Sneak peek at our December Lights Issue and THE products that are lighting it up on the water. Let there Be Light!
n April 2013, two time world champion and world record holder for kneeboarding and hydrofoiling, Billy Rossini, founded a new way to get on board after hours by launching the Nocqua Adventure Gear line and its first product the Nocqua 2000. Billy devised and perfected the world’s only adjustable LED waterproof light system for both standup paddle boards or kayaks and today over 4,000 Nocqua systems have been put on the water worldwide. Paddling at night with the water glowing at your feet is a fresh approach to paddle sports because it is exciting, safe and attractive to water life. Now paddling at night is safer too because other boaters can see you better and you can also see what’s going on underneath your board. One of the secrets to fishing at night is attracting fish with lights, think about the advantage of using Nocqua high powered LED lights.
For the booming SUP industry this meant the birth of “SUP Glow” tours worldwide and today there are over 100 tour operators who are extending their rental hours into the evening. Finally a chance to get on board after hours and more possibilities for paddle outfitters and customers from on board fireworks shows to eco and wildlife tours.
On the boards, yes, but what about on the paddle itself? Creighton Baird, co-founder of Torch Paddles recalls his moment of product enlightenment. “I was paddling at night in a lake with a lit-up board and we could see below us, it was amazing, but we had a hard time getting the light to shine where we wanted it, and I was like ‘why aren’t their lights on the paddle instead!’ And that’s where it started.”
The next year was spent developing carbon fiber LED lighted paddles and testing out prototypes with friends and strangers in every part of the country. The response has been overwhelmingly positive and it has given the team valuable reassurance that they are on the right track. Since then the team has been selling their paddles as quickly as they can get them manufactured. “It is one of those good problems to have, the paddles are a bit more complex to a manufacturer than a normal paddle so naturally they take a little longer to produce,” explains David Swanson, the designer of the paddles.
Directly from the December Lights Issue, p. 28-29, showing off all the different LED Lights
Other products to get your hands on are any of the Wetsounds LED speakers. Wetsounds is a company that has been leading the way for years for marine audio, once a custom add on, now stock audio for many big name boat companies. (Top Right) Surf Stow is a fairly new company with some great ideas, from paddles to boat board storage and now their SUP GLO Stand Up Paddle Board Lighting System.
And then for boats there is the new Centurion Downfire Marine Audio System with LED's. The Centurion Downfire stereo system is technologically advanced to have two separate zones, rider zone and In-boat zone. The “rider” zone has rear facing speakers and the “in-boat” zone includes the interior speakers, subwoofer and downfiring speakers. This gives you the ability to turn the “In-boat” speakers completely down while still blasting music to your rider, or turn the rear facing speakers off to be courteous to the neighbors or any combination in between. One other feature we found rather nice is the master control dial allowing you to achieve the desired volume quickly without having to go to the dash or head unit.
By Tyler Marshall