Tony Jorge – Director of Operations

A graduate of Concordia University in Montreal, Tony Jorge joins Pelican International with over 20 years of management and consulting experience in the manufacturing sector. As the newly appointed Director of Operations for Pelican International, Tony will report to the Vice President of Operations, Marie-Christine Piedboeuf, and oversee Procurement, Planning, Customer Service, Logistics and Shipping.

Tony has an impressive background in Plant and Operations Management and his main objective will be to implement, support and drive the company’s business strategies while improving the overall effectiveness and efficiency of Pelican’s support services. He will play a major role in long-term planning, with a clear focus on operational excellence.

Claude-Simon Dansereau — Manager, Strategic Sourcing

Claude, a Pelican employee for over 6 years, brings over 20 years of experience in international purchasing to his new role. His expertise in ERP systems coupled with his experience in negotiating with Asian suppliers makes him the ideal candidate for this position. In his new role, Claude will be responsible for supporting Pelican’s growth by developing sourcing strategies in both Asia and North America. He will also negotiate major contracts with suppliers and subcontractors. Claude will report to the Director of Operations, Tony Jorge.

Jean-Philippe Bertrand — Director of Information Technology

Jean-Philippe has 12 years of managerial experience in several areas, including Information Technology, Logistics and Quality Control. His understanding of the various roles in an organization will be a tremendous asset to Pelican as he supports the company’s existing projects and undertakes new ones, such as the implementation of a Business Intelligence system.

Christine Desautels — International Sales Representative

Christine is the newest addition to Pelican International’s Sales Team. As the new International Sales Representative, she will report to the Executive Director of Sales, Noel Basque, and will be responsible for all sales outside of North America. Based at Pelican International’s head office in Laval, Quebec, Canada, Christine will work closely with all of Pelican’s Distributors to continue to grow the company’s international markets.

Christine has been with Pelican for five years and has held customer service positions elsewhere. Her work ethic and “can-do” attitude will ensure that Pelican’s distributors are well serviced as the company continues to supply retailers worldwide with all of its brands, including Pelican, Elie and Lavika.

“In order to sustain Pelican’s continued growth, we are investing in key talent to grow our business in the U.S., as well as overseas”, said Antoine Elie, C.E.O of Pelican International. “We are also strengthening our technology infrastructure and our operations team in order to optimize our supply chain and ensure the best possible product quality. I am pleased to welcome these new players to the Pelican team and I am confident that their depth of experience will be of great benefit to Pelican and its retail partners.”

Pelican International has also signed on with two new Sales Agencies, Remsing Associates Inc. of Vermont and Alabama-based Where the Wild Things Are.

Remsing Associates — Northeast and Mid Atlantic (Maine to Virginia)

Tom Remsing of Remsing Associates Inc. has over 25 years of experience in the paddle sports business as a retailer, outfitter and manufacturer’s representative. Warren, Vermont-based Remsing Associates has been in business for 15 years and covers New England and the Mid-Atlantic states. Remsing was among the first in the country to sell thermoformed ABS kayaks and they have a keen understanding of the advantages of the manufacturing process.

“I’m thrilled to have partnered with Pelican International in the Northeast Market and the timing couldn’t be better, given the rapidly changing dynamics we are now experiencing in the industry,” said Remsing. “I’ve always been fascinated with technological advances in paddle sports, as I feel it gives my firm a competitive edge in the marketplace. In my opinion, Pelican’s innovative Twin-Sheet Thermoforming process is a game changer. Let’s see… lighter, stiffer, stronger and less expensive – what’s not to like? The rapid growth we’ve seen in market share for both Pelican and Elie Kayaks is a testament to that fact.”

Where The Wild Things Are — Southeast (North Carolina to Florida)

Cliff Earle and Tom Foote of Where the Wild Things Are bring 34 and 14 years respectively of paddle sports experience to their seven year old partnership. Both are avid canoeists with a passion for paddling and the outdoors and bring a straight-forward, hands-on approach to their business. They leverage their extensive paddlesports experience to bring a high degree of technical understanding to retailers. Their strong customer relationships in the South Eastern United States will be of great benefit to Pelican International.

Pelican International has shown impressive growth over the past few years, consistently outperforming industry growth, and is committed to providing high quality products and top tier service to its retail partners.

