[ PADDLING ]
Manu O Ke Kai's men's freshman crew, with Greg Wright in front, competed in the season opener yesterday.
Kaneohe takes first
with 14 victoriesManu O Ke Kai emerges as a solid
contender with five first-place finishes
in the regatta
There was one familiar aspect about yesterday's season-opening regatta at Keehi Lagoon: Kaneohe Canoe Club ran away with a victory.
Beneath the surface, however, the waters of the Hui Wa'a season are far more mysterious.
While Kaneohe captured first place in 14 races, Manu O Ke Kai emerged as a valid contender. On the strength of five first-place finishes, the Haleiwa-based club amassed 58 points and finished second to Kaneohe (72).
Perhaps more interesting, perennial powerhouse Lokahi was a distant third in the AAA Division with 41 points.
The newly expanded division is open to clubs that enter 25 or more events. In the AA Division (13-24 events), Koa Kai dominated with six race winners and 53 points. Waikiki Yacht Club and Alapa Hoe shared second place with 18 apiece.
Waikiki Beachboys, meanwhile, relied on its talented wahine to capture first place in five races. With 30 points, the Beachboys -- Beachgirls might be more fitting -- won the A Division (12 or fewer events).
Na Keiki O Ka Mo'i and North Shore shared second place with 16 points apiece.
Kaneohe, riding a wave of youth, was its usual dominant self early in the day. Kaneohe won the first six races thanks to its 12 and 14 crews, then won the Mixed Golden, Girls 15, Girls 16, Boys 16, Girls 18 and Boys 18 races.
"It was kind of windy. I told them to stay low," Kaneohe boys 16 steersman Keoni Anderson said. The crew won the half-mile sprint with a time of 4 minutes, 44.24 seconds.
Manu O Ke Kai finished less than three seconds behind to place second.
Waikiki Beach Boys' women's freshman crew won its race yesterday in the first regatta of the season.
The Kaneohe boys 16 crew was highly successful last summer, but finished fifth in the state championships. "We did a lot more training in the offseason," paddler Aaron Abbey said. "We trained as hard as we could. Hit the weights. Bench and inclines, and we ran a lot for stamina."
Manu O Ke Kai head coach Randy Sanborn was pleased with his team's performance. "They surprised us," the veteran coach said of his paddlers. "I didn't know we'd do this well considering we had to scratch 10 crews."
Sanborn's coaches, including son Moku, mapped out some intriguing strategy. "Almost all of the girls crews won, and our open men. Our coaches moved guys around. This is the first time in our history we've won three open men's races," he said.
A plethora of new talent also has Sanborn smiling. "We've got some really good new open (division) guys," said Sanborn, now in his 15th year as head coach. "Our ladies trained hard, and we've got a lot of dedicated paddlers."
While Manu O Ke Kai enjoyed its second-place finish, Lokahi faces some uncontrollable circumstances. A handful of key women are unavailable this summer.
"Our women used to be the ones bringing up our points," head coach Robert Viernes said. "We're way down. I want to forget about today."
"Pregnancy and mainland trips have set some of the Lokahi women aside for this season. On the bright side, the men are filtering in, and the youth crews show promise," Viernes said. "We've got some good kids, so I think we'll do well there."
The women's crews of the Waikiki Beachboys, meanwhile, enjoyed the day. Victory in the women's seniors race was its first over perennial winner Lokahi and ended a winless drought of several years.
"We beat them at states last year, but we hadn't beaten them in a Hui Wa'a race for a long time," assistant coach Sue Brown said.
Julie Shoup, who paddled for a club on Maui until moving to Oahu two years ago, understood the significance of the win. "There are girls who said we hadn't beaten Lokahi in four or five years," she said. "We went from being a minute behind to a minute ahead this time."
Koa Kai, meanwhile, enjoyed its first win of the season. "I was kind of surprised," head coach Joe Kim said. "Our men's open crew, that was a big surprise. Our juniors got us points, and our B crews, both men and women, got us points, too."
Koa Kai, which practices at Magic Island, has momentum and a breadth of talent. "We're better this year, overall. We're more well-rounded," said Kim, now in his sixth year at the helm.
