PADDLING
Team Bradley wins fourth race in a row
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Photo gallery: Na Wahine O Ke Kai |
By Dayton Morinaga
Advertiser Staff Writer
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Amid winds of challenge from other teams, Team Bradley stood strong and paddled to a record-breaking victory in the Na Wahine O Ke Kai championship race yesterday.
Ku Makani — the Hawaiian words printed across the backs of the Team Bradley jerseys — proved to be an inspiring theme.
"It means to stand strong against the wind," said paddler Mahealani Lum-Batlik, who came up with the theme. "If you stay true to your roots, stay rooted deep, you're going to stay standing in the end."
At the end of yesterday's 41-mile race across the Kaiwi Channel, Team Bradley stood on the victory stand for the fourth consecutive year.
It is tied for the second-longest streak in Na Wahine O Ke Kai history. OffShore of California won six in a row from 1986-91, and then four straight from 1993-96.
But Team Bradley now stands alone as the fastest in the 30-year history of the race.
Team Bradley completed the course from Hale O Lono Harbor, Moloka'i, to Duke Kahanamoku Beach, Waikiki, in 5 hours, 22 minutes, 5 seconds.
It topped the previous record by seven seconds. Mooloolaba of Australia set the previous mark in 2004.
Last year, Team Bradley won the race, and was two seconds short of the course record.
This year, all 10 paddlers returned, along with coach John Puakea and team sponsor/canoe-builder Sonny Bradley.
Yesterday's convincing victory came after several subpar performances by Team Bradley in the "warm-up" races leading to Na Wahine O Ke Kai.
Hui Lanakila, which finished second yesterday, had defeated Team Bradley in two of those warm-up races.
"Part of our recipe is to aim for the big one and forget about the smaller ones," paddler Theresa Felgate said. "We hit some speed bumps along the way, but we put it behind us and focused on this race."
The Team Bradley paddlers:
"There weren't any big mistakes," she said. "But it wasn't easy at all. Hui Lanakila was on us the whole time."
"There's a lot of talent in this group — every possible combination we put in there is a strong one," she said. "But I think the biggest thing is we paddle from our hearts and for each other."
"I think this is the most significant (win) because we weren't really lining it up this year," she said. "It's not like I didn't have faith, but I knew it was a real possibility that we might not win."
"We all train hard on our own, and somehow it comes together for this race," she said. "I don't know how or why it's able to blend, but it does."
"Hui Lanakila was beating us all year, so we weren't sure if we could beat them," she said. "I think that was a driving force — knowing that there were a couple of other really fast teams out there."
"It really is like magic when this team gets together," she said. "We work on things on our own and take the coaching advice to heart. And today everything clicked from the start."
"We have individuals from different places, but we really are one team," she said.
"We like the surf and the conditions were flat," she said. "But we put it together. We felt like there was no pressure on us because we weren't doing so good in the races before this. We never doubted ourselves."
"I'm the one they bring in from outside (Hawai'i), but this is a real 'ohana that we're all a part of," she said. "I felt that from the first stroke."
"We were so close to the record last year, so to come back and get it is really nice," she said. "We really needed to come together and make this work and that's what we did."
Hui Lanakila placed a frustrating second — again — with a time of 5:27:09.
During Team Bradley's four-year streak, Hui Lanakila has placed second three times and fourth once.
"It's disappointing, yeah," Hui Lanakila paddler Pauahi Ioane said. "We were looking for the perfect fairy tale to come true."
Hui Lanakila dedicated its race to Leighton Look, a former coach of the club who died last month.
"We were concerned because Hui Lanakila had a lot of inspiration and spiritual feelings heading into this," Team Bradley's Agorastos said.
A relatively calm Kaiwi Channel allowed Team Bradley to cover Hui Lanakila from the front.
"We could see (Hui Lanakila) behind us the whole way, so we knew what they were doing," Ward said. "But we never felt comfortable. They pushed us to the finish."
Waikiki Beach Boys placed third in 5:32:39.
"It was a very hard race, but there's some satisfaction knowing we can be in the top three," paddler Kelsa Teeters said. "We're going to come back next year and try it again."
A total of 67 crews completed the race.
The Moloka'i Hoe men's championship race is scheduled for Oct. 12.
OTHER CREWS OF NOTE
Outrigger's time of 5:34:43 was the fastest ever for a crew in the 40-older division.
"We're definitely satisfied with this," said Kisi Haine, who steered the Outrigger crew. "We were hoping for top 10 and we got fourth (overall), so that's a good day."
Casco Bay from Maine placed second in the 40-older division and ninth overall in 5:43:38.
The crew included JoJo Toeppner, who has paddled in every Na Wahine O Ke Kai since the first one in 1979.
Mindy Clark steered the NAC crew yesterday. She and Toeppner were part of the OffShore teams that won 10 Na Wahine O Ke Kai races in the 1980s and '90s.
The koa canoe — named "Tarita" — was built by Leighton Look. The club normally does not use the koa canoe for long-distance races, but did this year in honor of Look.
Kailua's time of 5:56:22 was the fastest ever for a 50-older crew, and the 17th overall placing was the best showing for a 50-older crew.
Kahiau/Hawaiian Kanaktion, which had a streak of four consecutive masters victories, placed second at 6:01:19.
