The Pure Light Racing Team wants to make successful changes in the sport of outrigger canoe paddling.

Most notable, they'd like to see an "adaptive" division added to races.

But first, they have to prove they can make successful changes in the open ocean during this weekend's Queen Lili-'uokalani Long-Distance Canoe Races at Kailua, Kona.

It will be the first time that Pure Light will compete in a long-distance canoe race.

The significance?

The crew will feature six physically challenged athletes.

"It's going to be tricky and it's going to be a challenge," team member Richard Julian said. "But that's the best part. I'm hoping we finish strong and set an example for the rest of the people in Hawai'i, and the rest of the world, really."

The six adaptive paddlers are Julian, Joe Brock, Christine Greer and her husband John Greer, Francean McClain and Dawna Zane. Five are paraplegic, and McClain has recently regained limited use of her legs.

They will be joined by three able-bodied paddlers — Aka Hemmings, Al Konishi and Sam Plunkett.

Hemmings is one of the founders of the Pure Light team, and has been coaching the adaptive paddlers for several years.

"Obviously, they don't have the full-body strength of a regular able-bodied crew," he said. "But technically, this crew is very superb."

The paddlers have some experience in sprint-racing, having competed in the IVF World Sprints events in 2004 and 2006.

However, this will be the first time a crew featuring a majority of adaptive paddlers will attempt a distance race.

In distance races, only six paddlers are allowed in the canoe at any given time, but three relief paddlers are allowed to rotate in and out of the canoe.

In short, the adaptive paddlers have had to learn how to propel themselves in and out of the moving canoe during the relief changes.

"Usually, you have your legs to kick up and help you climb in," John Greer said. "We're just using our upper bodies to pull ourselves in."

Konishi, who is a long-time coach and paddler for Keaukaha Canoe Club, said he has been impressed with the adaptive paddlers' progress in practice.

"My jaw dropped the first time I saw them do the changes," Konishi said. "I've coached some men's teams that couldn't get in and out as fast as these guys could."

The Queen Lili'uokalani race follows an 18-mile course between Honaunau and Kailua Bay.

The Pure Light team does not expect to finish near the lead pack, but they don't expect to come in last, either.

"I predict we'll probably beat a few crews in Kona," Hemmings said. "We picked Kona because the water is so malia, so calm. It will kind of negate the ocean factor."

It probably helps that some of the adaptive paddlers were members of canoe clubs prior to losing the use of their legs. Zane, for example, was a paddler as a teenager.

"Paddling was a favorite hobby of mine, so knowing I could continue the sport with adaptations is a good feeling," she said. "I hope it encourages more people to come out and do something maybe they thought they couldn't do."

A few precautions will be taken by the team.

For one, an extra escort boat with medical personnel will follow the Pure Light canoe. Second, a personal watercraft will help shuttle the adaptive paddlers between the canoe and escort boat.

Also, Hemmings will stay in the canoe as the steersman throughout the race. The canoe will also be fitted with special seats to accommodate the adaptive paddlers.

"Since this is the first time anybody has done this ... this is a way of testing the waters to find out what we can and can not do," Hemmings said.

McClain added: "This is the first time I've ever been to Kona and the first time I've ever done such a long-distance paddle, so I have no idea what's going to happen."

The long-term goal for the crew is to enter more long-distance races, perhaps even one of the Moloka'i-to-O'ahu races.

Hemmings said "It's imperative ... that Hawai'i take the lead" in adaptive paddling so that other regions and countries can follow.

The short-term goal is to complete the race tomorrow. They also plan to join other paddlers to form a 12-person crew for a 6-mile race Sunday.

"Oh, we'll finish," Christine Greer said. "We'll be out there until the sun goes down if we have to. As long as the boat doesn't sink, we can do this."

NOTES

More than 240 crews are expected to participate this weekend, making the Queen Lili'uokalani Long-Distance Races the largest long-distance paddling event in the world.

The main race of the weekend is the 18-mile race tomorrow. Most of the top teams complete the race under an "iron" format, meaning they do not make relief changes.

Reach Dayton Morinaga at dmorinaga@honoluluadvertiser.com.