Molokai Hoe 2014

What are the thoughts this year?

I think there are a lot of questions about this year. Does the attendance turn around from previous trend?

2010 Men's race-122 Crews
2011 Men's race-108 Crews
2012 Men's race-100 Crews
2013 Men's race-99 Crews

Will we have another flat year?
It looks like huge battles developing in the 40's and 50's races this year.
Does Hawaiian Airlines sponsorship change anything?
Is EDT coming to battle Shell again?
IS Mellow Johnny's a serious contender for 1st?
I haven't heard much from Team Primo or Lanikai.
Where does Team Kauai place?

Great race coming up.

Submitted by Kona J on Fri, 09/12/2014 - 7:24am



Based on this week's results, I think we have to put Hui Nalu, Kailua, and Outrigger into the mix. Some very strong crews for sure.


#1 Mon, 09/15/2014 - 11:18am


I here the Lanikai young guns are pretty wicked. The Mellow Johnny's boys said they were putting up a really hard fight near the end of Henry.


#2 Mon, 09/15/2014 - 5:13pm


k

There's 4 weeks to put the best team together. I know a lot of teams are still working on optimal crews.... Look forward to seeing how the coaches shuffle their teams and who they decide to put in the final team selections.

Henry had a lot of combat in the first four crews, Mellow Johnny's, Lanikai, Hui Nalu and Primo. Mellow always had control of the lead and reserve energy when charges were made by Lanikai and Hui Nalu, they always had space to protect their advantage, unsure if Mellows were genuinely pushed to their limit, I still think they had a bit more reserve gas.


#3 Sun, 09/21/2014 - 9:22pm


Not sure why the participant rant is plummeting. Love to hear why.

Lanikai absolutely shocking. Anyone know what it was that changed from first race. Seems like every year they mix up Duke with even boats then combine them for whatever they think their best crew is for rest of races.

Hui Nalu- Awesome also,I only recognized a couple guys on that crew. Did they bring in guys?

I know Outrigger and Kailua both did Pailolo. How much did that affect their times? 5 minutes I guess. (Kailua 2 was same distance behind Manu as they were in Duke, so that's why I'm not guessing more) Still puts them behind HN and Lanikai.


#4 Tue, 09/16/2014 - 9:16am


perhaps there's a tone of resignation. people feel the outcome is inevitable. but i'd say theres some hope. the fact that Mellow Johnny was able to take it to a great Tahitian powerhouse in Kona says that they are making progress. i saw that Paddling Connection may have been missing one or two guys due to Super Aito. that said, we know Tahitian crews have amazing depth of talent. so i think what MJ did is super impressive. my guess is that there will be 3 tahitian crews in the top 4 depending on which and how many come. but i have no idea where MJ will be in that ultra elite top 4 grouping.

as for local crews? anyone's guess. OCC looks strong again, Lanikai is always peaking at the right time, Hui Nalu has some new guys, and Primo had some guys in europe during Henry so they could get better too. i'm just stoked to see Brandon Woods paddling again. he's my all time paddling hero.

my question is, who is entering the 16-18 year old division?! we can watch these guys and see where the future of this sport is going...


#5 Tue, 09/16/2014 - 10:25am


If anyone is looking for a competitve paddler for this years Molokai Hoe please contact Bruce Diemert, 51 years old, race for the False Creek Racing Canoe Club in Vancouver Canada, competed twice in the Molokai Hoe.

Thanks,

Bruce


#6 Tue, 09/16/2014 - 12:11pm


k

http://www.bradleyhawaiicanoes.com/Race_Results.html

Shell Va'a is the fifth team from Tahiti to win the Moloka'i Hoe. The others were Te Oropa'a (1976), Faa'a (1993 and '94), and Ra'i (2002). The race record previously held by Lanikai 4:50:31 in 2000.

