
Sustainability
There is something deeply spiritual about standing on a precipice overlooking the Earth below in its magnitude and awe inspiring grace. To watch as white tipped waves crash and push over river worn boulders as they cut their way through ancient stone ravines to wash up on soft sandy beaches is an experience that is unmatched. Keeping our rivers clean and free flowing has been a core value since Cataract® Oars inception. We understand conservation is vital to ensure the river running industry thrives, and we’ve felt that responsibility as a company. To fulfill our responsibility, we promote the health of American rivers through our support for, and contributions to, many charitable and environmental organizations.
Yet, our dedication to sustainability goes beyond support for environmentally friendly organizations. It’s in the durability of our products, the renewable resources we use, and our insistence on taking care of our employees. The way we think about the outdoors has shaped everything we do as a company.
Our Product
Cataract® Oars provides long lasting oars for rowing the world’s most extreme rivers and lakes. Our oars have found their way down the most remote waterways and into some of the busiest canyons on Earth. Whether outfitting conservation efforts like SCREE and the Powell 150 or a river community of conscientious guides and private boaters, our oars are the most durable on the planet.

Renewable Resource
An environmentally-friendly material built to last, fiberglass is a natural choice when seeking energy-efficient, green, sustainable solutions. Fiberglass is known for its very low embodied energy ─ the total energy required to produce a product from the raw materials stage through delivery of fiberglass products.
Fiberglass is a highly-sustainable solution. The main ingredient in fiberglass is, of course, glass, and glass is made from sand ─ an abundant, natural, non-depleting resource.

REPAIR, REPURPOSE, RECYCLE
Prioritizing sustainability doesn’t require much nor does oar maintenance. You can do both by keeping your oars clean and storing your Cataract® Oars away from the sun. This will help extend the life of your oars, therefore helping cut down on consumption. Though structurally sound, our oars can begin to lose their aesthetic appeal over time if they are left out in the sun. If your oars are beginning to look a little faded, you can simply spray them down with a couple coats of Helmsman paint (or any other urethane paint) and they will be as good as new. This quick repair will allow you to keep your oars for a lifetime. While this may not be great for our repeat sales, it is better for sustainability. And that’s what matters.

Company Culture
CEO and Cataract® Oars Founder, Randy Philpot, started this company because of his love of the outdoors, particularly the beautiful river canyons of the West. This reverence for the outdoors permeates the culture of Cataract® Oars. From livable wages, peak benefits, and participation in community efforts to lift poverty, to a focus on wellness, outdoor living, and fundraising support for environmental organizations. Ours is a culture of healthy living and generous giving.
