Pink is the theme this fall during Breast Cancer Awareness Month as Hyatt Regency Maui Resort and Spa hosts its third annual Maui Paddle for a Cure event on Saturday, October 1. Maui Paddle for a Cure is a fun, non-competitive event for stand up, kayak and canoe paddlers along the beautiful shoreline of Ka’anapali Beach that raises funds to benefit Susan G. Komen.
With SUP Foiling getting a ton of hype right now, it’s only natural to see paddlers gravitate toward the new SUP crossover and want to dip their toes in the water and try it out. With pros like Naish's Kai Lenny and Starboard's Connor Baxter getting a ton of attention for their downwind SUP hydrofoiling adventures the groms who look up to them were eager to try the new craze as well.
The 2016 Olukai Ho’olaule’a Event was not only in the most epic conditions, but it was a great way to dust off last weekends race. I got home on Monday after The Carolina Cup and the wind was cranking and I couldn't have been more stoked. I went for about five runs to make sure the gear and body was in check for one of the most incredible weekends.
The 2016 OluKai Hoʻolauleʻa broke records at its 8th annual event with more than 515 paddlers competing and representing over 18 countries in front of a crowd close to 1,500 people.
Maui did not disappoint for day two of the 8th annual OluKai Hoʻolauleʻa three-day ocean festival with local Connor Baxter and new women’s champion Sonni Hönscheid taking home the gender equal prize purse of $15,000. The prestigious eight-mile Stand Up Paddle (SUP) race saw over 325 of the world’s elite paddlers battle it out on the famous Maliko Downwind Run on Maui’s North Shore, the highest amount of contenders in this race to date.
The 8th annual OluKai Ho’olaule’a three-day ocean festival kicks off today, Friday, April 29th, on Maui’s North Shore with the second annual ‘Demo Day,’ offering locals and visitors the opportunity to meet with the pros, gain valuable last minute race tips and an opportunity to test out the latest boards and equipment. The 2016 OluKai Ho’olaule’a is set to be the biggest yet in the event’s history bringing together around 600 of the world’s elite paddlers to race the famous Maliko Downwind Run for the largest gender equal prize purse of $15,000.
We’ve known for awhile that Brazilian stand up paddle surfer Nicole Pacelli loved to charge big waves and recently she took it up a notch by heading to Peahi, a.k.a Jaws, on an early spring swell and paddling out on her SUP.
SIC Global Team Athlete Andrea Moller hosted the 4th annual Imua Keiki o ke Kai presented by Paddle Imua & Bluesmiths. Imua Keiki o ke Kai was held on Sunday, April 3rd at the Hawaiian Canoe Club in Kahului, Maui. Imua Keiki o ke Kai is a unique event to provide children with special needs an opportunity to bond and participate in ocean sports with a who’s who list of top professional water sports athletes.
The original water women movement continues to build community above competition. The Butterfly Effect is hosting its annual all women’s 3-mile paddle event on April 16th, 2016. The non-competitive paddle starts at 9am from Paia Youth & Cultural Center and ends at Kanaha Beach Park. Women will have the option to use any sort of "woman powered" paddle vessel such as kayaks, canoes, and standup paddle boards.
Each May, OluKai holds its annual premier paddling festival on Maui’s north shore to celebrate Hawaiian culture and the traditions that surround this community. The event brings together both elite athletes competing in the world’s best SUP and OC1 races (highlighted by the legendary Maliko Downwind Run) and is also a gathering of friends and family-friendly activities in a celebration of the ocean and cultures that surround it. This year, the Olukai will take place April 29- May 2, 2016 at Kahana Beach Park on Maui.
When we enter the oceans and waterways we are entering a realm in which we do not control. The creatures that call these bodies of water home are the true masters and we are merely taking a step, or in this case, paddle into their world. It is somewhat unsettling to report that in the waters off Maui, Hawaii there have been multiple incidents lately involving sharks becoming aggressive with paddle boards. Hawaii News Now reports that on Saturday January 23, 2016 a shark had bit a tourist’s paddle board about a half mile off the coast of Maui in Wailea.
El Niño has been kind to surfers this winter season. With what seems like back-to-back-to-back swells there is nonstop fun for the wave riding stand up paddlers. Pro stand up paddle athletes Kai Lenny (Naish) and Mo Freitas (Focus SUP) are just a couple of the guys that have been benefitting from these recent swells and they have been getting some time in at the infamous Peahi, a.k.a Jaws.