Many of you probably enjoyed the video that was recently posted. Link Below-I enjoyed it and it was very well done. I was surprised there was no mention of Mellow Johnny and their epic result in Tahiti last year. Also it would be nice to hear more about Mellow Johnny's training methods etc. I would consider Mellow Johnny a Hawaiian Team.
http://shows.oc16.tv/ocean-paddler-tv/episode-82/
Submitted by Kona J on Wed, 03/11/2015 - 7:54am
Mahalo Kona J for the link!!! Awesome video!!!
It's understandable that the video only covers Team Hawaii since it was filmed by one of its team members. Finishing 23rd overall with some of the best Hawaiian 1-man paddlers proves how tough the competition in Tahiti is...
Even tough Team Mellow Johnny's have proved to be one of the top teams in the world after placing a respectable top 11 at the Hawaiki Nui, I find it interesting that we don't see or hear much about it in the media outside Tahiti. Those guys have been the Hawaiian 'franchisee' for EDT Va'a for the last few years and nothing is shared with the rest of the paddling world in terms of training methods, technique, videos, etc. (?).
Mellow Johnny's not only had a Tahitian peperu but also a Tahitian coach (former EDT Va'a coach - Tehira Roopinia) for all 3 days of the 2014 Hawaiki Nui race. Even the EDT Va'a Molokai Hoe race jersey had a Mellow Johnny's star on the back of it (file attached).
#1 Thu, 03/12/2015 - 10:30pm
Kona J: Check out this video, if you probably haven't already seen it, for their training methods:
#2 Fri, 03/13/2015 - 9:09am
MORE PLEASE!!!
#3 Fri, 03/13/2015 - 10:34am
The video unleashing the soul: team livestrong is a good one but outdated. I'd say approximately 4 years old.
That is prior to Lance Armstrong's fraud being revealed to the world, the Tahitian guys becoming Tahitian Ohana and the Hawaiian paddling team changing its name to Mellow Johnny's and associating themselves with EDT Va'a.
A lot more should have been done in the mean time to promote the brand (s), sport, etc.
#4 Fri, 03/13/2015 - 6:27pm
Mahalo feirulegui for the info. Unfortunately, for all of us, this video was only uploaded to Vimeo four (4) months ago. JKOkuna808 does excellent work, maybe there are more gems like this one, which are more current and haven't been uploaded yet?
#5 Fri, 03/13/2015 - 8:51pm
Aloha koacanoe,
The same video was uploaded on Youtube back in the beginning of 2012 with the name 'Americana: Unleashing the soul'. There are a couple other videos on both Youtube & Vimeo about the 'old' Livestrong Outrigger team.
Just to clarify my previous comment "A lot more should have been done in the mean time to promote the brand (s), sport, etc". At the end of the day who am I to criticize the level of promotion and/or social media activity from large or small businesses such as EDT/GDF Suez, Pure Canoes or Viper Va'a (?).
I guess I just love paddling and also love watching the best in the world. More recently I've been applauding the initiatives from OPT (Tahitian Post) who started a race in 2014 (OPT Marara Hoe) and posted videos of their team on Youtube including their Hawaiki Nui performance. OPT also allowed a Vimeo user called "teanuanua' to post some fantastic videos of the OPT team training. Other than that, I always keep an eye on TNTV.Replay.com
Va'a for Life!!!
#6 Sat, 03/14/2015 - 12:56am