for the next River House function.

New friends, a festive beverage, and an awesome view of the river... yeah!

Ethan proves Tahoe Boards are rock solid!

Emotion's new Mojo, rockin' the eddies on the Cowlitz. Comfy and ultra-stable, even for a big dude. The 2010 version includes the integral seat back and a tad more width and a harder chine. Check it out.

SUP Brothers!

So we just couldn't wait to get those SUP boards on the water, and sons Joe and Steve and I headed for Lake Washington on Monday to brave the seasonally chilly June choppy wind and spitting rain. First time for them, second time for me on a SUP and the conditions kept us from really pushing the envelope. Consensus, get a feel for this on flat water. Then move to chop, swell, current, and learn to race these boards. Keep working, it's going to be fun. Here's a few pics, and the link to Picasa where there's another 40+ out there... and note that the smartest thing I did was to use up the camera battery shooting the big fellas, before I got out there to paddle. Old age and trickery...


Step one, Steve checks out the sea state and performs risk assessment...

Step two, get on board...

Yeah baby, that's what I'm talkin' about...

Hey, remounting is a crucial skill in these conditions.

Brother, how you like it so far?

Maybe if I run over you...

Ready to race?

OK all together now...

Look y'all, I'm doin' it!

All good things must end.

One-way ticket to a beach near you

The Ruby Creek rig rumbled out of Burlington, WA this afternoon with the first two demo model Rubicon Standup Paddle boards from Tahoe Board Works to hit the Northwest. The boards would have headed straight for the beach but they're still waiting for fins. Your first chance to hit the waves on this hot new board will come real soon. Keep an eye out. Meanwhile check out Tahoe's web site and promotional video including a surreal image of hundreds of paddlers walking on water at the start of a race event. Crazy, but fun.

These links capture some of the excitement of Tahoe SUP and the sport.

http://www.tahoesup.com/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CGO-Jy6UE_4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3gW3NXk65ME

The thermoformed Rubicons (MSRP $1,350) are being made for NW dealers by none other than the pros at Eddyline Kayaks in Burlington. The boards are already winning races and capturing the respect of the best SUP paddlers on the water, for durability, speed and tracking ability inherent to the displacement hull design.

Stay tuned!

Stand Up, my brothers & sisters!

Tahoe Board Works' top-of-the-Line "Woody", for standin' up in style

Woooooo hooo!
What a great time to be part of Eddyline Kayaks, as our good friends in Burlington are partnering with Tahoe Board Works to build a Stand-up Paddleboard with a Carbonlite shell for amazing durability. The Carbonlite "Rubicon" will join Tahoe's gorgeous "Woody" in their line of innovative touring boards. Here are a couple of shots from Eddyline's manufacturing plant where the first prototypes were finished last week:
Here's a little bit of what my boy Ethan had to say about the opportunity to bring these fine looking boards to a paddlesports or surf shop near you:

Greetings, We are thrilled to announce the representation of Tahoe Board Works ( http://www.tahoesup.com/ ). Here's what caught our attention and gives Tahoe Stand Up Paddleboards the winning edge:

• Displacement Hull -- Unlike planing/flat bottom boards, these boards will track and cut waves like a kayak/canoe.
• ThermoFormed Carbonlite Models (Rubicon)-- Industry leader in ThermoForming, Eddyline Kayaks, is helping Tahoe Board Works develop and manufacture ThermoFormed boards at affordable prices ($1100-$1395) out of Carbonlite. Carbonlite is harder than resin and easily repaired. The extruded seam offers even more protection against paddle and rock impact.
• Double Fin System for flatwater tracking, on board gear bag, and tie downs on deck.
• Glass/Epoxy and Wood/Epoxy/Bamboo (Woody) from $2000-$3000. Beautiful!
• Made in the USA

The kayak industry can learn a lot from how fun and ACCESSIBLE paddling SUPs can be. Tahoe Board Work's has wisely blended the allure of this new sport with state of the art kayak manufacturing processes and hull designs. More information, videos and testimonials to come!