  1. 2006 - 4.46.45
  2. 2007 - 4.40.22
  3. 2008 - 4.38.35
  4. 2009 - 4.40.
  5. 2010 - 4.38.50
  6. 2011 - 4.30.54
  7. 2012 - 5.15.49
  8. 2013 - 4.54.35
  9. 2014

Only Outrigger Canoe Club with 16 victories and Waikiki Surf Club with 12 have had more wins in the 60 year history of the race.

2006 team: Members of the winning crew were Heiarii Mama, Karyl Maoni, Jason Ori, Jimmy Pirato, Lucien Tara, Vatea Taraufau, Bruno Tauhiro, Roland Teahui and David Tepava. David Tepava has steered all the races?


#7 Sun, 09/21/2014 - 9:15pm


k

The closest an all Hawaiian/USA crew has been to Shell Va'a is 12minutes, team primo 2009 and 2011


#8 Sun, 09/21/2014 - 9:20pm


Does anyone know for sure the Tahitian teams that are coming?


#9 Thu, 09/25/2014 - 11:16am


I know 1 Masters crew that dropped out. the guys that were under the Livestrong Tahiti Banner that got 8th or something in 2012. They were planning to come but are not anymore. not sure of anything else. Would be cool to see Mellow Johnnys battle Shell or EDT.


#10 Thu, 09/25/2014 - 11:51am


k

my friend in EDT#2 said they are bringing 2 teams for sure.


#11 Sun, 09/28/2014 - 9:17am


k

Yesterday in Tahiti OPT organised a 62km race (38 miles) called the 'Marara Hoe' described as "...A month and a half before the great Hawaiki Nui Va', this race represents an excellent test preparation."

The course was 31km upwind and 31km surf (for anyone who has done the Tahiti Nui race it's basically the last half of day three), the race course is here: http://www.ftvaa.pf/textes-telecharger-1001102.html

According to my friend EDT 1 won the race by 3'30 over Shell. EDT2 came 2nd. SO will be interesting to see how Molokai Hoe stacks up for EDT & Shell.


#12 Sun, 09/28/2014 - 9:25am


Found this in the Na Wahine O Ke Kai web page. Always a good reminder.

Boat Safety
Powerboat Safety
A Note from Luke Evslin

Every team should have a simple change protocol in place. Maybe that protocol will vary depending on the team and their driver, but it needs to be followed regardless of the experience level.

An example could be:

  1. Before any paddlers jump into the water the engine needs to be in neutral.
  2. A spotter, other than the captain, will verify that the prop is disengaged and will give the call for each paddler to jump.
  3. When every paddler has swum well clear of the boat, the spotter will notify the captain that the prop can be engaged.
  4. When picking up paddlers the same process will be reversed. The captain will come within swimming distance of the paddlers and then disengage the prop.
  5. When the spotter verifies that the prop is disengaged, they will give the call to the paddlers to swim to the idling boat.

It’s up to each of us to enforce that protocol. Until the governing bodies sit down and figure out how they are going to make the race safer (making it an iron race, extending the first change, mandating prop guards, etc), it’s up to each of us to do it for ourselves.

More than anything else, the paddlers, the coaches, and the drivers all need to be aware of the acute danger of propellers. Let’s work together as a community to make sure that nobody gets hit again.

Luke Evslin


#13 Sun, 09/28/2014 - 1:49pm


I agree with Jc_9. I feel there is a sense of inevitability with a Tahitian domination again. At the moment they are just too strong and the paddling level/competition there is at an all time high. The only question for me is will EDT finally beat Shell? As K said EDT beat Shell in the weekend by over 3 minutes but this was an Iron V6 race with no changeovers. Could be different during Molokai with changeovers. Exciting race nonetheless!


#14 Mon, 09/29/2014 - 10:47pm


k

yea man.,until 18 of Hawaii's best paddlers can get a job that requires them to paddle in the morning and afternoon, it's going to be ballsy to predict otherwise


#15 Tue, 09/30/2014 - 7:53pm


I say we stick to brotocall is the protocol.

