Who would have thought that there were so many choices in the world of kayak and canoe-buying?
My SO and I just wanted to go to the world's largest paddle-sport exposition to check out the paddle-sport industry and get a few ideas. The only expectation that we came with was to have a good time doing something different. When we arrived at the convention venue we were amazed to see the huge series of parking lots mostly filled with vehicles. Where, we thought, did all of these people come from? And, furthermore, how could so many people be interested in looking at kayaks, canoes, and paddles?
As it turned out, the convention center was teeming with prospective buyers, 'just-lookers', vendors, and convention-center employees. It was a massive undertaking, very impressively organized.
Did we have choices!!
Sit-down-ins
Sit-on-tops
Open cockpit
Closed cockpit
Nine-footers
Ten-footers
Eleven-footers
Twelve-footers
Fourteen-footers
Orange
Duck-blind green
Yellow
Blue
Red
Fushia
Eggplant
Ocean-style
Recreational-style
Fishing-style
Plastic
Resin
Lightweight
Plastic paddles
Aluminum paddles
Titanium paddles
Paddles that come in three parts
Paddle bags (Yes, paddle bags.)
Buyer incentives
Rebates
Whew! Get the idea we had overwhelming numbers of choices?
We sat, we reclined, we walked (and walked), we talked, we listened to the sales' pitches of the century, we cogitated, we lifted, we inspected, and that was just at the refreshment-booth counters. After that we looked at the vendors' wares and products.
Who knew?
We learned that we have a lot to learn. Which is why my blog is called:
Ancora imparo
