Love Is In The Air

Just a reminder that nothing says “I love you” like sharing time in a Folbot. And to make that even easier to achieve, we have a sweet sale going on thru Monday.

Check it out and order up!

David A.

Haiti

The disaster in Haiti resulting from the huge earthquake has affected so many people in so many ways. The scope of the tragedy is almost beyond comprehension.

Photo by Reuters

During the first few days of the aftermath of the earthquake, while as overwhelmed and horrified at what had happened as we could be from our distant perch in Charleston, we realized that Folbot had a personal connection. One of our customers — a charming and nice guy — had ordered a Folbot Greenland II which was ready to ship the day the earthquake struck.  We tried to reach him, but no luck.  Days passed and no word. More time passed and more worried we became. Every time I walked by our shipping door it was hard not to think of the massive human suffering going on and whether the member of the Folbot family was safe or not.

Fortunately, a few days later we finally got an email letting us know he was safe, but there was much to do to help Haiti get back on its feet — would we please hold on to his kayak until a better time. We celebrated and the relief was tangible.

There are incredible efforts being made to help those in Haiti. Please do what you can do to help.

I look forward to the day that we can ship that Greenland II.

David A.

Strategy Session

As much fun as it is making the world’s best folding kayaks, every once in a while it’s good to step back and look at where we’ve been and think about where we’re going. Last week, Tony, Bill and I spent a full day away from Folbot and did just that.

Sometimes we were working so hard that you could actually see the gears moving in Tony’s brain.

It was a great day and we’re optimistic that 2010 will be a wonderful year for Folbot and the entire Folbot Family.

David A.

Folbots Are For Lovers

Nothing says “I love you” better than time spent together in a Folbot. So in anticipation of Valentine’s Day, we are here to help.

Buy a Greenland II (a kayak built for two) and get 20% off. Ah… paddling in the same kayak with your sweetheart — paddle strokes synchronized and sharing the moment.

But, if you like to paddle together, but separately… buy two Coopers and get 20% off (15% off one).

Plus, to make things that much sweeter — the first 10 orders get free shipping! (We’ll make sure that this is applied at order processing.)

Order online anytime or give us a call (800.533.5099).

Let the celebrations begin!

David A.

Contest Answers

Thanks to everyone who participated in last Friday’s contest celebrating Folbot’s 77th birthday year.

The corrects answers as to who else was born in 1933 are:

Row 1: Bernie Kopell, Ann Richards, Michael Dukakis, Flip Wilson, Elizabeth Montgomery

Row 2: Wayne Rogers, Donna Douglas, Johnny Unitas, Julie Newmar, Ken Berry

Row 3: Chita Rivera, Tom Skerritt, Jayne Mansfield, Bert Convy, Kim Novak

Congratulations to our three winners (from New York, Pennsylvania and Manitoba).

Let’s do it again next year.

David A.

Birthday Contest

Founded in 1933, 2010 is Folbot’s 77th birthday year.

So who else was born in 1933?

Correctly identify all the people below and win a Folbot t-shirt!

The first three people to email me the correct answers win!

Good luck to all and Happy Birthday Folbot!

David A.

Spectacular Photos

We are fortunate that so many Folbot paddlers share with us photos from the adventures they undertake.  We’re thrilled to post them on the Folbot website so everyone can see some of the amazing places Folbots go.

Just the other day, a Folboter in the Middle East, Craig Reynolds, sent a photo of Dubai taken from his Kodiak (named Raindancer). It’s an unusual shot of the Burj Al Arab and Jumeirah Beach Hotel — from a kayaker’s perspective.

Courtesy of Craig Reynolds www.sunburntandinneedofashave.com

Spectacular! Thanks, Craig.

David A.

The Guts of a Folbot

One of the advantages of rearranging the Folbot showroom is that we now have more room to better display the kayaks and other items.

The first thing we did was to make it easier to see the kayak frames. Not only are they wonders of engineering and the heart of any skin on frame boat, they are just plain cool to look at.

Kiawah Frame

Yukon Frame

If you’re not in the neighborhood and can’t stop by to see for yourself, please make sure to check out the “stripper” on the website — it’s very cool (make sure you move your cursor over the kayak).

David A.

Snazzy… The Folbot Showroom

As part of our preparation for the Canoecopia show in March, we recently acquired some very cool kayak storage racks made by Suspenz.

As with any new toy, we had to assemble them and try them out. We liked them so much, we decided to incorporate them into the Folbot showroom here in Charleston.

With Folbots being so light and easy to move, it was a piece of cake to get things set up. Plus, now there’s a lot more space in the showroom.

Please stop by for a visit and check it out for yourself.

David A.

And Away They Go

A few days ago I wrote about the people from 189 countries and territories who visited the Folbot website during 2009.

This morning, as I was walking through the Folbot plant, I took this photo of the shipping line.

This is not only where all the parts and pieces of an order come together, it is also where the effect of all those website visits is most tangible — with the cartons ready to take the just-made kayaks around the world to their new owners.

Walking down that line and reading the shipping addresses is always a pleasure. And it sure makes it easy to imagine the adventures that are going to unfold for those Folbots.

David A.