So locally who dialed up the best brotocall.

Oahu wise I'm going with Outrigger (only if all the bro's show up), then Kailua (if they can wade through all the bro's they got and figure out the best bro's), Lanikai, then Keahiakahoe (if they can call the right Tahitian Bro's), Hui Nalu (Their Bro situation is really wild, it's new level type shit).

I predict the top Hawaiian crew will fall further behind the pace of the lead boat as they have the past many years.

Next year we will see an all new shuffle of guys going to the same different teams. I predict next year we be further behind than this years time off the pace.

It's so hard to "Let it Go".


#16 Tue, 09/30/2014 - 8:46pm


Low tide...Hanauma Bay at 1:36 pm. Hope for strong trades to compensate ..otherwise its all uphill.


#17 Tue, 09/30/2014 - 9:00pm


I honestly think Mellow Johnny's will break into the top 3. My predictions

1.EDT
2. Shell
3. Mellow Johnnys

KKP


#18 Wed, 10/01/2014 - 8:14am


Kona J, thanks for putting that out there. Since the safety policy and guidelines section of the Moloka'i Hoe website doesn't mention it, I want to reiterate (as Kona J did) the important of having a change protocol in place. I hate to be fatalistic, but, if the race rules don't change, someone will inevitably be run over by their escort. It's up to all of us to minimize the chances of that happening by making sure that we all have a conversation with our escorts beforehand to make sure that everyone's on the same page. Bottom line is that nobody should jump while the prop is engaged and the escort shouldn't engage the prop until all of the paddlers are well clear. Those two simple steps (along with having a third party spotter/coach make the calls) will minimize (but not eliminate) the chance of an injury. Let's stay proactive to make sure it doesn't happen again. Because, trust me, getting hit by a propeller really F*ing hurts.

Goodluck, be safe, and hope for wind.

For more information: http://www.kamanucomposites.com/2011/watch-out-for-props


#19 Wed, 10/01/2014 - 11:35am


Luke, in addition to your protocol I'd like to add that Paddlers should always jump off the upwind side of the boat, and boats should approach paddlers from the downwind side and throw a line with a buoy if necessary.

Essentially the boat should never be close and upwind of a swimmer because the boat will get blown onto the swimmer, which can do some serious harm even if the prop is disengaged. A lot of drivers who aren't experienced with escorting, even if they are otherwise experienced, will do the opposite because when you're picking an inanimate object out of the water you approach from the upwind side and drift onto the object. I've seen several close-calls from doing this.

Also, communication is key. Even if your boat captain is experienced at escorting, and even if they say, "yeah, yeah, I know," you might feel like a doofus but go over the protocol anyway.


#20 Wed, 10/01/2014 - 9:01pm


Perhaps the best motivator, for Hawaii teams, is to watch last years race as many times as they can, for it is rather evident, from the video, what needs to be done. Hopefully, remedial action has been taken?

Too bad that 16, 17, and 18 year old's are placed in aged groups, for that is a waste of talent. Instead they should be sitting with veteran paddlers and benefiting from their experience.

Probably, the source of V-Power's stroke rate must come from paddling surfskis and Olympic kayaks, for didn't their stroker race a ski in San Francisco this past summer?


#21 Thu, 10/02/2014 - 2:22am


I believe MJV can give those guys a good battle.
I hope they can win.


#22 Fri, 10/03/2014 - 10:52am


Did Mellow Johny have all their meanest guys for the Henry Ayau race?


#23 Fri, 10/03/2014 - 12:01pm


Seven Tahiti crews will be here. Shell, EDT 1, EDT 2, Paddling Can. Air Tahiti, paddling Ohana (40s), and one more Tahiti team. I asked luana. Shell wanted to race Koa but couldn't get one.


#24 Sun, 10/05/2014 - 3:18pm


MJs had 3 Novies in there crew for Henery. Don't think there getting any Tahitians in there crew this year.


