Water Ways
ALOHA! That was my one-word greeting to Honolulu Star-Bulletin readers in the first Water Ways column nearly eight years ago. Water Ways will
continue to deliverMike Fitzgerald (the sports editor at the time) and I had met at the Honolulu Quarterback Club. After learning I wrote for several mainland boating magazines, he asked if I would be interested in doing a locally oriented boating column for the newspaper, and, as they say, the rest was history.
Now, some 400 columns later, saying aloha again seems appropriate.
After all, the Star-Bulletin has a new owner, new offices, new presses and a new morning edition, not to mention a new Sunday edition beginning April 1. I imagine we even have quite a few new readers, as well.
Since its inception, this column's sole purpose has been to provide a source of information on any and all topics related to Hawaii's recreational boating community.
We have covered, and will continue to cover, a broad spectrum, from sailing and fishing activities, to boating facilities, pollution, legislation and safety.
We will continue to spotlight international regattas such as the venerable Transpacific Yacht Race, the Kenwood Cup, the Pacific Cup, the Victoria-Maui Race and the Asahi Cup, but local events like the Lipton Cup won't be ignored, either.
We will also continue to monitor and maintain communications with the state legislature, the Boating Division of the Department of Land and Natural Resources and the Coast Guard to keep up with all new laws and enforcement procedures relating to boating.
And finally, we will continue to meet many of the interesting individuals in our boating community. Whether they are world-class sailors, local anglers or unknown cruisers just passing through, all of their stories enrich our lives.
FOR EXAMPLE, Water Ways readers may remember meeting Charles Coleman, author of "Mayday! Mayday! Mayday! This is the Haleakala." His tale of how he was shipwrecked in the middle of the Pacific Ocean and then rescued should be required reading for anyone going offshore in a boat.
Another sailor readers may remember is McKinley High graduate Brian "BJ" Caldwell. For over a year, we were able to follow his exciting voyage around the world, when he became the youngest person, at the time, to sail a single-handed circumnavigation.
In retrospect, it has been this rich calabash of people and subjects that has made this column a joy to write and, hopefully, an interesting read.
So, again, aloha. Welcome back, or for the first time.
Ray Pendleton is a free-lance writer based in Honolulu.
His column runs Saturdays in the Star-Bulletin.
He can be reached by e-mail at raypendleton@mac.com.