By Conor Mihell

Traditional canoe-trippers still rely on simple wooden boxes known as “wannigans” to carry provisions and cooking gear. Some suspect the term wannigan is has aboriginal roots or perhaps it originated in Canadian logging camps. Regardless, paddlers in my home of Northern Ontario have been using them as grub boxes for about 100 years. According to former Camp Keewaydin staffer Heb Evans in his classic 1975 book Canoeing Wilderness Waters (out of print), the main advantage of using a wannigan is that its hard wooden sides protect the carrier from the sharp edges of pots, pans and cookery. It also affords a convenient cutting board top and a bench or table for in camp. Lacking shoulder straps, a wannigan is carried with a tumpline, the old-school head strap made famous by Himalayan Sherpas and French-Canadian voyageurs.

As someone recently bit by the traditional bug, I decided it was high time to build a wannigan or two of my own. The project can easily be completed in a few evenings of work, basic tools and about $25 of materials.

Materials: Traditional wannigans were often constructed with quarter-inch plywood sides and 1-by-12-inch pine bottoms, ends and top. Today, quarter-inch plywood can by hard to find and pine lumber is expensive. To save cost and weight, I used cheap spruce strapping to build the frame of the box and covered it with readily available 3/8-inch plywood. A full-size sheet of plywood provides enough material for two average-sized wannigans.

Dimensions: According to Evans, the typical Camp Keewaydin wannigan measured 22 inches long by 12 inches wide and 12 inches deep. This was the preferred size for carrying foodstuffs. A slightly larger wannigan (known as the “jewelry”) was used to carry cookware and dishes. Evans recommended a maximum length of 25 inches for a typical 17-foot tripping canoe. I decided on 24 by 12 by 14.

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By Conor Mihell

Like the wicked sou’easters that pummel the Inside Passage all winter long, a storm is brewing on the northern coast of British Columbia that could threaten a paddler’s paradise and a pristine node of biological diversity. Canadian environmental assessment hearings began in January for Enbridge’s proposed 700-mile pipeline route from northern Alberta to the small coastal B.C. town of Kitimat, which would pump 525,000 barrels of sludge-like bitumen across the Rocky and Coast Range mountains and into the fragile Great Bear Rainforest. From there, about 220 Empire State Building-sized supertankers would navigate the convoluted waters of the Douglas Channel each year before striking off across the Pacific to Asia.

Paddlers Norm Hann and Frank Wolf know the area first-hand. In two separate yet equally ambitious projects in the spring and summer of 2010, Hann and Wolf ground-truthed the pipeline and tanker route using muscle power alone. Hann, a resident of Squamish, B.C., cranked out 40-mile days and weathered occasional bouts of eight-foot seas on a 250-mile journey by standup paddleboard from Kitimat to the native community of Hartley Bay and along the island-pocked coast south to the remote town of Bella Bella. He met with coastal First Nations to learn first-hand how supertankers each carrying eight times the volume of the Exxon Valdez would affect their traditional way of life, visited whale researchers, and landed at age-old pictograph, petroglyph and burial sites.

“Spill or no spill, these places will change,” says Brian Huntington, a photographer who joined Hann in producing the documentary, Standup 4 Great Bear. “Many of them won’t survive just because of the presence of supertankers.”

North Vancouver filmmaker Wolf and his friend, Todd McGowan, began their 53-day epic far from the coast in Edmonton, Alberta. The pair biked 250 miles into the heart of the Tar Sands and then followed the exact GPS course of the pipeline by foot, mountain bike and packraft to the coast at Kitimat. Wolf and McGowan crossed 773 waterways including the headwaters of the massive Skeena and Fraser rivers and ventured into some of the wildest terrain in North America, just as another Enbridge pipeline spilled 19,500 barrels of Canadian bitumen into Michigan’s Kalamazoo River, precipitating a $700 million cleanup project that continues today. Upon reaching the coast they sea kayaked the Douglas Channel, camping in the mossy forest and on rocky points.

The Great Bear Rainforest is home to the famous Kermode or “spirit” bear, a white-coated subspecies of the common black bear that’s only found in this portion of the B.C. coast. “It’s a beautiful place to paddle,” says Wolf. “There’s old growth, lots of whales, seals, easy fishing, spirit bears and wild wolves on the coast.”