#25 Sun, 10/05/2014 - 3:21pm


Holy $hitballs.

Can we have a non Tahitian Division ha ha ha.

So theres going to be a battle over the last few top 10 spots between like THE REST of the world.

At least we might get some surf eh Indar?


#26 Sun, 10/05/2014 - 4:11pm


"Shell wanted to race Koa, but couldn't get one." Now that's unfortunate. Wonder when was the last time, a Koa won the Molokai Hoe? Maybe if we passed the hat around they could get one? Imagine them paddling it over to Molokai and then back to Oahu, if they can't get shipping? Now that would be an all time sight to see a Koa hit the beach first, after all these years.


#27 Sun, 10/05/2014 - 4:42pm


1990


#28 Mon, 10/06/2014 - 5:55am


so someone else had this idea and it sounded fun. try predicting your top 10. make a pool with a bunch of guys. everyone sends their top ten list to me via private message. also as a tie breaker predict the overall winner's time. could even make it interesting and say... pay 10 peanuts for entry. closest person to the actual top ten and closest to winning time if there are ties wins everyone else's peanuts. we can figure out a system of say one point for every place OFF you are in your prediction. LOWEST point total wins.

sound like fun? PM me your list and winning time prediction. and if you want i have a secure jar to handle all the peanuts. at the end someone will get a nice big jar of peanut butter.

sound stupid? never mind.

might as well treat the super bowl of paddling like the super bowl...

this is not gambling. that would be illegal. time to put your peanuts where your mouth is!


#29 Mon, 10/06/2014 - 10:59am


SUP is what will bring Hawaii back to being a legitimate contender again.


#30 Mon, 10/06/2014 - 3:03pm


@healthyearth you may have a point in that.

SUP and the love of Wa'a. Cause if no more love then no more Mana.

Good luck everyone this weekend.

Chutes


#31 Mon, 10/06/2014 - 8:28pm


@jc9_0 great idea the winning picks are in your mailbox haha

Looking like a solid one, trades coming back Thu & hopefully hold thru the weekend.
Be sure to support those local businesses while you're on Molokai!


#32 Tue, 10/07/2014 - 1:37pm


I always buy on Molokai


#33 Tue, 10/07/2014 - 1:37pm


How will the conditions be ? Seems like a pretty interesting set up for the channel...15mph+ ENE wind pushing a 6ft+ short period wind swell... a NW 6ft+ long period ground swell that will be bearing down between Oahu and Molokai into the Kaiwi ....all against a strong ebb tide (1:30 pm low at Hanauma Bay).


#34 Thu, 10/09/2014 - 10:23am


The conditions tomorrow may not be gnarly but mid channel will not be clean. Heard that Hale O Lono got close out sets from the NW swell,,,should be subsiding tomorrow but maybe some sneakers at low tide. Still getting refracting from the opposing swells midchannel from the East wind swell and NW long period swell. Then there will be all those sticky false swell/waves that get stacked up but do not create forward propulsion as opposing forces go against a dumping tide. Without the tidal forces...this race would be awesome from a pure fun stand point.
I guess we got some kind of peanut thing going on with the open races. But there are races inside races...races that crews have been working hard to win.. ....Team Gilbert with a Waimanalo, Outrigger, Keahikahoe and Hui Nalu blended 60's crew, Kailua for the 55's. The 40's are hard to call...but Hui Nalu looks strong as does Lanikai. All local crews...all of which will feel comfortable in Sunday's channel.


#35 Sat, 10/11/2014 - 6:05pm


Just saw images of EDT crashing in the breaking waves at Hale O Lono and breaking ama and iato... Looks like Ka'Iwi won't be flat this year. Hope everyone makes it safe. Good luck to everyone.
Race will be live on TNTV (tahitian local TV).


#36 Sat, 10/11/2014 - 7:21pm


La'au Point : Shell and EDT A Leading... EDT B 3rd a few hundred meters behind.


