Werner Paddles: Teams & Expeditions

	DALE WILLIAMS:From the Aleutian Island to an expedition around Akutan, Dale Williams, simply put, loves sea kayaking. He an ACA Advanced Open Water Instructor and is a BCU Coach. He use to own Sea Kayak Georgia, a sea-kayaking school based on his home turf, Tybee Island, but sold in it 1994…why? So he had more time to sea kayaking! Check out his paddler-friendly B&B on Tybee Island, The Outdoor Inn.
	BRYAN SMITH:In 2003 Bryan was part of a six-member team that completed the first descents of the Lohit and Dalai Rivers in the remote Northeast corner of India's Arunachal Pradesh. In 2001 he was a part of numerous first descents and multi-day missions along the Northwest coast. He holds the BCU 5 star Sea Award, Coach 4 Sea and Coach 3 River and has become a strong figure in paddlesports education. 2007 brings lots of excitement, as Bryan gets ready for the first decent of the Rio Huallaga in Peru and the launching of his sea kayak film Pacific Horizons.
	MARK SCHOON :Mark's bio is coming soon.
	JON BOWERMASTER:For the past 20 years Jon Bowermaster has been writing about adventure, the environment and exotic corners of the world for a variety of national and international publications. For the past few years most of his writing and adventuring has been done on behalf o the National Geographic Society. In January 2008, the last expedition of eight will be to the Antarctic Peninsula.

	Josh Bechtel:Our local Monroe, Washington boy has gone big time. He spends most of his kayaking time in front of the camera as talent starring in such videos as Twitch. Most of his friends are toothless…but he can tell you that story.
	Lauren Burress:If you’ve paddled the Ocoee, chances are you’ve met this southern-up-and-coming-kayaking-darlin’. Lauren Burress takes advantage of her Appalachain backyard by running rivers and creeks and playing in spots that litter the mountains East Tennessee.
	Dave Garringer:A West Virginian, relocated to the high Sierra’s of California, ‘little Dave’ is one of our best product testers for whitewater. He logs countless hours on rivers and usually gets into situations that test the limitations of all his gear. His testing helps Werner produce higher quality paddles.
	John Grace:Being the owner, producer, and filmmaker of Penstock Productions makes this guy have one of the most hectic jobs in the industry. Covering news and information for both Kayak Journal and Lunch Video Magazine - LVM takes him from coast to coast, and country to country.
	Tommy Hilleke:An infamous Class V kayaker, nice guy and Dad…Tommy finds the time to do it all. When he’s not filming Tommy’s Top 10 for LVM he changing diapers and bombing the gorges of Colorado, California and North Carolina.
	Pat Keller:Pat use to be our young and rising star…now he’s leading the pack of big boys. He was the winner of the 2006 Green River Race and is finishing up an undergraduate degree at the University of North Carolina.
	Nikki Kelly:With rivers like the Stikine, Middle Kings and Royal Gorge on her list ‘done’ list…Nikki is arguably one of the best kayakers in the world. Not only is she bad-ass, but her smile and kindred spirit is infectious on the river.
	Marlow Long:Starring Punk and ring-leader for the Young Guns Productions, Marlow searches for big waves, big times and just anything big in general.
	Dixie Marree Prickett:This wonder woman splits time between rivers, oceans, and trails - to and from. She’s a rep for Patagonia and she lives ‘Let My People Go Surfing (Kayaking)’. She’s loud, good fun, and that makes her close with the Werner family.
	Tanya Shuman:Long-time Werner family member and all-star of the sport, she still travels full-time searching for the perfect wave. Many images you see at Werner Paddles are seen from her camera – she’s the eyes of Werner.
	Dave Johnston:A world class surf kayaker, Dave (the wave) keeps Werner connected to the endless summer. He’s a two-time World Champion and two-time National Champion surf kayaker. He owns and operates Venture Quest, a sea kayaking outfit in Santa Cruz, California.
	Boyd Rupplet:As a Microbiology student at the University of Memphis, Boyd still finds time to travel, kayak, and share his passion for living everywhere he goes. Recently, Boyd found himself in the rainforests of Costa Rica filming for Hotel Charley Vol. II, exploring his new love for expedition kayaking. Aside from kayaking Boyd enjoys skydiving, snowboarding, climbing, caving, mountainboarding, backpacking, and just enjoying life with his friends and family.
	Shane Benedict:A legend of the sport, Shane has been kayaking for 27 years, teaching kayaking for 20 years and designing kayaks for over 13 years. He’s a real asset to Werner Paddles and believes that his paddle is how you know what is going on in the river. It’s how you check the pulse of the river. He also coined the phrase for us, “Carbon Confidence”, which he finds in his Sho-Gun paddle on a regular basis as he bombs down his home river, The Green in North Carolina.

