Stand Up Paddle Surfing Magazine - C4Waterman, Whiskey, Kialoa, and Gillespie Stand Up Paddles

C4Waterman, Whiskey, Kialoa, and Gillespie Stand Up Paddles

By: Stand Up Paddle Surfing Magazine

Friday, 05 October 2007

Explosive growth of stand up paddle surfing has been a dream come true for the paddle making industry. The newfound demand for quality paddles has brought many underground paddle makers to the frontlines of the paddle surf industry. This article highlights four paddle makers who are leading the pack: Pohaku/C4Waterman, Whiskey, Kialoa, and Gillespie.

Whiskey Surf Paddles

Whiskey Surf Paddles is a company managed exclusively by paddlers with a passion for design and eco-friendly paddles. According to Whiskey Surf Paddles, “Wood has soul. By using wood we can control the flex and blade width, and produce a level of artistry not possible with carbon." All paddles are handcrafted from sustainable forested wood. By working with wood, paddle design can easily evolve based on feedback from the stand up paddle surfing community.

Pohaku Beachboy Paddles

Pohaku Beachboy Paddles was one of the first paddle makers to commercially produce stand up paddles. They, along with their sister company, C4 Waterman have gone to great lengths to promote both downwind paddling and paddle surfing across the globe. C4 has paddles with blades from 8.5 to 9.0 inches wide and can also be purchased as a two piece for easy travel and storage. Although they are mostly known for their carbon fiber paddles, they also have fiberglass, wood, and composite paddles.

Kialoa Stand Up Paddles

Kialoa Paddle maker Dave Chun started building paddles 15 years ago on his parent’s lanai in Kailua, Hawaii. Since then, Kialoa Paddles has developed a line of three stand up paddle blade designs for varying conditions. According to Dave, “While the materials with which we build our paddles continue to evolve, all Kialoa paddles are still hand made one at a time in the USA.” They also offer custom inlays of aloha fabrics on the blade. Kiloa combines “the best of old world quality with new world innovation.”

Gillespie Paddles

Gillepie Paddles are handcrafted wooden paddles with tight grain native upstate New York Tulip in the shaft and Tulip, Walnut, and Maple in the blade. They have extensive knowledge about paddles and have even introduced a double angle paddle into their stand up paddle showcase. At the top of their line of paddles is the Surf/Balsa paddle which is highly finished, strong, and light. One of Gillespie’s claims to fame is not being machine-like. Every paddle is hand-made and unique.

For more information about these companies, you can visit their websites at:
Pohaku/C4Waterman www.standuppaddles.com or www.c4waterman.com
Whiskey Stand Up Paddles www.whiskeysurfpaddles.com
Kialoa www.kialoasurf.com
Gillespie Stand Up Paddles www.gillespiepaddles.com

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