It’s not in the vein of dog trying to catch its tail, but no Big Island club has ever won the Hawaiian Canoe Racing Association state regatta’s Division AAAA (21-40 events) championship — where depth and points are just as valuable as paddles and an outrigger.
By KEVIN JAKAHI
Tribune-Herald sports writer
It’s not in the vein of dog trying to catch its tail, but no Big Island club has ever won the Hawaiian Canoe Racing Association state regatta’s Division AAAA (21-40 events) championship — where depth and points are just as valuable as paddles and an outrigger.
Kai Opua, the Goliath of the Moku O Hawaii Outrigger Canoe Racing Association, has come close, finishing runner-up as recently as 2009 to Hawaiian of Maui when Hilo Bay played host and isle clubs locked down two division titles.
That year, Puna captured Division AAA (13-20 races), and nearby halau neighbor Keaukaha pocketed Division AA (7-12 events). Kawaihae placed second in Division A (1-6 crews), behind Napili of Maui by two points.
It was bummer for the proud members of Moku O Hawaii that Kai Opua couldn’t counter Hawaiian’s points-across-the-board strategy and defend its adopted home turf. (Kai Opua is from West Hawaii, but knows the Hilo Bay waters as well as any East Hawaii club.)
In that 2009 state regatta, Hawaiian made the case that depth is important, but the biggest key — the framework to building an AAAA champion — is based on cherry-picking points in every race. Consider that Hawaiian entered 37 crews, only one more than Kai Opua.
The Valley Isle club — well-known for its endless Maui no ka oi (Maui is the best) slogan and constant chanting — collected 10 medals (four gold and silver and two bronze), compared to Kai Opua’s haul of eight (four gold, three silver, and one bronze).
Keauhou and Oahu’s Outrigger had 12 medals each. Yet Keauhou (26 crews) and Outrigger (28 events) placed seventh and sixth, respectively, highlighting that medals are nice but a monopoly of finishes in fourth or worse are of higher value — at least from a club instead of a crew viewpoint.
Hawaiian is the defending Division AAAA champion. Keauhou is the two-time defending AAA champ. (It’s a four-year stretch for Moku O Hawaii in that division; Kai Opua took home AAA in 2008.) Puna is the defending AA champion, and Na Kai Ewalu from Maui is the A king, a point better than Kawaihae in last year’s regatta.
Kai Opua’s girls 12, boys 15 and mixed men and women, and Keauhou’s women masters 60, men masters 60, and mixed masters 55 are defending state champions and have qualified for states.
It sure would be swell if Kai Opua and Keauhou could pull a LeBron James and join forces and take their talents down to Oahu’s Keehi Lagoon today for the Hawaiian Canoe Racing Association state championships and win not one, but six, seven, eight titles.
Kai Opua has only 32 lanes, sitting out eight races. To put it in Olympic terms, that’s tying your shoes while everyone is off to the races. As the old saying goes, one point is better than none.
Lanikai, the 2010 AAAA champ, has 39 lanes and Hawaiian is in 34 events. For Kai Opua and fellow Moku O Hawaii clubs, it’s the old big fish in a small pond deal when racing against the bigger sharks from the other islands.
“I don’t know if we’ve got enough numbers to win,” said Kai Opua athletic director Mike Atwood in his usual pragmatic tone, before offering optimism. “But to have a chance we have to paddle at our best and some crews from other clubs have to not paddle at their level. We’ll get good competition from Hawaiian, Kailua and Lanikai. If we want to do well, we have to paddle well. You never know on race day what will happen.”
Maybe combining forces wouldn’t be such a bad idea for Kai Opua. Atwood remembers Hawaiian used to wait until its island championships were over, then added better crews from other clubs — forming sort of a Legion of Superheroes from days of yore, or like the Avengers (keeping it current).
However, other associations didn’t appreciate that and a bylaw was passed about five years ago, preventing clubs from turning into LeBron James. There’s an asterisk, though. Clubs can add other crews or paddlers during the season — nevermind messing with team chemistry and club harmony.
“That was kind of unfair,” Atwood said. “There was disapproval not only from the other associations, but the Hawaiian people were not happy, too. You would go the whole season relying on the same people, and another crew would take your place.”
At the very least, Moku O Hawaii has annually displayed big fight, despite being shorter than the rest of the Goliaths. When faced with someone its own size, the Big Island can borrow Hawaiian’s slogan. In the smaller divisions, the Orchid Isle is no ka oi.
Last year, Keauhou got the AAA title and Puna the AA. In 2010, it was Keauhou again and Kawaihae for the A. In 2009, Puna took AAA and Keaukaha claimed AA. Then in 2008, the Big Isle batted 3 for 4: Kai Opua, AAA; Keauhou, AA; and Kawaihae, A.
Even in an off year, Moku O Hawaii still bangs out a title. In 2007, Kawaihae brought home the A championship; the Big Isle batting 1 for 4. In 2006, there were three divisions. Puna got the middle A, a spot ahead of Kai Opua, and Keauhou won the smaller A.
The Big Island has built its own tradition at the state regatta, something earned through hard work at home.
“Moku can move people around during the season, and enter fewer events at states, putting in quality, and that helps us,” Atwood said. “We’re pretty consistent. In our association, we raise the stakes every year and that makes everyone better. Going to states, we know there’s good competition, too. But we’re prepared for it, dealing with our races here.”
Canoe paddling
What: Hawaiian Canoe Racing Association state championships
When: 8:15 a.m. today
Where: Keehi Lagoon, Oahu
Defending champs: Hawaiian, Division AAAA (21-40 events); Keauhou, AAA (13-20); Puna, AA (7-12); Na Kai Ewalu, A (1-6)
Defending Moku O Hawaii state champs: Kai Opua’s girls 12, boys 15, mixed men and women; Keauhou’s women masters 60, men masters 60, and mixed masters 55
Website: hcrapaddler.com