Although the club was formed in 1967, yesterday was the first time it entered the Na Wahine O Ke Kai.
FINAL RESULTS
OVERALL
1, Team Bradley (Cherisse Agorastos, Noelani Auger, Lauren Bartlett, Theresa Felgate, Kelly Fey, Margie Kawaiaea, Mahealani Lum-Batlik, Andrea Moller, Shelley Oates-Wilding, Dane Ward), 5:22:05. 2, Hui Lanakila, 5:27:09. 3, Waikiki Beach Boys, 5:32:39. 4, Outrigger 40s, 5:34:43. 5, Newport Aquatic Center, 5:37:49. 6, Kai 'Opua, 5:41:57. 7, Namolokama O Hanalei, 5:43:26. 8, False Creek, 5:43:34. 9, Casco Bay, 5:43:38. 10, Hawaiian, 5:46:07. 11, Lae'ula O Kai, 5:47:05. 12, Hui Lanakila-2, 5:47:37. 13, Kaiola, 5:48:55. 14, Niumalu, 5:50:11. 15, Kailua, 5:50:54. 16, Hui Nalu, 5:55:00. 17, Kailua 50s, 5:56:22. 18, Waikiki Beach Boys-2, 5:59:14. 19, Lanikai-koa, 5:59:42. 20, Kai 'Opua-2, 6:00:56. 21, Kahiau/Hawaiian Kanaktion, 6:01:19. 22, Healani, 6:02:14. 23, Redondo Beach, 6:03:34. 24, Outrigger, 6:04:12. 25, Hawaiian-2, 6:05:05. 26, Lanikai-2, 6:06:00. 27, Lokahi, 6:08:24. 28, Keauhou, 6:08:54. 29, Keahiakahoe, 6:10:46. 30, Pu'uwai, 6:11:19. 31, Hui Lanakila-3, 6:11:47. 32, Keauhou-2, 6:12:14. 33, Marina Del Ray, 6:13:14. 34, Kamehameha-Hilo, 6:13:37. 35, Kailua-2, 6:14:58. 36, Lanikai-2, 6:15:03. 37, Kukui O Moloka'i, 6:17:09. 38, Lae'ula O Kai, 6:17:15. 39, Waikiki Beach Boys-3, 6:18:30. 40, Niumalu, 6:18:39. 41, San Francisco, 6:20:17. 42, Healani-2, 6:23:59. 43, Oceanside, 6:24:30. 44, Manu O Ke Kai, 6:24:45. 45, Hawaiian 50s, 6:27:55. 46, Leeward Kai, 6:28:40. 47, North Shore, 6:29:14. 48, Lanikai-3, 6:29:20. 49, Kona Athletics, 6:29:46. 50, Koa Kai, 6:30:34. 51, 'Anuenue, 6:32:44. 52, Kailua-3, 6:33:20. 53, North Shore 50s, 6:33:43. 54, Waikiki Beach Boys-4, 6:34:27. 55, Hui Nalu-2, 6:37:06. 56, New Hope-1, 6:37:19. 57, Lokahi-2, 6:38:02. 58, Waimanalo, 6:39:59. 59, Keahiakahoe-2, 6:40:40. 60, 'Alapa Hoe, 6:41:46. 61, Honolulu Pearl, 6:42:35. 62, Lanikai 50s, 6:42:38. 63, New Hope 40s, 6:44:42. 64, Koa Kai 50s, 6:45:10. 65, Kai Poha, 6:46:04. 66, New Hope-2, 6:50:54. 67, Puakea Foundation, 6:54:00.
KOA CANOE
1, Hui Lanakila (Whitney Martinez, Madison Minkel, Deborah Rosenblum, Kristi Lowry, Allison Sokei, Lori Nakamura, Violette Carillo, Bernadette Tyrell, Leahi Frias, Sarah Jane Reyes), 5:47:37. 2, Lanikai, 5:59:42. 3, Outrigger, 6:04:12. 4, Puakea Foundation, 6:54:00.
MASTERS 40-OLDER
1, Outrigger (Paula Crabb, Kisi Haine, Nicole Pedersen, Karin Hansen Del Ray, Mary Smolenski, Traci Phillips, Stephanie Megan Jones, Lisa Livingston, Jennifer Horner, Donna Kahakui), 5:34:43. 2, Casco Bay, 5:43:38. 3, Pu'uwai, 6:11:19. 4, Lae'ula O Kai, 6:17:15. 5, New Hope, 6:44:42.
MASTERS 50-OLDER
1, Kailua (Vivian Griffin, Lois Wise, Patsy Vasquez, Terry Malterre, Kathy Erwin, Carleen Ornellas, Patty Eames, Bev Tuaolo, Penny Martin, Crystal Egusa, Genie Kincaid, Vanessa Weiss), 5:56:22. 2, Kahiau/Hawaiian Kanaktion, 6:01:19. 3, Keauhou, 6:12:14. 4, Niumalu, 6:18:39. 5, Hawaiian, 6:27:55. 6, North Shore, 6:33:43. 7, Lanikai, 6:42:38. 8, Koa Kai, 6:45:10.
Reach Dayton Morinaga at dmorinaga@honoluluadvertiser.com.
