SEPTEMBER 24, 2014 - VOLUME 30, ISSUE 39
T H E I S L A N D ’S N E W S S O U R C E S I N C E 1985
WAHINE
YOUR
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The
Molokai olokai Dispatch Mana`o KE O
At the Kulaia festival on Friday night to celebrate Sunday’s Na Wahine O Ke Kai canoe race, the Dispatch asked attendees, “For you, what is the significance of paddling in the Molokai community?”
KAI 2014
The Buchanan family and the Molokai Security Services crew have been preparing for and cleaning up the race for 34 years. Photo by Laura Pilz.
By Bianca Moragne | Staff Writer
W
ith flat water and a clear sky above, Waikiki Beachboys Canoe Club wahine paddlers placed first out of 61 crews at the 36th annual Na Wahine O Ke Kai race last Sunday morning. Paddling 42 miles across the Ka`iwi Channel from Molokai to Oahu with top teams from around the world, Waikiki Beachboys crossed the channel in 5 hours 29 minutes 12 seconds. Alanna Bender, a paddler for Waikiki Beachboys, said her team trains in flat water and expected light trade winds during the race. She said these conditions are better than heavy winds and high surf that can cause the canoe to spin out or flip over. “It’s definitely going to be a fight until the very end but hopefully we can do it,” she said, as she joined hundreds of fellow paddlers at Hale O Lono before the race. “A race like this, especially for women, who fought really hard
for this race, is amazing.” Bender said she comes from a family of paddlers and has been paddling for 19 years. “This race shows that you can do it,” Bender said. “You can be strong, embrace nature, persevere through anything and keep the culture and tradition alive.” For the first time in several years, Molokai did not have its own crew competing, but two local women joined other teams to make the crossing. Molokai paddler Coral Gonzales, who paddled this year with defending champions Team Bradley of Maui, said the race will be a good learning experience. Team Bradley did a practice run on flat water days prior, which better prepared them for the race, Gonzales said. Team Bradley placed second in Sunday’s race finishing in 5 hours 30 minutes 25 seconds. “Paddling feels good inside and
it helps motivate the younger generation to learn and get into ocean sports,” Gonzales said. Another Molokai paddler, Sydney Kalipi, joined Maui’s Kahana Canoe Club for the race. Kahana finished in 21st place. The annual race is organized by the Na Wahine O Ke Kai Association and race director Hannie Anderson. Tides and changing winds make the Ka`iwi Channel unpredictable each year Anderson said, and this year’s flat water made for a physically challenging race. “They won’t have the assistance of any surf or wave bumps,” Anderson said. “They are going to have to paddle all the way across.”
Behind the Scenes There’s a lot of work that goes into making the race happen.
Na Wahine Continued pg. 4
Photo by Laura Pilz.
Lohiao Paoa, Molokai Canoe Club paddler
People think of Molokai as the most Hawaiian island and paddling is the main Hawaiian sport for us to practice and express our culture. It’s not a competition, but more of us getting out there and being a team. It’s a blessing to be a part of it.
Elaine Callinan, Wa`akapaemua Canoe Club recreational paddler I love paddling. Here paddling is the whole community. Everyone has done it and is doing it on all levels. I feel paddling is an integral part of the Molokai community.
Mel Paoa Jr., Molokai captain for the Hokule`a Besides being a tradition passed down from our ancestors, paddling is healthy and good for the body, organized, clean and it brings everyone together. It’s a way to express love and aloha.
Fred Reyes, Island Air agent Paddling is a big part of our Hawaiian culture and that is everything for our community.
THIS WEEK’S
Dispatch
Uniting for the Race
Pg. 3
Kalaupapa Munitions Clean-Up Plan Proposed Pg. 4
Perpetuating Taro By Catherine Cluett | Editor-In-Chief
D
ripping with sweat and covered in a layer of red Molokai dirt, attendees of last Saturday’s Taro Field Day still had smiles on their faces as they emerged from chest-high, heart-shaped leaves with arms full of taro plants they had harvested. The annual event at the Molokai Applied Research and Demonstration Farm at UH Maui Community College Farm in Ho`olehua offers community members a chance to learn about the history, culture and preservation of taro through presentations, as well as taste test poi and kulolo made from various types of taro. Attendees can then venture into the field after receiving a labelled map to select and harvest plants of their favorite varieties. “Kalo has aloha in its DNA,” said one kupuna who wished to remain anonymous, bending over a bucket of carefullycleaned huli, or the portion of taro harvested for replanting. “Kalo has a lot to teach us… it’s our original ancestor.” He said he comes back to Taro Field Day every year for the same type of taro, a
Japanese variety called Zu`ike. Unlike most kalo, the leaves of this variety can be eaten raw, he said. “These are my grandchildren,” said the kupuna, waving his hand over the line of tender, tall light green leafed plants. A few years ago, when the farm’s plants of this variety began to die out, they called him and asked if they could dig up some of his Zu`ike. Now, the plants he harvested at the farm last Saturday were descendants of his stock, he said. Faith Tuipulotu, who has worked at the UH Molokai Extension farm for
Taro continued pg. 2
More Flights. More Seats. There’s been a pronounced increase in the number of people flying with us, and for this we thank you. To open more seating on our busiest days, we’re adding four round trip flights between Molokai and Honolulu on Fridays and three round trip flights on Sundays. Mahalo from all of us here at Makani Kai Air. Thanks again for flying with us.
Richard Schuman - President
$50 online fare, every seat, every flight, every day. MakaniKaiAir.com | (808) 834-1111
The
Molokai Dispatch
P.O. Box 482219 Kaunakakai, HI 96748
Photos by Catherine Cluett