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World-class kayak and rowing craftsman Andrew Martin has been named as the man who died in the car accident on State Highway 6 near Rai Valley.
Police confirmed Tuesday that Martin, 58, of Nelson, died after Sunday’s crash in which two others were seriously injured.
Martin’s multisport athlete and former business partner Richard Ussher said Martin was an “exceptional talent” in the kayak community and an “incredible craftsman.”
“I’m still accepting the fact that he is no longer with us.”
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Ussher said Martin’s daughter Lucy remained in serious condition at the hospital and that his ex-wife Jane Martin was also injured in the accident.
“He was an incredibly nice guy, he was always there to help and he loved watching people go out and have fun, and he gave a lot back to the rowing community.
Ussher had met Martin when building his racing boats and rowing boats, but the couple grew closer when Ussher moved to Nelson in 2005.
Martin de Ruyter / Things
Andrew Martin photographed in 2010 with one of the kayaks built at his Nelson factory.
“Once I got to the end of my racing career, or close to it, we started a new company and designed a lot of new boats and paddles together and obviously I got to know him extremely well during that time.”
The couple founded Flow Kayaks in 2011 and created racing kayaks, surf skis, and paddles together. They had since sold the business.
Ussher said that Martin was a “humble and unassuming kind of person” who was very generous with his time.
“He was never someone to play his own trumpet, but he was tremendously competitive.
“If you got into a kayak with him or participated in a race, most people just saw his rear end disappear into the distance.”
He said Martin was a craftsman with a reputation for producing incredible equipment. He started out producing kayaks under his own name, Andrew Martin Kayaks, before starting Legend Paddles, which he later sold.
“It is a very sad moment for all who knew him and my thoughts are with his family and all who knew him and are feeling the loss.”
Legend Paddles owner Blake Luff said Martin had been an inspiration to him since he first became interested in multisport as a teenager.
Martin De Ruyter / Things
Andrew Martin photographed with prototypes of two new kayaks in 2009.
Luff described Martin as a “mythical creature” with an “incredible talent for building paddles and kayaks.”
“When you start to get into multisport, the first thing you do is go out and shop and Andrew Martin paddle, that was rule number one when you got into multisport kayaking.”
As a college student, she was asked to support Elina Ussher’s team during the Coast to Coast alongside Martin, which Luff said was an opportunity to meet her idol.
Luff said Martin was modest, his upper body was not as big as other rowers, but when he got into a kayak he was “a demon of absolute speed.”
“It had that name, you knew if you had a kayak or paddle built by Andrew Martin it would be incredibly strong and would do exactly what you wanted it to do.”
Luff said he saw a post about Martin’s death on Facebook, but didn’t want to believe it was true.
On Monday night he tried to build oars, but ended up looking at one and sobbing.
Several other tributes have been made to Martin on social media, describing the deeply felt loss in the multi-sport and kayak communities.
The Flow Kayaks website said that Martin had rowed his entire life, competing in almost every competitive kayak discipline and representing New Zealand in slalom, whitewater racing and marathon kayaking.
He has been a national champion in wild water lifeguard events, marathon and surfing and was a triallist for the New Zealand Olympic calm water team in 1984 and 1988.
Martin’s best international performances saw him finish in the top 10 at the Wildwater world championships twice and, along with Phil Dooney and Aaron Cox, he won the Wildwater tag team event at the world champions in 1995.
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Phil Dooney, left Aaron Cox and Andrew Martin compete in the 1995 Wild Water World Championship K1 team event.
On Monday, police called on everyone who witnessed the fatal accident to submit information.
Tasmania District Road Safety Manager Sergeant Major Grant Andrews said there were four vehicles involved in the crash and that there was a “significant investigation underway” involving the major accident unit, the Criminal Investigation Branch ( CIB) and the road surveillance team.
Detective Sgt. Mark Kaveney said police were speaking with several people who saw the accident or found it later.
“We are just working through all these different people. Some were tourists that we have to track down as they go ”.
Kaveney said Nelson police were still interested in speaking to anyone who saw the accident or passed through the scene of the accident before emergency services attended.
If you can help, contact Nelson Police at 105 and quote file number 200928/4570.