	Jason Morton:Jason Morton is a licensed guide and the face behind KayakSportfishing.com, a guide service and online resource dedicated to the art of kayak fishing. Jason also produces some of the largest kayak fishing events in the nation and has been featured on Fox Sports TV kayak fishing for thresher sharks and hoop netting for lobsters. When he's not on the water, he and can be found speaking at various seminars and trade shows on the West Coast. His largest unassisted catch from the kayak is a whopping 10.5 ft / 235lb thresher shark he caught while kayak fishing off the coast of Malibu, CA.
	Jeff Krieger:Jeff's bio is coming soon.
	Jim Sammons:A San Diego native, Jim has spent most of his life on or near the water. He started La Jolla Kayak Fishing, a fishing guide service where he does trips locally in San Diego and to northern and southern Baja. Jim holds the distinction of landing the first, and only California caught Marlin from a kayaking. Check out his website at www.kayak4fish.com

	Whitney Lonsdale:Whitney has worked and paddled around the world in places like Nepal, Chile, Uganda, China and New Zealand for the last 15 years. She has worked for World Class Kayak Academy for the last 5 years, exploring the rivers and cultures of the world with groups of high school students. She combines her passions for paddling, teaching and traveling and finds herself continually inspired by the energy and enthusiasm of the kids. Whitney says she takes her Werner paddle with her no matter where she goes because she never wants to be on the river with anything else.
	Polly Green:Polly Green has been kayaking for the past 17 years in over 20 countries. She placed 5th in the 2003 World Freestyle Championships, completed a first all female descent in Bhutan, was a member of the National Geographic "Descending the Dragon" expedition in Vietnam, and produced and directed the award winning paddling documentary "Nomads". She is currently paddling and teaching on the rivers in New Zealand, and working on her next film project.
	Phil & Mary DeReimer:Phil and Mary DeRiemer of DeRiemer Adventure Kayaking, have been leaders in the field for over twenty years. It is their goal to provide the best in whitewater guiding and instruction to groups and individuals. Whether you are new to the sport, interested in making plateau breakthroughs, or wanting an exceptional wilderness or international trip, you'll find they encourage your progress and your confidence, and ensure that you'll have fun along the way.
	Tiffany Manchester:Tiffany has been kayaking for over 10 years and has been a member of the Canadian Freestyle Team. She is currently working with the WT Keener Program (www.ottawakayak.com) in Ottawa Canada, a excellent kayaking program for kids. She’s an inspiration to kids both on and off the water.
	Karen Knight:Karen Knight has been described as a “ballerina on the water.” Whether she is paddling down the Grand Canyon, kayaking along the coast of Maine or dancing on the water with her Freestyle canoe, this former Interpretive Freestyle Canoe Champion is renowned for her paddling grace and precision. An instructor in coastal kayaking, whitewater kayaking, whitewater canoeing and freestyle canoeing for the American Canoe Association, Karen, along with her partner Bob Foote, travels around the country teaching classes in canoeing and kayaking.
	Bob Foote:Bob Foote was named by Paddler Magazine as one of the “Paddler’s of the Century” in recognition of his expertise and contributions to paddling. An instructor in coastal kayaking, whitewater kayaking, whitewater canoeing and flatwater canoeing for the American Canoe Association, Bob, along with his partner Karen Knight, travel around the country teaching classes in canoeing and kayaking, as well as guiding trips down the Grand Canyon. In addition, he has designed several boats for Dagger, Navarro, Bell, and now Esquif.

