: Hi everyone. I am a product manager at Rule Industries. We are currently
: looking at new products for the kayak market. We are looking at portable
: hand pumps, permanently mounted hand pumps, battery operated portable
: pumps, and compasses. Now's your chance to talk to the manufacturer BEFORE
: we design a product. Please give me your thoughts -we are listening!!

Thanks for the opportunity to express our desires and opinions. Here are mine:

- Portable Handpumps - The biggest problem I see with current designs are (a) they are difficult to hold and pump, and (b) they often require the paddler to compromise the waterproof seal on the cockpit by leaving the spray skirt open. It would be a big improvement if the pump could be attached to the boat (or perhaps to the paddler) in order to allow two handed pumping without compromising the cockpit seal. A system that could be operated with one hand would be beneficial, too.

- Permanently Mounted Hand Pumps - I have one (a Whale Compac 50) in one of my boats, mounted under the foredeck. This seems to be the only practical location, though some manufacturers mount them behind the paddler. There are two areas that need attention: the bulk and the plumbing. The compac 50 is bulky and has a lot of corners and edges that could be 'unfriendly' to knees, legs and feet during exit and entry. A lower profile design that hugged the deck more closely would be preferable. Perhaps something longer and narrower, more like an underdeck version of a portable hand pump would be the optimum shape.

The pump should also use a minimum of plumbing and keep it out of the way of the paddler. The exhaust should be either directly to the gunwale along the underside of the deck, or through the deck and diverted to the side. The optimum position for the intake is either in front of or behind the seat. That necessitates somewhat long plumbing, which needs to be low profile in order to avoid contact with knees, shins, etc. One major caveat is that the plumbing MUST be arranged so that it does not obstruct wet exits. I got hung up on the original plumbing for my deck pump and it's a scary feeling. I re-plumbed it and now it works fine. I'll take the trad-off of longer plumbing for better clearance any day.

I like the fore-aft pumping action of the Compac 50 as it allows more than just the arm muscles to get into the act. One improvement would be to use a handle that incorporated an oarlock-like forked fitting on the end, so the paddler could drop the paddle shaft into it and pump with both hands still on the paddle. This would make it possible to brace quickly if caught in rough conditions. Having a handle that folded down without having to be removed would also be a plus.

- Permanently Mounted Foot Pumps - I realize that you didn't ask for input on this, but I figured that I'd throw it in anyway, since I believe that this is the closest thing to an ideal manual pump. Current foot pumps are somewhat low in volume and can only be operated with one foot at a time. Some have very strong springs which make pumping difficult. I have tossed around the idea of a combination foot brace/foot pump system that would allow both feet to be used. A toggled arrangement would permit pumping with alternate legs and eliminate the need for a spring in the pump. All that would be necessary would be some method of locking the system in the centered position. It might also be feasible to construct a sliding system, in which case both legs could be used and overcoming the spring in the pump would be less of an issue. Again, it would have to lock in the desired foot brace position. A system that would attach to Yakima or Keepers footpeg rails would be ideal, since these are the standards of the industry.

The plumbing issues for foot pumps are the same as for deck pumps.

- Electric pumps - It seems to me that the biggest advance here would be in the area of integrating the pump (500-600 gph) with high capacity, rechargeable batteries. Gel cells are popular because they're cost effective, but they're very heavy. A pump that would run on alkalines, NiCd, NiMh or Lithium Ion batteries would be great. Either make the battery pack removeable for use with an external charger or include a sealed charger connnection on the pump/battery assembly. I've thought about using Black and Decker's VersaPak batteries, since it should be easy to design an O-ring sealed package for the simple cylindrical format.

It should also incorporate an anti-backflow valve on the exhaust side of the pump, as the outlet is liable to be underwater at times. A recessed, deck mounted, pushbutton switch would complete the package.

- Compasses - A compass with a decent sun shield and BIG numbers that over-40 eyes can read would be a blessing. A night lighting option would be nice. It should be readily removeable for security and to enable it to be used on land in conjuction with a map or chart. It should also be protected from scratching/crushing if the boat is rolled over on a hard surface.

I sincerely hope this has been helpful. If you need someone to test prototypes, I'll be glad to do so, as I have for companies in other industries.