CAN U CANOE started in 1978. A canoe club my grandfather sketched a logo for — a river rat named George on the bank of a river he wouldn't shut up about. The club faded. George didn't.
I'm Anthony Byrd. I live in Fort Collins, Colorado, and I drive a truck for a Safeway distribution center. I paddle when I can. I found George in a box of my grandfather's things and decided he wasn't done working.
So I brought him back.
CAN U CANOE is what happens when a 1978 family logo gets a second life on modern conservation merch. The mission is stupid-simple: keep the rivers clean. George is the guy reminding you, in that gruff river-rat way, that only you can.
What we make
Tees. Caps. Can coolers. Stickers. Kid gear. Everything George would wear if George wore clothes. Every piece is print-on-demand out of the U.S. or ships from a partner shop I've vetted personally. No sweatshop stuff. No polyester passed off as heritage.
What we give back
10% of every order goes back to the rivers. Not to overhead. Not to marketing. To signage, cleanup gear, kid programs, and the small ugly stuff that actually keeps a waterway paddleable — the kind of work Poudre Riverkeepers and their peers do every weekend without a headline.
Read more on The Cause.
Where we're headed
The plan is bigger than a tee shop. Colorado first — outfitters, gift shops, RiverFest booths, the whole Front Range paddling community. Then out: Pacific Northwest, the Great Lakes, the Southeast, wherever there's a river worth fighting for. A few licensees. A few co-brand drops. Junior River Rangers for the next generation.
Slow, honest growth. George doesn't do hype.
Say hi
I read every email personally. anthonybyrd10@gmail.com.
Paddle On,
Anthony Byrd
CAN U CANOE
Fort Collins, Colorado