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?