Man from Marseille

One of the pleasures of growing a business is meeting customers from all over the world. Bug Head's first French customer is Jean-Marie Huron, a Greenland-style kayaker from Marseille, France -- a Mediterranean seaport and home to bouillabaisse. Jean-Marie is so happy with his Bug Head tuilik -- a black 3 mil with fixed bottom casing -- that he sent us a few studio photos for the website. Jean-Marie paddles the coast near his home in an Estonia-built Tahe Marine, a hard-chined GFC (glass fiber composite) kayak. Little known in the U.S., Tahe kayaks are particularly popular in Northern Europe. Bug Head customized Jean-Marie's tuilik casing to fit the kayak's small 56" cockpit.

Measure Your Own

A couple of recent sizing mishaps underscore the necessity of personally measuring your cockpit to determine your correct skirt size before you order a tuilik or akuilisaq. Don't take our "Skirt Index" measurements as gospel. Measurements are manufacturer supplied and occasionally outdated. Case in point -- the Necky Chatham Composite kayak, which we listed at skirt size 75, is actually an 80. Can't remember the circumference formula? Add maximum coaming Length and maximum Width (outside lip), then divide that sum by 2. Multiply resulting number by 3.14 (pi) for answer.

Like You Really Care . . .

Enjoy Bug Head products but can't stand the company name? Like the name but hate the logo? On the verge of buying a tuilik until we raised our prices? Waiting for the economy to improve before you buy? Find the website confusing? What you think is important to us so look out for our forthcoming customer survey email. Issues involving product quality, customer service, branding, innovation, comparative value, and pricing will be addressed. We hope you'll help us out by responding.

$45 Neoprene Sheets

Making your own tuilik from a pattern? Or maybe a couple of cockpit covers? You'll need a sheet of top-quality neoprene to complete the project. No problem. Bug Head now offers 3 mil (1/8") neoprene sheets at $45 each plus postage. Each two-sided sheet is approximately 52" x 80" in size. Black nylon on one side, black, light gray, forest green, brown or orange on the other. Sheets will come folded in a plastic mailer bag. (Don't worry -- wrinkles will disappear in a few hours.)

Bug Head In France

Jean-Marie Huron, a Greenland-style kayaker from Marseille, France, is so happy with his Bug Head 3 mil tuilik that he sent us this photo. "I received my tuilik this morning," he writes. "Very nice -- All is Ok. I try it on my kayak. The hood Ok and the chin cinch is perfect." Indeed. Jean-Marie particularly likes the way Bug Head hoods -- if equipped with our chin-cinch-and-temple-pulls -- can be pulled back for bareheaded rolling.

Bug Head Big In Europe

Recent sales prove that Bug Head tuiliks are becoming popular in Europe. Why? Appreciation of style, color options and basic quality. Which countries? Greenland-style kayakers have ordered from the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Norway and Sweden, where Bjorn Thomasson of Black Pearl fame is a happy Bug head customer (1.5 mil black tuilik with fixed bottom casing). "Just picked up my new tuiliq at the post office and it seems to be a perfect fit according to a quick dry run," writes Bjorn in a recent email.

2 Mil Tuiliks In Black

Bug Head now offers the medium-weight (2 mil ) tuilik in black as well as polar-bear blond. We added black because of the popularity of this weight of tuilik -- a comfortable compromise between lightweight (1.5 mil) and heavyweight (3 mil) neoprene.

Fresh Neoprene On The Way

Bug Head will soon take delivery of a large neoprene order from our supplier. Colors soon to be in stock include ivory, brown, and forest green. (Sorry, white-rubber based Polar-Bear Blond is no longer available though we still have some 1.5 mil and 2 mil PBB in stock. Don't despair: Ivory is the same fabric on black rubber.)

Price Hike On Colored Neoprene

Bug Head has raised it prices on colored neoprene tuiliks and akuilisaqs. Basic black tuiliks are still $350 (fixed casing) and $375 (adjustable casing), but colored neoprene is an additional $50 per tuilik, $25 per akuilisaq. Why? Colored neoprene is difficult to keep clean during manufacturing so extra precautions such as masking are required.

Tuilik Pockets Ready For Spring

In response to prodding from Cheri Perry and others, Bug Head now offers optional chest and shoulder pockets on all tuiliks. Designed by Bug Head for durability, capacity and convenience, these expandable mesh work horses are made by the same California shop that makes pockets for Kokatat. The large and small chest pockets feature a knife attachment tab, carabiner-type swivel hook (inside), and heavy-weight zippers. Listing from $30 to $50 installed, pockets are available only with new tuilik orders. (No retro-fitting or stand-alone sales. Sorry.)

Grab Loop Safety

Winter is a good time to look over your kayaking equipment for wear and tear -- and possible repair. Bug Head gear is no exception. The most vulnerable area on a tuilik or akuilisaq (summer spray skirt) with fixed casing is the grab loop. Check out the nylon webbing for signs of trouble: Is the loop well stitched to the bungee? Is the loop in good shape with stitching intact? If not, send the item back to us for timely repair.

