Testimonials
Hollow Shaft Wooden Sculling OarsI'm an happy builder /rower from Norway. Last winter I built a boat and sliding seat rig clc boat and glen l marine. and oars from your plans. The plans were very good. Oar works great. Thank you.- Stein O., Norway |
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Expedition RowboatI had the first run in the Expedition Rowboat today - so much fun! The build was very enjoyable and I am super happy with the outcome. The kids are looking forward to hop on board next time.Here are a few pics of the building process in my backyard during winter - yikes. Because we are in a high-wind area temporary shelters don't work well and tarpaulins were the only cover. But it worked. For the next boat (quite keen to try myself on the Cambridge Racer sometimes soon) I will choose a workshop though. https://www.flickr.com/gp/googleeye/n846HA - Albrecht S., New Zealand |
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RowCruiserI have enjoyed the rowcruiser immensely these past few months and have had the opportunity to test it out in a variety of conditions. It performs wonderfully. Last weekend my wife and I loaded it up with camping gear and headed off to an island just off the coast. We started early hoping that the wind would not have kicked in but it had. We had wind and swell on our beam but the rowcruiser remained stable, simply rising up and down with the swell and still making great headway. The weight of the gear and my wife was not a problem. I have a webpage that is a bit like a digital version of a scrapbook. It can be found at rowcruiser.strikingly.com.- Rohan P., Far North Queensland, Australia |
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Cambridge RacerWe have completed the Cambridge Racer in January so I have been rowing with it for the past 9 months. Honestly this is the best thing I have ever had in my life and anytime I am going to row with it, it is pure fun. I have the chance to live by the sea so I go out anytime I can. I had never rowed before so the learning curve was quite steep. Anyway I would like to thank you for putting this plan online as this has allowed me to discover this fantastic activity. I can't compare it with other rowing shell but I find it very stable and I am able to row even when the weather is quite bad. - Alexis B., Ireland |
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RowCruiserI have a few details to still do but I got it on the water Sunday and it handled nicely. Both my hatches have a screen cover for ventilation when sleeping, haven't tried that out yet. I will be testing on Lake Erie and planning a trip down parts of the Ohio river over Labor day. Thanks for your help, Karney G., Ohio |
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Expedition RowboatGot the boat *somewhat* finished and out in the water for a few test runs. Postponed my Missouri/ Mississippi adventure til next year but it was still fun to get it out. Thanks a heap for all your help. - Wojciech P., Washington |
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Sliding Seat and Rigger KitMy wife has decided she wants a slider too. I knew this was going to happen once she tried mine. - Phil W., Washington |
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RowCruiser RowboatWow! Had the boat out on a friends pond last night and am so impressed. Even with heavy 10ft raft oars is was awesome. Really like the glide of the boat. Spent the night out in it. I could see pontoons being a nice touch for anchorages.- Carter W., Alaska |
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Expedition RowboatManaged a great Bowron Lakes trip couple weeks ago during that beauty high pressure system. Had the expedition loaded with gear and spare body in the main hatch. Nothing like drinking beer while your wife rows you to the next campsite...haha. - Leland C., British Columbia |
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Sliding Seat and Rigger SystemWe have had a customer fit one of your rowing kits to our Basscatcher 500 with great success and we now have another enquiry for a similar fitout. - Dan, Rosco Canoes, Australia |
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Expedition RowboatI trained with this boat last spring and embarked on a 9 day trip that was cut short due to injury - the boat itself however, was flawless and solid...the latter being what truly sets it apart from the traditional kayak. Albeit heavier, that weight affords you more cargo carrying ability and most importantly stability in the water which is paramount.- John C., Vancouver |
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Cambridge RacerAwesome, I have used your kit to build 4 boats to be used as trainers for our rowing club, saving us thousands. - Jason W., Bahamas Rowing, Bahamas
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Expedition RowboatI've had a great time on the build so far - the plans are great, and look forward to getting on the water later this spring.Excerpt from Peter's blog: "I’m not much of a craftsman, but after perhaps 50 hours things are looking just fine. The process has been rewarding so far, with the interior of the boat almost finished and the stoke is still high. Once the hull is done, the sliding seat row rig and homemade hollow shaft oars will each be a bit of a project as well. Anyways, here’s a quick look. More pictures will be added as construction progresses:
- Peter F., Alaska |
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Hollow Shaft Wooden Sculling OarsAlmost finished with the oars. Everything went smoothly and the plans worked great. - Dave G., Connecticut |
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Sliding Seat and Rigger SystemThe unit (sliding seat rower) works great, it's fitted to an Australian built " Rosco Basscatcher fishing canoe". - Brian E., Australia |
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Expedition RowboatSo once again I want to thank you for being part of my life for these lasts months. I enjoyed working on this project very much. it nourished my dreams and stimulated my brain What more can you ask for? - Jean G., Quebec |
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Oxford WherryMy kit arrived last week in good shape. I built a kayak from a kit purchased from an American company last year and would say that the fit and finish and quality of your materials looks significantly better. I look forward to building the boat.- Michael W., Nova Scotia |