Officials in the Canadian government would do well to watch Wolf’s On the Line documentary, which is set to air on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation’s Documentary channel in March. Since President Obama shelved the controversial Keystone XL pipeline from Alberta to Texas, Ottawa has been a vocal supporter of finding new markets for Canadian oil in Asia. Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper has blackballed “wealthy socialists” like Robert Redford and Leonardo DiCaprio, both of whom have spoken out against the Northern Gateway under the banner of Washington, D.C.’s Natural Resources Defense Council, in the media. Similarly, natural resources minister Joe Oliver stated in an open letter to Canadians that “environmental and other radical groups” are hijacking the permitting process and threatening Canada’s economy. Other supporters of Enbridge’s $5.5 billion plan include global energy giants including France’s Total SA and China’s Sinopec.

Besides adding another nail in the coffin of efforts to abate global climate change and expedite the transition to cleaner sources energy, Hann and Wolf got to see what’s immediately in the line of fire: Wild mountains, rivers and coastline, a rich array of wildlife and proud communities clinging to traditional, sustainable economies. Along the proposed pipeline and tanker route they met with members of the 130 first nations that oppose it. While the Canadian government is hawking its oil to the world, it’s clear that thousands of concerned citizens are digging in their heels for an epic environmental battle.

“Everything here is at stake,” says Ian MacAllister, the director of Pacific Wild, a non-profit conservation group on B.C.’s central coast. “First nations culture, whales, salmon, spirit bears and so much more.”

Watch the documentaries:

Norm Hann’s Standup4GreatBear:



 

Frank Wolf’s On The Line:

Warsaw, North Carolina (January 17, 2012) — The Santee 100 LT, an ultra-light thermoform kayak from Hurricane Aquasports, boasts a brand new look. Weighing in at only 35 lbs, the redesigned 100 LT possesses a 5-inch longer cockpit than previous 10- foot models, includes Hurricane’s new grey-trimmed fully adjustable seat, has an integral paddle holder, and features fresh deck aesthetics that add rigidity to the boat’s overall structure.

According to Jon Stewart, Director of In-House Operations, “With an MSRP of only $799, the thermoformed Santee 100 LT is sure to be a popular model for us, especially given that it includes features typically found on more expensive boats. We wanted to meet a competitive price point without stripping down the design, and I’d say we definitely met our goal.” The 100 LT has a rear bulkhead not typically available in 10- foot kayaks, as well as an 8″ hatch and attractive deck rigging. The boat is available in cardinal red and will begin shipping to certified Hurricane Kayak dealers later this month.

About Hurricane Aquasports
Hurricane Aquasports is a leader in the manufacture of lightweight thermoform kayaks. Based in southeastern North Carolina, Hurricane was founded by a group of veteran paddlers in 1998 to meet a growing need for lightweight, high performance kayaks. Boats thermoformed from Trylon, Hurricane’s proprietary plastic, are stiffer and lighter than roto-molded polyethylene kayaks and cost significantly less than comparable composite models.

The Gig Harbor Paddlers Cup will be based at Skansie Brothers Park and Jerisich Dock in the heart of historic downtown Gig Harbor with event races for all three categories taking place inside the harbor. Race schedule will be:

 

Each day the event will run throughout the day with vendors and booths set up in the park while the races are taking place. The Expo in the park is an opportunity to try out equipment, view new boats and learn more about paddling sports.

To see more information on the course for both the distance and sprint races visit the website at www.gigharborpaddlerscup.com

Registration is now available for both competitors and vendors on line at www.gigharborpaddlerscup.com

Special rates are available at Gig Harbor area hotels for participants. Rooms are limited so booking early is encouraged. http://gigharborpaddlercup.wordpress.com/lodging/

For additional information about the Gig Harbor Paddlers Cup please contact event organizer Missy Hill at (253) 230-3631 or Coach Alan Anderson (253) 208-6365.

Gig Harbor — Washington’s Maritime Village. www.gigharborguide.com

Sit-In Kayaks

Pelican’s line of sit-in kayaks now offers eight single and tandem models ranging from basic, beginner-friendly boats to recreational models with convenient touring features.
Sit-in models are available in 8-foot, 10-foot, 12-foot and 14-foot versions, including three new kayaks from the Pulse family – two new 10-foot models and one new 12-foot model. For dedicated anglers, Pelican offers 10-foot and 12-foot versions of the Pulse, both new for 2012 and equipped with fishing features such as swivel and flush mounted rod holders.

