Emotion Goes the Extra Mile to Accommodate Kayakers with Special Needs

My name is Chris Kaag and I live in Berks County where Emotion Kayaks is headquartered. I met the owner, Tom Strauss, back in 2005 when he came out and took one of my Corps Fitness, military style fitness classes, and the relationship just took off from there. Tom’s positive energy is infectious and he makes you excited about who he is and what he does.

Emotion Kayaks owner Tom Strauss (left) with Chris Kaag

I bought my first kayak six years ago and at the time it was suitable for my needs. My needs unfortunately changed due to a nerve condition called Adrenomyeloneuropathy that I developed while overseas in the Marine Corps. This condition has caused problems with my legs resulting in impairment of my trunk balance and coordination as well as control of my feet. As a result, kayaking became a bit more labored due to the uncomfortable and ineffective posture I had in my boat. I could not keep my feet on the foot pegs and kept sliding down the seat while paddling. I am a very active individual and just accepted this setup until I met with Tom and discussed what could be done.

Tom and Emotion Kayaks came through in a big way by fitting a boat to accommodate my needs with a simple modification. They installed an adjustable foam insert in the nose to replace the foot pegs so my feet could rest on a solid surface. With this in place I now have a push point for my feet that has returned my upright and strong posture so my paddling is 10 times more effective. Being disabled, but determined to find a way to do the things you enjoy, forces me to rely on others who know how to fix the problem. I am extremely fortunate to know Tom and his staff who put me in a great boat and solved my problem, which makes me want to be on the water that much more!!

Custom foot stop fabricated by Emotion's master fabricator Erik Ferguson