#37 Sun, 10/12/2014 - 8:21am


watching on Livestream Hawaiian Airlines molokai hoe 2014


#38 Sun, 10/12/2014 - 8:35am


Tahitian Teams are on a North course. Speaker from OCPTV said it might be a mistake.
On TNTV, René Avaepi, former OPT coach said it might be a strategy from Shell to bring EDT on a wrong line...


#39 Sun, 10/12/2014 - 8:40am


Shell EDT went up north,Outrigger,Lanikai,other hawai'i crews went south and are Ahead,exciting,Tahiti crews are behind and hAVE TO CATCH UP


#40 Sun, 10/12/2014 - 8:52am


ummmm. i'm guessing this is perhaps a mistake? i could believe on hawaii crew getting in the lead. but 1-4 being hawaii crews? thats nothing short of totally incredible. Kala'i calling a 1/2 mile gap. thats pretty amazing


#41 Sun, 10/12/2014 - 9:03am


I'm sure they will catch up... There is still a long way to go.


#42 Sun, 10/12/2014 - 9:08am


I'm watching the Hawaiian Airlines live webcast. Is there any place else to get some feed that covers more than just the first boat?


#43 Sun, 10/12/2014 - 9:08am


I think that question gets asked every year, and the answer is always the same - no.


#44 Sun, 10/12/2014 - 9:15am


if i was to take a guess the tahitians headed north and will surf down now


#45 Sun, 10/12/2014 - 9:30am


where's the kaua'i va'a crews?


#46 Sun, 10/12/2014 - 9:46am


Seems like Shell is back in 1st place now.


#47 Sun, 10/12/2014 - 9:48am


Holy f***, Luke was just on talking about getting propped and "putting his hand through his back where his back should have been".


#48 Sun, 10/12/2014 - 9:53am


Poor Luke. Jeeezus! Anyone know how many total crews today?


#49 Sun, 10/12/2014 - 9:56am


Tahiti i mua fa'ahou


#50 Sun, 10/12/2014 - 10:08am


FA'AHIAHIA!!!


#51 Sun, 10/12/2014 - 10:09am


Look at Sheel surfing... I can hear Gérard Teiva screaming... This guy is scary as Hell !


#52 Sun, 10/12/2014 - 10:25am


Hiro, sounds like they're not allowed to miss a single bump.


#53 Sun, 10/12/2014 - 10:39am


What an incredible finish !


#54 Sun, 10/12/2014 - 12:46pm


EDT knocking on the door so many times,finally did it.Congratulations.And to team Primo also,and ALL finishers.I wish the live report that was so great to watch,mahalo,could have better finish postings than reading something off a piece of paper,like something on screen.Also the commentators,who had a tough job sitting through all the race and after,and talking nonstop,they should be able to tell without hesitation which canoe is being shown,the number is on the canoe,you could just have a list of all the canoes and their numbers,and call them out accurately without guessing.all in all,a great broadcast,mahalo again.


#55 Sun, 10/12/2014 - 4:12pm


this year's solo was e best race I'd ever seen until today's Moloka‘i Hoe. THAT was the most exciting finish I've ever seen. Unbelievable. EDT and Shell waged a battle for the ages.


#56 Sun, 10/12/2014 - 4:18pm


Lanikai lost by 2 seconds in 2001


#57 Mon, 10/13/2014 - 8:52am


Lanikai is special
Primo is becoming - MEH
Hui Nalu really really good.
9 min gap
9 min gap
9 min gap
The rest of the team are just having fun and enjoying the sport of paddling.


#58 Mon, 10/13/2014 - 2:00pm


Like I said. Best race I've seen. I don't think I watched 2001. Wasn't on TV. Or God forbid I may have actually been paddling in that one. Totally possible the 2001 race was better. But only the guys in those two crews and their escorts would be able to tell you.


