E komo mai!
Welcome to my personal website where I would like to share my passion for Hawaiian Outrigger Canoe paddling and the Hawaiian Culture. I have personally had the opportunity to paddle with various clubs in Hawaii and on the Mainland. I have also had the great honor of paddling between some of the Hawaiian Islands with members of the Hawaiian Outrigger Canoe Voyaging Society. I have also participated in wa`a (outrigger canoe) races in Hawaii, California, Arizona, and Nevada.
I would like to recognize and thank the Kihei Canoe Club of the
Hawaiian Island of Maui of which my ohana and I are members and
their overwhelming aloha showered on
me and my ohana each time we return to our second home. I am forever grateful
for everything they have taught me over the years about the
Outrigger canoe paddling and the Hawaiian culture. I also would like to personally thank Kimokeo Kapahulehua (aka. Uncle Bully) who has been my cultural
mentor and my guide on voyages I have experienced paddling between the
Hawaiian Islands. Learning the chants and lore of
the Hawaiian ancestors is an honor I can never repay.
At every opportunity I try to pass on the teachings of
this great Kahuna in hopes of perhaps paying back a tiny bit of
the spiritual debt he has bestowed on me.
In Hawaii I have been blessed with the opportunity to witness
and in many cases be parts of Hawaiian ceremonies celebrating,
Canoe blessings, Building Blessings, Fire Engine Blessings,
funerals, luau's, and many other culturally rich events. This
year I also
participated in the "Paddlers Open" on Maui which
was a kickoff of the regatta season and fund raiser for the
Keiki's who paddle on Maui. And on the Big Island of
Hawaii, I had the grand experience of rigging and paddling
a koa wa'a (Koa Canoe) before the race that is held in
honor of Hawaii's last reigning monarch her majesty Queen Lydia Lili`oukalani.
By the way, in the website header you will notice that I have dedicated this website to seat seven. Well if you are familiar with Outrigger Canoe Paddling, you are probably wondering what I am talking about since there are typically only six seats in a standard Hawaiian outrigger canoe...or is there? Navigate this site and you will learn where seat seven is located and why I dedicate this website to that seat.