I’m Nick Cunliffe, co-owner of Kayak Essentials.

I took up kayaking in 1989, in North Wales as a trainee instructor seeking summer adventures between alpine ski seasons. Ten years later, I was head of kayaking at the National Watersports Centre for Wales, with a passion for white water, surf and sea kayaking. In 1999 I gained BCU level 5 Coach qualifications in white water and sea kayaking. Between paddling days, I also graduated from Bangor University with a degree in Sport, Health and Physical Education.

In 2000 I set up a new outdoor business in Snowdonia, offering quality skills training courses for paddlers of all abilities. It soon became established as a Welsh Canoe Association-approved training Centre, with an extensive programme of training and coaching courses.

I moved on to new challenges in 2010, launching Kayak Essentials.

I’ve sea kayaked extensively on the west coasts of Ireland, Wales and Scotland – for work and play. I’ve led many Alpine white water trips and often paddle our superb Snowdonia rivers. I’ve kayaked surf breaks in Wales and Ireland and ridden the powerful waves of Barbados’ Atlantic coast.

I’ve also paddled multi-week sea kayak trips in Southern Chile, SE Alaska, Baja California, the Aegean Sea and Arctic Norway. Along the way, I’ve gained a great deal of expedition leadership experience in a wide range of challenging environments.

I enjoy longer-distance sea kayaking, in home waters and overseas: in 2006 I completed the circumnavigation of Anglesey in 13.5 hours. In 2009 I sea kayaked the 56-mile Irish Sea crossing, from Holyhead to Dublin, in 11 hours 45 minutes.

I’ve also featured in a couple of Cackle TV’s “This is the Sea” DVDs - tide race paddling at The Bitches in Pembrokeshire and at the Falls of Lora in Scotland.

As a working kayak coach, I’ve gained a lot of experience over the last 20 years. I’ve delivered coach education courses at every level of the sport, trained coaching staff at three of the UK’s National Centres, guided a 2-month sea kayaking expedition in Southern Chile, trained UK military groups, worked with young people in outdoor education and have ten years’ experience providing 5 Star sea kayak training courses.

Most importantly, I’m motivated by the desire to help my clients achieve their goals, discover new experiences, gain increased confidence and take their paddling to the next level. Come and join me!

You can also follow my paddling adventures at:

www.nickcunliffe.wordpress.com

I’m Matt Giblin, the other half of Kayak Essentials!

I have been working in the outdoors now for about 10 years, in a wide variety of coaching environments. Early experiences as an activity instructor at an outdoor education centre in Yorkshire led to employment as a chief instructor at a multi-activity centre in Shropshire.

In 2003 I completed a BSc (Hons) degree In Outdoor and Environmental Education at Liverpool John Moores University. Post-graduation, I gained a passion for coaching skill development and instructor training, with involvement in delivering BCU Coach Education courses.

A move to North Wales gave me the opportunity to further this experience, to develop my own paddling skills and to work in challenging settings with diverse groups of clients and students. During this time, I provided BCU Coach Education courses and Coach Update weekends for both Canoe Wales and Canoe England. I also delivered kayaking skills courses at Plas y Brenin National Centre.

In 2008 I completed a PGCE in Physical Education which led to employment at a sports college in Manchester. I now work as the head of PE and Outdoor Education at a Pupil Referral Unit on Merseyside. My outdoor work and play now allows me to enjoy a less demanding environment!

My interest in coaching is not limited to paddle sports. I have coached rugby league, from university teams to academy and national teams. I’ve also worked on Single Pitch rock climbing instructor training courses and coached basketball at university level.

I’ve paddled and climbed across the UK and Europe. As a BCU level 4 Inland coach and a UKCC/BCU coach tutor/assessor, I love working with new and experienced paddlers alike. Since 2008 I’ve also been filming and producing instructional DVDs with Kayak Essentials and have discovered a new passion for all aspects of the process.

We’re very grateful to receive support in the form of paddling clothing and equipment from:

Palm Equipment and Valley Sea Kayaks
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