A Wondrous Water Adventure
Zack Jurasek, founder of Texas-based GlowRow, discusses what makes his company’s nighttime kayaking tours uniquely fun, visually stunning, and surprisingly good exercise.
What is GlowRow? What inspired you to found it?
My real passion for GlowRow came from flounder-gigging with my dad when I was a kid. We’d walk around in ankle-deep water with a lantern and a gig and catch our dinner for the night; when we did, we could see everything under the water. I wanted to re-create that experience, allowing people to witness aquatic creatures in their natural habitat. That’s exactly what people do with our clear, well-lit kayaks and paddles at our ten locations.
What’s your guide-to-customer ratio?
Following the American Canoe Association’s policy, we assign one guide per five boats, or ten customers, since we use two-person kayaks. The maximum number of boats on the water at once can vary, especially when we accommodate large groups like church outings or corporate teams. We can have up to forty people, in twenty clear kayaks, with four guides. That said, we’re aiming to set a Guinness world record by getting a hundred clear kayaks on the water at the same time.
Which tours are most popular?
A few would be in the running. Our North Padre location, which is going nonstop, is right next to a popular seafood restaurant we have a partnership with. So right after you’re done GlowRowing, you can go get dinner or have a drink. Another one would be Port Aransas; the wildlife immersion there is really in-depth. In addition, we are trying to relocate our popular Austin location down to the lakefront for an even better experience.
We’re also the only kayak company in the world that gives you the chance to paddle right up to the hull of an aircraft carrier. In Corpus Christi, after the season’s first couple of cold fronts, the bay calms down enough for us to safely circle the USS Lexington, now a museum. It’s also jellyfish season then, so we show guests how to properly hold them, identify which species are harmful, and even highlight the bioluminescent comb jellies. Another popular tour is during the Fourth of July and New Year’s fireworks shows in the marina.
Does night kayaking offer any other unique experiences?
Here’s a fun one. A specific type of fish is drawn to the light frequencies we use, and they sometimes leap into the kayaks. We’ve actually had guests leave five-star reviews after being hit by a fish because it’s a once-in-a-lifetime moment. All you hear are screams, squeals, and laughter!
And I’m excited to say that we have a brand-new experience: immersive movie shows on a giant screen at the shoreline. Each kayak will have Bluetooth speakers, and we’ll have a remote-controlled alligator head in the water for a movie like Lake Placid and a shark fin swimming around the marina while folks are watching Jaws, really amping up the whole fear factor.
Is kayaking a good workout?
Most definitely. One of my goals for creating GlowRow was to get people out there doing something extracurricular because obesity is a big problem in the United States. As far as the workout it provides, I’d consider it comparable to riding a bicycle, except with your arms instead of your legs. You’re consistently paddling in that cyclic motion. How much exercise you get depends on tides, wind direction, and currents, even on the rivers. The route is designed to mitigate the wind; we paddle out halfway and typically try to drift back. So you’re really only paddling half the time, about forty-five minutes.
How does the GlowRow experience make people feel good mentally and emotionally just by being out on the water?
Oh, man. There are a few stories that exemplify this. The oldest guest we’ve had is a ninety-seven-year-old woman. I’ll always remember that night when I was guiding her. Goodness gracious, she couldn’t stop saying that it was the best thing she had done in her entire life.
There’s another story that I repeat constantly because it really tugs at the heartstrings. One night, I was out guiding a group, and as another guide was doing the kayak briefing, one customer just started crying. I asked her if she was OK; she said she was, but it was a lifelong dream of hers to paddle with dolphins. Providing such experiences is exactly what keeps my fire going for this business. Guests doing GlowRow have one-of-a-kind experiences and make memories that just can’t be replaced.
For more info, visit glowrow.com