#59 Tue, 10/14/2014 - 9:48pm


Who predicted that Primo would have the exact same time two years in a row?

2013 5:16:56
2014 5:16:56


#60 Tue, 10/14/2014 - 1:20pm


2001 results.

http://holoholo.org/hoe/hoe2001/01mhrslto.html


#61 Tue, 10/14/2014 - 4:35pm


How do the race officials calculate speed of the race? I show EDT with an average speed of 8.7 MPH not 6.6.


#62 Tue, 10/14/2014 - 8:18pm


Anyone notice that Mooloolaba was finally taken down in the 50's division?

And how about Na Koa Kona's 40's finishing 13th overall. Impressive performance by the older guys.


#63 Wed, 10/15/2014 - 12:20pm


Props to Bruce, T-Bird and the big island Master boys, good finish. To Jimmy Foti too....OLD GUYS RULE! Also, our Molokai boys went hang tough, was in the mix for a top ten finish, but faded a bit at the end. Good job boys. Also, to my house guests, the Primo Boys. As I always like to say, "No guts, no glory"....and mayor Billy Kenoi...."no scared 'em, go get 'em".

Anyway, my post is about that EDT/Shell Va'a finish. I watched that ending when both teams SUPPOSEDLY made a last ditch water change a little past the Natatorium. When watching it, I think EDT faked a water change. Anyone else out there think the same?? There is no possible way both team make a change, then one team (EDT) come out of the change with a one canoe lead. What you guys think?? Did they fake it?? Anybody know for sure?? Go watch that change again.

Imua Molokai.....


#64 Wed, 10/15/2014 - 12:00pm


Rachet Jaws, I was thinking the same thing...maybe EDT outfoxed the fox. They made a huge jump when shell changed.


#65 Wed, 10/15/2014 - 9:26pm


RatchetJaws,good eyes,that is exactly what happened,they faked a change,and kept on paddling,that's how they won.There is a good article in one of the newspapers in Tahiti about the Tahitian paddling http://polynesie.la1ere.fr/2014/10/13/va-pourquoi-les-tahitiens-sont-les... ,if anyone is interested I can translate and post here,let me know


#66 Wed, 10/15/2014 - 8:50pm


Yup.....translate please......


#67 Thu, 10/16/2014 - 5:44am


It was a great race.

A lot of shake up in the Hawaiian teams and proves that miles and time on the water leads to results. No way around it.

I have two items I would like thoughts on. I have my opinions but might be looking at it wrong.

1-The race started 13-15 minutes early. I know hard to hold the line and have seen races start 5 minutes early, but 13-15 minutes early was very surprising. Glad to get race on the way but I have also been racing with 118 teams and they turned everyone back because teams went early. What do you think?

2-A chase boat went down and a team had been racing 15 minutes. Race officials radioed to have team informed that their chase boat went down and that they may be stopped. . Immediately afterwards, they radioed to everyone to find out if there was an aux. boat or other boat that could take over escorting. Radio silence and team was stopped and had to paddle back to Harbor. I was surprised that there were no boats available. I think in previous years people have helped.


#68 Thu, 10/16/2014 - 6:19am


All the canoes were out of the harbor and at (or close to) the starting line so the race started early. I think it's better than delaying the race to have all canoes move back to try to get all 100+ canoes to line up perfectly. Luckily, we were near the front of the pack when the race started.

Most top clubs have an auxiliary escort boat in case one of their escort boats has mechanical problems. Ours (LCC) spent most of the race up front but could have been called on to deliver gear or take on the roll of escort if needed.

It's too bad a crew had to turn back after all the training and preparation.


#69 Thu, 10/16/2014 - 7:01am


"A lot of shake up in the Hawaiian teams and proves that miles and time on the water leads to results. No way around it."

Which clubs proved this? Which clubs didn't put the miles and time in and did poorly to further prove your point?


#70 Thu, 10/16/2014 - 9:11am


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