Sit-On Kayaks

For those who prefer the versatility of a sit-on kayak, Pelican offers eight models, including single and tandem versions and ranging in length from six to thirteen feet. The latest addition to the sit-on line is a brand new 6-foot children’s kayak with backrest and safety flag. The sit-on line-up also includes three fishing kayaks (10 feet, 11.6 feet and 13 feet), all fully angler equipped.

Pelican’s Superior Technology and Craftsmanship

In business for over 40 years and with over 1.5 million boats sold world-wide, Pelican is not only renowned for the diversity of its line of products, but also for its superior technology and craftsmanship. In order to achieve peak performance, Pelican’s kayaks are made using state of the art Twin Sheet Thermoforming (TST) and Pelican’s exclusive RAM-X™ material, a high molecular weight polyethylene. The TST process allows Pelican to use this higher grade of plastic, resulting not only in a kayak that offers improved performance characteristics such as stiffness that provides the paddler with a more agile and responsive kayak, but also a more durable vessel.

Stand-Up Paddleboards (SUPs)

In 2011, Pelican introduced the Flow 106X stand-up paddleboard. For 2012, Pelican has added the basic Flow 106 and two new lighter foam-core stand-up paddleboards (the Surge 10.4 and 11.4).

Other Boats

In addition to kayaks and paddleboards, Pelican offers a wide variety of recreational and sporting boats, including canoes (ranging from thirteen to sixteen feet) and five fishing boats, including mini-pontoon style boats, a “Jon” style boat and a modified v-hull boat (ranging from eight to ten feet.) Pelican also offers seven pedal boat models in a variety of configurations, ranging from three-person to five-person and including both basic models and higher end versions equipped with canopies and coolers. Pelican also offers an electric pedal boat with five forward and two reverse speeds.

Environmental Awareness

As a company that promotes enjoying the great outdoors, Pelican is committed to protecting the environment. That’s why all Pelican watercraft are manufactured in its 430,000 square foot North American factory, where the company recycles 99.9% of the scrap created during the manufacturing process. It also uses specially designed air ducts to redirect heat released by ovens during the molding process in order to heat the facility during the winter months

Models for Every Taste, Skill Level and Budget

For water sport enthusiasts who have been meaning to try something new, 2012 is the year to do it! Whatever type of watercraft you are looking for, Pelican’s 2012 line-up truly offers something for every size of person, taste, skill level and budget

Don Starkell, who claimed to have paddled more miles than any person in history, died of cancer Saturday at his home in Winnipeg, Manitoba, the Winnipeg Free Press reports. He was 79.

The famously stubborn canoeist is best known for paddling 12,000 miles with his son Dana, from their home near Winnipeg to the mouth of the Amazon. The 1980 open canoe journey earned the Starkells a place in the Guinness Book of World Records. It was but one episode in a life of canoeing and kayaking that, according to Starkell’s meticulous journals, spanned nearly 75,000 miles.

In addition to the Amazon expedition, Starkell took part in the 1967 trans-Canada Centennial paddle and in the 1991 and 1992 paddling seasons, he attempted to kayak the Northwest Passage. Trapped in pack ice and slipping in and out of consciousness, the then 59-year-old Starkell accepted a helicopter rescue just 36 miles from the finish.

“I was going to die, but I would not let my mind accept it,” Starkell told C&K Editor-at-Large Conor Mihell in 2010, while recovering from a house fire that nearly claimed his life. Mihell’s Unfiltered feature, which ran in the August, 2010 Canoe & Kayak, is published below.

UNFILTERED: Don Starkell, Expedition Paddler

In the spring of 1980, Don Starkell and sons Dana and Jeff portaged their 21-foot canoe down the street from their home in Winnipeg, Manitoba, to the banks of the Red River and set off for South America. They were arrested, shot at, kidnapped by pirates and nearly starved. But two years later, Don and Dana finished the 12,000-mile epic (Jeff bowed out after one too many near-misses) and took their place in the Guinness Book of World Records for the longest canoe trip of all time.

