History

Founded in 1970 by Frank Goodman, Valley’s history very quickly became entwined with the infant sport of sea kayaking. Although kayaking on the sea can be traced back several thousand years through various indigenous populations, it was the introduction of the fibreglass sea kayak that led to the activity gaining popularity as a recreational pastime. Valley became one of the very first companies to commercially produce a specialist sea kayak when it launched the Anas Acuta in 1972. This kayak was developed from a native Greenland kayak brought back from the Western region. So successful was this kayak that it is still in production today.

As the early pioneers pushed the boundaries, their needs changed.  The desire to go greater distances, unsupported, led to the development of models designed to accommodate the required equipment without sacrificing performance, the most famous of these being the Valley Nordkapp, designed for the British Norway expedition in 1975 but most famously used for the first rounding of Cape Horn by kayak.  The design principles adopted in this kayak i.e. moderately V’d keel, softer chines and the distinct Greenland side profile (although with increased freeboard to accommodate the increased loadings) become so widespread in other kayaks that these characteristics became known worldwide as “The British Style”. This style of kayak has such a reputation for sea worthiness that it is now the benchmark by which other sea kayaks are compared.

It isn’t just how people use kayaks that has changed; materials too have progressed from those first glass-fibre kayaks.  Improvements in the reinforcements and resins have led to tougher, lighter products.  Now glass fibre is only one of several reinforcements used in the kayak’s shell, other materials being: E Glass in cloth forms, polyester “Diolen”, Kevlar and Carbon fibre all when used correctly improve the performance of the laminate. However probably the biggest improvements have been in the resin matrixes; polyester resins are now significantly tougher and for higher performance or lighter laminates Vinalesters and epoxies are now used.  Away from composites the 1980’s saw the biggest changes in the kayak industry with the development of roto-moulded polyethylene. Although first utilised in white water kayaks for its impact resistant properties Valley was one of the first companies to see its potential to make a tough keenly priced sea kayak and introduced the Skerray. This kayak pioneered many features now taken for granted: moulded in skeg box, welded in bulkheads and hard rubber hatch covers. Many of our competitors still haven’t caught up yet!

The kayak’s construction and design are only two areas where Valley has been instrumental in the evolution of the species. Our respect for the sea has led us to develop several features directly related to kayak safety. We were the first company to develop a watertight hatch system specifically designed for kayaks and we developed recessed deck fittings to ensure safety lines remained in place. It is testimony to the value of these innovations that many of our competitors still purchase these products direct from us.

It is very hard to write a piece on Valley’s history without appearing to brag, such has been the company’s influence over modern sea kayak development. However true it might be to say “yesterday is history and today is what counts” it is likewise true that we are where we are today because of everything we have done along the way. This is certainly true at Valley, we still strive to produce the best kayaks for the sea and this year, like all of the 35 before, sees new developments at Valley.