News

In this issue we have very exciting news on the Innovation front. We have entered a strategic partnership with BONT Rowing who will become the exclusive supplier of shoes for all Sykes boats. This relationship has been in discussion for some time now and we are proud to announce that effective 1 January 2022 we will use BONT shoes as the primary option in all our boats. BONT shoes come in 3 new models all of which include excellent design, industry leading technology and second-to-none functionality. And to cap it all off, BONT shoes in Sykes boats will be in...

This month we introduce our new horizontal foot steering system for coxless rowing boats.  The horizontal foot steering system was developed in conjunction with Rowfit, our Australian innovation partner of choice when it comes to aluminium fittings and components.  This new system now comes standard on Sykes’s new full carbon hexagonal foot stretcher. The functionality is exceptional, the ease of set-up and adjustment is simple and practical, and there are no more balls of steering cable laying loose in the boat!  Also, the assembly no longer protrudes up into the rigger and the user experience is significantly enhanced. If you...

At Sykes we have developed a new range of rowing boat travel covers. Like all global suppliers of rowing boats, the norm is to wrap new boats in plastic to protect them from the elements during delivery. We have taken a simple, cost-effective innovation from our insights in the surf ski market (through Charger Surf Craft) and adapted it to rowing boats, leading to the launch of our new travel cover range for all Sykes boats. Why a travel cover? Firstly, we heard from some customers who were concerned that this single-use plastic wrap just clogs up the waste bins...

Participating in coastal rowing is a way for us all to contribute to and be part of the growth of rowing around Australia.  For many years a small group of people have been championing this sport with limited impact. It is testament to their efforts and perseverance that we are finally starting to see real progress. Coastal and recreational rowing has been very strong in mainland Europe for many years and is finally getting more attention from the World Rowing Federation and the global rowing community. Coastal rowing competition There are two formats of coastal rowing competition – one-on-one beach...

Full carbon bow mounted riggers are beginning to make some headway in the market, especially in elite programs.  During the COVID-19 pandemic our engineering and design team has been very busy launching a new range of full carbon bow mounted riggers including a second-generation scull rigger and our first generation sweep rigger. We undertook detailed analysis on what was available around the world and incorporated the best features we could find into our structurally superior carbon frames to create what we believe is currently the best rigger on the market globally in terms of stiffness, strength, ease of set-up and...