Despite this grand achievement, Starkell’s life has been a struggle for self-esteem and survival. Canoeing gave him an escape from the revolving door of a foster care childhood. For two decades, beginning in the 1950s, he was one of Canada’s top sprint and marathon canoe racers. In 1992, his two-year attempt to kayak the Northwest Passage ended in a helicopter rescue only 36 miles from his destination. Starkell, 77, has meticulously documented his 75,000 paddling miles in spiral-bound ledgers-more distance, he claims, than anyone else in the world.

In March an errant spark from his wood stove led to another close call. “I woke up and there was a bonfire in my front room,” says Starkell, who stubbornly stood toe-to-toe with the flames and nearly died from the burns he received. “God, I tell you, this burning has been like going to hell and back,” he said, after recuperating in a Winnipeg hospital for a month. “But I’m feeling better every day, and if I can get myself healed up, I’ll be back on the water.”  — Conor Mihell

I’ve been psychoanalyzing myself for the past 15 or 20 years. I have a thing where if people say, ‘You can’t do that,’ right away I respond, ‘How do you know without trying?’

The only reason I ever got into canoeing was my second foster home. It was on a creek that flooded in the spring and they had a canoe. That canoe gave me the first freedom in my life. I was just like Huckleberry Finn and Tom Sawyer.

I know what I was doing in every year. In 1951 I was in my first canoe race and we were going against the Manitoba champions. We ended up whumping them. I never thought anything of it and next year those same guys we beat went to the Olympics.

They had the Canadian Centennial canoe race from Rocky Mountain House to Montreal in 1967. It was over 3,200 miles and I had to quit my 17-year job to do it. My attitude has always been when something good comes you better take advantage of it.

In 1970 my wife took off on me. I can’t look back in my past and see anything that I can be proud of with my parents or grandparents. It was a horrible mess. And I never wanted to do that to my kids.

Right away it came to me. I would take them on a long canoe trip. Dana had always wanted to walk to the Amazon and I told him, ‘How about we canoe from Winnipeg to the Amazon?’ He looked at a globe and the distance didn’t look that far, it was only two of his hands. Dana and Jeff were 8 and 9 years old when we decided on this. Ten years later we would do it.

During those 10 years I did a good job on those guys. I was tough on them and made them struggle. And then the time came to do it and we took off and that’s the story.

Everyday I think about that trip.

My last year up north I was 59 years old. In one stretch I dragged my kayak overland for 525 miles in 26 days. I averaged almost 20 miles a day. No one has done that kind of pace in Arctic or Antarctic history.

There’s no overstatement in [my] book Paddle to the Arctic. Everything is understated, believe me. It was six times worse. I got stuck in my kayak for 26 hours in slush ice. I couldn’t get to shore. I fell through the ice three times up to my armpits trying. Then I sat in and out of consciousness.

I was going to die, but I would not let my mind accept it.

That was the first time in my life that I’d given 100 percent and I failed. But there isn’t one thing that I could’ve done that would’ve made me successful.

One of my biggest achievements as far as I’m concerned is my lifetime paddling miles. Have you ever heard of that guy Kruger who claims all those miles? I don’t like saying this because it’s not in my nature but he’s so full of bullshit it’s not even funny. That’s my sour grapes on Verlen Kruger.

My miles are so much beyond his that I’m not even worried about it. I’ve been keeping my records since 1948 when I was 15 years old and right now I’m just under 75,000 miles.

Last year was the worst year I’ve done in 15 years. It was a cold summer in Winnipeg and I paddled only 1,500 miles.

It’s crazy, you know. I’ve paddled three times around the world. If someone wants to beat that, I don’t give a damn.

This article first appeared in the August 2010 issue of Canoe & Kayak magazine.

“All is well up here. I just moved to Victoria to enjoy the winter surf sessions at Jordan River. So far so good,” Gloag wrote. “Here’s a little vid of me getting a good little trashing last week. We’ll be heading out again Thursday. It’s cold, but worth it.”

Gloag, a fixture of sea kayak surfing at B.C.’s famed Skookumchuck Narrows tidal rapid, is on a mission to improve his “sea boat” surfing skills. “Skook has taught me a lot and I want to try to pull off some new stuff with a shore break. Jordan River has been pretty sweet this year … so far,” he said, though admitting his nose is still full of water after this wave. CLICK HERE to read and to see more video on the Hurricane Riders.