It’s been awhile since the Kansas City area has had a dedicated Jackson Kayak dealer.  With the passing of Lynn  Lyon in early 2015, the Kansas City community lost one of it’s most important faces of the kayaking community, and the destination location for many soon-to-be kayak owners.  I moved back to the Kansas City area, from Austin, TX, during the summer of 2015 and was not fortunate enough to have known Lynn or have visited his popular shop, but almost four years later, I am still involved in conversations of what a wonderful shop Lynn had built, and how well he serviced the Jackson Kayak community in our area.  

Having moved from a city that was considered one of the most progressive cities in America, and one of the cities leading the front in kayak angling and recreation paddling, I was eager to get settled back in KC and do my ‘Jackson thing’ here, like I had done in Austin.  TG Canoe and Kayak was one of the first Jackson Kayak dealers in the country, and I always enjoyed the 45min drive down to San Marcos to sit with Duane and Evelyn and chat about kayaking, learning about the river their shop and home were on, and learning everything I could about how kayaks are made, what makes kayaks different, and how to work with a new customer to make sure they are in the right kayak for them.  

After realizing I didn’t have a local shop here in KC, I got on the Jackson Kayak Dealer Locator and started plotting out the nearest shops in my area.  After finding a handful of shops, and calling and introducing myself over the phone, I’ve had the pleasure of supporting some of the best shops in the Midwest, remotely, from Kansas City.  I’ve met so many great people from Arkansas and Missouri, up to Nebraska and Iowa, and it’s truly been an eye opening experience to see how far stretched the Jackson Kayaking family reaches.  

Earlier this summer I got a text message from a friend of mine that owns a tackle shop that curtails to mostly competitive bass boat anglers.  He had texted me a contact number and name and simply said, ‘You should reach out to your new Jackson dealer in town, he’s eager to meet you’.   I was sitting in my office, completely floored.  I gave the new dealer,  Joe Falco, a call to introduce myself and we chatted on the phone for twenty minutes or so and immediately bonded.   

I just so happens the Joe is the owner of one of the major power boat shops here in KC and he and his grandson were looking for a new project to work on together and they had come across kayaking.  After researching our sport and deciding it was something they wanted to invest in, they began doing their research on kayak brands.  Joe tells me that after they had done their research, there was no question about which kayak brand they were interested in bringing into their shop.  Jackson Kayak met all their criteria and stood out from the other companies because of their business roots, quality of their boats, and reputation their company had built in the kayaking community.

Fast forward a few months, and Joe and I have done quite a lot together.  Joe has his shop stocked with the most popular Jackson Kayaks in the lineup, and he has gone a little heavier in the fishing side of the industry because his business is largely influenced by private lake boaters and anglers.  The Sportsman’s Outfitter and Marine has revamped the most sought after kayaking fishing series in our area as well, the Mo-Kan Kayak Fishing Series, and Joe has put together a shop team of kayak anglers to help with the tournament series and other events involving the Jackson Kayak lineup.  

If you are looking for a ‘mom and pop’ shop experience and are truly wanting to talk to someone about getting into the correct kayak, I would high suggest not walking into your large box store to get a new kayak.  I would take the time to drive to Belton, MO and meet with Joe and his staff and let them educate you on these kayaks and see what they can do to get you on the water in the perfect boat.  Along with an excellent selection of Jackson Kayaks, you will be able to find a nice selection of Bending Branches paddles, NRS life jackets, YakAttack accessories, and Supernova Fishing lights in the first quarter of 2019.