Once upon a time, I was happy with my paddle. Then I attended a Yakangler Boondoggle down at KARS Park, Florida. There fellow Jackson team member Mark Wheeler, showed me the prototype for a new paddle he was helping to develop. I started to doubt my paddle. Sometime later, I saw the Redfish in person, and knew my old plain yellow paddle just wasn’t going to cut it anymore.

That is one SEXY paddle!

While I will readily admit to being taken in by the cover of this book, there is some real substance inside as well. I’ll just lay it out in pros and cons.

Pros
1. Its a dead sexy paddle. Everybody wants to look at it.
2. Its light. 30ozs to be exact. I have had users of another 30oz paddle comment that they thought the Redfish felt lighter.
3. Big blade. Lots of power in this stick.
4. Rock solid feather adjustment. As a fisherman, I mostly go zero degrees, but in open water with wind. the easy adjustment does come into play.
5. The lure retrieval notch is actually useful. Being at the tip puts it where all such notches should be.
6. Its tough. Same material as the whitewater blades. I will admit to babying the blades when I first got it. I mean, its SO PRETTY! I have since resorted to using it to push off rocks, mud, logs, sand, etc… just like my old ugly blade. I shouldn’t. Its not how a paddle should be used. But, we all do it. The finish still looks nice.
7. The flattened hand areas are ergonomic. I like them.

Cons
1. No measuring tape. Who am I kidding, does anyone actually use that thing? That’s what Hawg Troughs are for.

I’ve been using the Redfish for over a year now. I have used it in all types of water on many different kayaks and SUPs. I am completely happy with my purchase, and know several others who feel the same. Check it out at your local Jackson Kayak dealer. If you see me out on the water, ask me for a test paddle. But be careful, your old stick just may not be the same.

Check out this vid of the Jackson Redfish paddle, getting me down the river the Coosa was named for.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S8cN7nj8GWw&feature=share&list=PLeSLdfwRrLsYOnE5Z3w4MhXeT1AHvSJVM