JAMM AQUINO / JAQUINO@STARBULLETIN.COM The boys of Lanikai Canoe Club's 18 division headed to the beach after finishing first with a time of 8:26:14 yesterday.

Lanikai edges Kailua
by 1 point

The King Kamehameha Regatta
comes down to its final race after
more than nine hours

They are so close their backyards flow into one another, with the imaginary line between Kailua and Lanikai bays blurred. The neighborhood rivalry between the two windward canoe clubs is heated but friendly ... and yesterday the difference between the two was 6.2 seconds.

After over nine hours of racing on windy Kailua Bay, the King Kamehameha Regatta came down to the 37th and final event. With a one-point lead going into the Men's 40 1-mile race, host Kailua Canoe Club just needed to finish anywhere ahead of Lanikai to win its own regatta.

It didn't happen. Lanikai won the race in 7 minutes, 44.06 seconds, its 10th victory of the day, to earn its second Oahu Hawaiian Canoe Racing Association title in as many regattas this season.

Lanikai finished with 90 points to Kailua's 89 in the AA Division for clubs with 18 or more crews. Hui Lanakila, which won the women's sophomore, junior and senior races, was third with 62.

"I didn't know what the points situation was," Lanikai coach Kalani Irvine said. "It's not my thing to be keeping track. I am just looking for the weaknesses we have and plugging the holes so we can improve each week."

In last Sunday's opening regatta at Keehi Lagoon, Lanikai scratched its entry in the final event but still edged Kailua 73-69. Yesterday, Lanikai fielded a very strong 40s crew that included Irvine, Brad Cole, Pete Roney, Pat Erwin, David Smith and steersman John Foti.

"Maybe it was better that we didn't know the regatta came down to our race," Foti said. "Less pressure. We just went out and paddled.

"But it's sweet that it worked out the way it did, winning both (the race and regatta)."

"It was nice to come out on top again but the other teams are coming on, just like it showed today," Irvine said. "We were very fortunate today to have the depth. And sometimes you need a little luck."

Kailua had luck, both good and bad. Their Novice A men's crew moved up from second to first when Healani was disqualified for a false start, which meant an extra two points (5 points for first, 3 points for second). But Kailua lost two points when its 18 boys crew was DQd for interference at the half-mile turn after finishing third.

Lanikai's lead had expanded to 70-58, "but there's still a lot of the day left," Kailua coach Jim Bruhn said. "There's no real surprises right now. This is our water ... we should be doing better. Hopefully, we'll be able to get the chance to catch them."

Kailua chipped away over the next nine events, scoring points in all but one race. Helped by three victories, Kailua passed Lanikai at 86-85 going into the last event.

It took less than eight minutes for Lanikai to ruin Kailua's comeback.

It was a bittersweet day for Bruhn, who saw both of his sons win two medals ... while paddling for Lanikai. Ka'ai and Kekoa Bruhn were part of the winning senior crew while Ka'ai stroked the sophomore winners and Kekoa sat No. 2 in the junior race.

Equally impressive as Lanikai's men were the women's crews upper-division showing. Kailua's freshmen won by 22 seconds, while Hui Lanakila's margins were 12 seconds in the sophomore race, eight in the juniors, and 18 in the senior.

"Turning in these conditions is always exciting," said Katie Slocumb, who steered Hui Lanakila's sophomore and senior crews. "Being on the Ala Wai doesn't prepare you for this. It gets a little hairy sometimes. But it wasn't as choppy as it has been."

Note: OHCRA officials are considering moving the association's July 24 championships to Kailua Beach if conditions at Keehi Lagoon don't improve. An infestation of microscopic box jellyfish forced Oahu's other canoe association, Hui Waa, to cancel its regatta yesterday.