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Expedition RowboatDescription of the boats written by Pat, from Pat and Caroline's journey from Bellingham to Haines, Alaska.The new boats seem to perform very well in a range of conditions. So far on this trip we’ve been in bigger water than ever with our kayaks and fared well. This is partially due to having oars that can brace well, but more to the size and beam of the boat. They are tanks–18′ x 3′. It feels more like being in a canoe than in a kayak. This is great for breaks and pee-stops on the water. It is hard to say how much faster than kayaks the rowboats are, but I might guess 1/3 faster. We tend to average 3+ miles/hr, but this can be as low as 2 in rough water or with headwinds, and as much as 4-5 with favorable winds. In a 10 hour day on the water without adverse conditions, we can cover 30 miles including short breaks in the boats. To sum it up so far, we are happy with the choice of the rowboats for the first leg of our journey. It is a great feeling to lean back on the oars and watch the shoreline glide by with 3 weeks of provisions on board. - Pat F., Alaska, https://carolineandpat.wordpress.com/ |
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Expedition RowboatI entered the open water race in Port Townsend just to see how it would perform next to race boats. It turned out I was the only entry in the under 19 feet sliding seat class, so not much to compare. I was pleased, however, to see that on a 8 mile course I was only about 10 minutes slower than a Maas 24 rowed by a friend of about the same abilities.In short I am pleased with the boat and the results of building my first stitch and glue boat. Thanks for an excellent design. - Norton S., Oregon |
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Cambridge RacerProcured the wood on March 24 and completed the boat on April 18 (except for the sanding ). The instruction manual is excellent, by the way.I have been rowing on the reservoir where the Ohio State University women's crew rows and also the Columbus Rowing club. I have encountered several folks rowing the sleek carbon fiber boats. They all comment what a beautiful wooden boat I have. There is something about a wooden boat that the synthetic boats don't have. It has been 40 years since I rowed in college but it came back immediately. ( except for the physical conditioning) I did not mention with my previous email that I built my boat as a sectional. The aft 7 feet detaches for storage in the garage. It was not a difficult modification. All summer long it has not leaked a drop at the splice. - Karl W., Ohio |
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Expedition RowboatHey thank you so much for sending those plans so quickly. They look amazing! I fully understand that you sell these plans as products just like your kits to make a living. So, the fact you have just sent both plans (not to mention 2 replacement wooden rigger pieces) free of charge or shipping has blown me away. I'm so grateful for your help, and the exceptional speed to respond. Gotta love good people and small businesses. - York J., Illinois |
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Expedition RowboatThanks again for the plans! Worked out great.. - David S., Virginia |
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OarsThanks so much for these designs, blown away every day. - Carter W., Alaska |
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RowCruiserAlso, you can let your wife know that she may be slowing up the speed at which I am building this RowCruiser because I saw her book, Olive Odyssey, pop up on your website,,I bought it,, and now it is costing me building time because it is very interesting and taking time away from building. In this case,, that is forgivable. :) Thanks again for your help. - Karney G., Ohio |
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Oxford WherryWe put the third coat of varnish on the interior of the boat it really look great. The seat and the rigger are finished and ready for installation. We are anxious to get it in the water. - Harley H., Wisconsin |
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Oars and Sliding Seat Rigger SystemThe manual is great. Has all the details I needed. I won't need near as much spar/mast grade Sitka Spruce as I thought. When your kit is available, I plan to purchase it. - Rodger J., Ohio |
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Expedition RowboatI took the expedition rowboat up the cape fear river in north carolina. I was gone four days and slept in the boat every night. The boat performed great.Thanks for all your efforts in designing such a sweet boat. I only slightly altered mine from the original plans. I did not install forward or aft hatches. I felt ample space is available by the large hatch alone for my purposes. And I did not make the cockpit (water diverter?) I forgot what its called. I have not had any issues with water entering cockpit from the front of boat even on choppy, windy days. I look forward to rowing many miles in the expedition! - Skipper B. |
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Oxford WherryI just wanted to tell you how much I enjoyed building the 2 Oxford Wherry's for Paul C. This will give him 2 Oxford Wherry and he already has 1 Annapolis Wherry. He likes the Oxford Wherry much better,lighter and more stable. - Alan C. |
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OarsThank you very much for your plans and your instruction, both are easy to understand and to use :-). - Ruedi S., Switzerland |
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RowCruiserI'm very happy with the boat kit, the parts fit like a glove and I've never enjoyed building anything as much as this boat! - Tom |
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RowCruiserI finished the boat, stored it in the barn and left on a bike tour of the Canadian Maritimes the next day. I plan to start rowing around the end of July.. I tentatively plan on being in Alaskan waters next summer with the boat.Don P., New York |
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Cambridge RacerThe plans and patterns were spot on. Thanks for a great design. - Larry C., Oregon |
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Oxford WherryI finished my boat, launched it today successfully and it was a lot of fun to build. - Christian C., New Jersey |
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Expedition RowboatI've had a great time building and now rowing the new boat. Now I'll leave the Hudson racing shell in the boathouse when it's rough. - Sandy B., Ohio |
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Expedition Rowboat and OarsThis was my first scratch build and I was really impressed with how well it all went together and trued up. Really enjoyed the build. - Marty W., Indiana |
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