Free Akuilisaq?

Yes, with the purchase of two Bug Head tuiliks so tell your friends, paddling club mates and family members to pool your orders. (An akuilisaq is a Greenland-style spray skirt. Great for summer or winter pool session use. List Price? $145. ) Both tuiliks must be ordered together (if ordered by check) --- or in sequence (if ordered online). Offer for strapless akuilisaq only and ends March 31, 2009.

Tuilik Pockets Coming in January

Wish you had your camera, VHF radio or water bottle handy on your next paddle off the coast? Need a place to stow your gloves, sunglasses or pen flares? Bug Head is answering your need by developing optional chest and sleeve pockets for our tuiliks. Made by the same sewing shop that supplies Kokatat with its mesh pockets, Bug Head's pockets are sized and detailed for capacity, convenience and security. Details include locking zipper, carabiner-type swivel hook, knife attachment tab, and expandable mesh. Will be available on new tuiliks only (i.e. no retrofitting -- sorry). Coming in January 2009.

Bug Head's New Look?

Photographer Frank Chillemi, a Bug Head customer based in Merrick, New York, sent us this awesome advertisement demo to drive home our "Tuiliks for our times" slogan. "You seem to have a good supply of photos with rugged, bearded men," writes Chillemi about the Bug Head website. "I wanted to go in a different direction." Chillemi succeeded by featuring a paddle-ready young woman wearing a Bug Head heavyweight tuilik in Forest Green. Her determined expression is both subdued and inquisitive. "Erika is from North Carolina," explains the photographer. "She is a crewmember on the tall ship 'J. & E. Riggin' based in Rockland, Maine. I teach a one week photo course aboard that ship every year. Erika has been around rafts, canoes and kayaks -- mostly whitewater -- since she was a kid. She is a natural model." Now where to place the ad . . . .

Language Crisis: Tuiliks or Tuilitt?

Unsure whether to spell it 'tuilik' or 'tuiliq'? The confusion over our favorite piece of gear just deepened. The Qajaq USA website reports that the Greenlandic plural of tuilik is "tuilitt" not tuiliks. (Only English adds an "s" to form the plural of a noun.) Should Bug Head go native and become Bug Head Tuilitt? No way we say. Marketing is tough enough as it is without adding incomprehensibility to our name. Besides, it's all moot. As Greenland champion Maligiaq Padilla (photo) points out, a neoprene tuilik is called a 'tuilisaq.' Now what's the Greenlandic plural of that?

Price Hike In January

In January 2009, Bug Head will raise its prices on many of its products. A basic black tuilik will remain $350 but other colors (brown, ivory, gray, dark gray, forest green or polar bear blond) will cost an additional $75. Likewise, a black akuilisaq (Greenland-style spray skirt) will remain $145 with other colors $35 extra. The increase is in response to the difficulty of keeping non-black neoprene clean during the manufacturing process.

Is A 1.5 mil Tuilik Right For You?

Can't decide between a 3 mil or 1.5 mil tuilik? Weighing comfort versus durability but tired of that knight-in-armor feeling? Lightweight tuiliks made from 1.5 mil neoprene may not be for everyone but if you overheat in your 3 mil when wearing it over a drysuit, it's probably for you. For ease of paddling and freedom of movement, a 1.5 can't be beat. Head might get cold? If a skull cap isn't your cup of tea, Bug Head will put on a 3 mil hood on your 1.5 body. Sweet! Neoprene colors include black, brown, ivory, gray, dark gray, forest green and polar-bear blond.

White Rubber Neoprene?

You've heard right. Bug Head's popular polar-bear blond color neoprene is made with white not black rubber, a special order from our Taiwan-based neoprene manufacturer. While just as durable as black rubber, white rubber makes the fabric color more vibrant when wet. Dull ivory becomes "polar-bear blond" when the rubber is changed from black to white. Our Polar-Bear blond color comes in 1.5 mil, 2 mil, and 3 mil thicknesses of neoprene.

Bug Head At Delmarva

What do Maligiaq Padilla, Brian Schulz and Dubside have in common? Besides possessing filthy paddling skills -- all will be wearing Bug Head tuiliks at Delmarva, the paddling retreat in Delaware this October 17-19. Sponsored by Qajaq USA, Delmarva is an annual event that brings together Greenland-style paddlers from all over the planet for three days of traditional kayaking skills instruction and fun. And Bug Head is coming too -- in the person of Scott Bruce, who'll be there with a bunch of tuiliks to meet Bug Head's ever growing boatload of Bug Head gear owners.

CLC Kayaks Added To Our Spray Skirt Index

Want to get a Bug Head tuilik for your CLC Arctic Hawk or Night Heron but don't know which skirt size to order? No problem. Bug Head has added Chesapeake Light Craft kayaks to our web site's skirt index. The cockpit measurements for 38 of CLC's touring and surf kayaks are listed model by model. Our index enables you to quickly determine which tuilik or akuilisaq skirt size is right for your kayak -- whether it has an ocean or a large keyhole cockpit.