Jesse Coombs & Ben Stookesberry - Whitewater
National Geographic Adventure Heros of 2007, Jesse and Ben have shown the unique ability to bring world class expedition kayaking, exotic destinations and local culture together with an environmental focus. As clearnh2ofilms the duo explores the farthest corners of the globe and creates high quality film each year than can seen on a 30 city tour (word doc) in a paddle shop near you.

Vacation To Hell - Whitewater
Congratulations to the 2006 Winners – The Range Life. These guys are going to el Rio Huallaga in Peru. You can read or watch videos about the Vacation To Hell on the official website or visit the Huallaga blog. They leave on July 10.

OCEANS 8 - Sea Kayaking Around the World - Touring
A series of expeditions, to explore the world’s oceans from the seat of a sea kayak, Jon Bowermaster leads a team of photographers, filmmakers, scientists and navigators – to reach corners of the world rarely seen. The goal of each expedition has been adventure crossed with exploration of local cultures, histories, environmental issues and the future of these varied regions. In January 2008, the last expedition of eight will be to the Antarctic Peninsula (pdf download).

Paddle for Power Expedition - Touring
Mik Jedlicka and Mark Dalpes don’t just kayak, they kayak for a good cause. This spring and summer they will kayak from San Juan Island, Washington and finish in Haines, Alaska. It’s about 1300 miles and this is their commute to work for the season, as they both work in Alaska during the summer. Along the way they will be raising money and awareness for REAP, Alaska Renewable Energy Project. Not only will they leave no trace, but they plan to clean beaches and remove trash along the way that was left by others. You can read all about their adventure along the way at the blog.

Vacation to Hell - Touring
The concept is simple, you and your buddies submit a video application to win a grant to paddle in some exotic location. The catch, a group of people you don’t know decide where the location is, and they don’t tell until they pick a winner. For rules, FAQs and how to enter visit the Vacation To Hell website.

Kayak Journal
Kayak Journal is a quarterly multi-media publication that you can have delivered right to your house just like a regular magazine. Kayak Journal represents the future of Touring and Flatwater Kayaking magazines, combining exciting video segments and corresponding print articles, this

Lunch Video Magazine
Since its home grown beginnings, LVM has been dedicated to providing a high quality DVD featuring the freshest and most exciting video footage of the latest expeditions, regional and international river trips, whitewater competitions and festivals, in addition to introducing many of the faces (and musings) of those whose lifestyles are immersed in the sport. Delivered quarterly to your door or your favorite outdoor retailer, each issue of LVM is a collection of visually expressive whitewater vignettes plus a feature documentary guaranteed to captivate and thrill the viewer.

Reel Paddling Film Festival
The Reel Paddling Film Festival brings the world’s best paddling films to paddlers across North American and around the world. The festival has been created to inspire more people to explore rivers, lakes and oceans, push physical and emotional extremes, embrace the lifestyle and appreciate the heritage of the places where we travel.

Pacific Horizons
Pacific Horizons is a full length sea kayaking film focusing on the Pacific Northwest’s most sought after destinations; home to incredible wildlife, rugged open coast, protected inland water, massive tidal exchanges, and dedicated sea kayakers. The fil features segments on Dubside, Quadra Island Tidal Races, Skookumchuck Narrows, Keirron Tastagh and Jeff Norville's 14 day Circumnavigation of Vancouver Island, San Juan Islands, The Oregon Coast, Columbia River Gorge, Remote West Coast Vancouver Island Locations, and Queen Charlotte Islands. Here are a couple links to the current teasers. The official trailer will be released in June 2007.

Dubside (quicktime movie)
Skookumchuck(quicktime movie)