Monthly Archives: May 2012

Waterwoman Karma with your SUP

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We left Kahului Airport at 11:30 on Sunday and by noon we were neck deep in a full-immersion course on SUP on Maui.  We had pre-planned our SUP rental from Hawaiian Island Surf and Sport on Maui but we didn’t anticipate the connection with their staff – particularly with Deja! A few early conversations with Dennis O’Donnell had prepared us for getting a great SUP board and paddle for our week’s vacation. Once at the shop, we met the personification of customer service, SUP skills and local history – Deja Howard.

Deja helped us select our board and while loading them on the car inquired about our interests, our visit, our curiosity about Maui. We let her know that we planned to do the Fun Race 3 mile segment of the larger Maliko Gulch Run. Cool, Deja planned to do the Maliko Gulch as she does each year. Luckily for us she’s a walking encyclopedia of Maui and Hwaiian lore.

We had no idea of the history that Maliko Gulch had and its impact on the agricultural progress of this area of Maui. In 1876, Henry Baldwin, who lost an arm and almost lost his life to a sugar cane grinder, managed to pioneer the processes around Maliko Gulch to bring water to the cane fields of the area.  Today’s SUP pioneers negotiating the tricky conditions at Maliko Gulch continue honoring Maui’s potential as Baldwin did. Sport, tourism and agriculture don’t intersect often, so it was very interesting to hear Deja weave history with the exciting event coming up.

Our experience in the Olukai Ho’olaulea would be our first and we were a bit nervous as the afternoon prevailing winds whipped our hair, and almost whipped the SUP boards off the car.  Noticing our questions, Deja shared some advice for us as we paddled the week before our fun race.

She advised us to practice paddling in all types of weather conditions; rain, big chop, side chop, light to heavy wind, gusty wind and even practice paddling directly into the wind.  She thought we should do some “mini” downwinders at a shorter distance to get our legs used to the chop.

We found that downwind paddling is a blast and very addicting.  Our experience was definitely enhanced by our first hour in Maui and the great customer service from Deja, Dennis and the entire team at  Hawaiian Island Surf and Sport .

Tradition, Technology, Together… Living It!

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Again and again, island by island, the KIALOA spirit bumps into us as we travel.  Ed and I are 42 years into our marriage but a solid 48 into the life we love together. From the early days we were in, on and around the ocean (Atlantic in S. Florida) and Hawaii dreaming from the beginning.  We both wonder at what twists and turns our lives would have taken if we turned our back on the scholarship/college route that was the “right” choice and instead, headed off to Hawaii like Meg Chun did.

If you don’t know the story, it’s a great one. Meg met Dave Chun and over many years the amazing company called  KIALOA evolved. Sure, they share a great line of paddles with the world, but more than that, they share a spirit of ohana. They live and breathe technology and tradition together on the water. It is so much more than an accurate marketing message, it is real and we bump in to it on every island we visit. One example: Check out this link.

Most recently we visited Maui and were staying on West Maui. Ed and I planned to stretch the envelope of what our 62 year-old selves could do on the ocean – we planned to prepare for the Olukai Ho’olealau during our vacation (some people rest on the beach and enjoy “umbrella drinks.”)

Each morning we drove our car 4 miles down Kaanapali Beach and parked it. We walked back to our hotel along the cool walkway at 6 am.  The plan was to put our boards in the water and do a sweet down-winder back to our car (with a few surf sessions along the way). One morning we met Barry as he was prepping some paddlers for an outing in his outrigger canoe. What caught our eye was the “KIALOA” logo on the side and a quiver of brand new Kialoa wood outrigger canoe paddles. It was obvious that Barry was providing a top-of-the-line experience.

We chatted with Barry for a spell and learned of his personal paddling aspirations. Like many other pros we have encountered, Barry was especially grateful for the support and sponsorship of Meg and Dave Chun at KIALOA. We stood on the lawn as the early morning light brightened the skies and illuminated Lanai out to our right. Like many of the paddling athletes we’ve met in the past, Barry could “talk story” about the spirit of Kialoa endlessly.

He had so many tales to share, and experiences to remember. It was cool to see so much enthusiasm for taking the casual “tourist” out on a traditional outrigger experience. For Barry, the few hours he had with each guest was simply a chance to instill an appreciation of the sea, of the Maui traditions and of the paddling culture. 

An hour later when we were deep in to our down-winder we saw Barry and his paddlers working their way upwind on what would sure to be a treasured memory of Maui.  Even in the hands of first time outrigger paddlers it was great to see that Barry provided the best. Each member of the day’s outrigger “team” was using a quality KIALOA paddle made of fine woods and exquisitely finished. The feel, the balance and the beauty all added to the experience for the all. It is his way, it is the way Kialoa inspires.