Kai'Opua

A few months after we moved here we joined the Kai'Opua Canoe Club. It is traditional form of Polynesian paddling. We were paddling with the recreational club a few days a week which is a mellow group of mostly retired people so we worked on learning how to paddle and figuring out what the heck we were doing. This past month there was a meeting regarding the competitive season. I figured..."what the heck, I'm unemployed. I'll give it a try. At least I'll get coaching and a good work out, even if I never compete". Well, this past week was our first race and I don't want to brag....but we kicked ass!

Our team is called the Novice B's. But, we dressed as Bees-wings and all. We had an advantage as all of us have been paddling for almost a year and had not only experience but the ability to practice up to 6 days a week.

We skimmed the water as our cheering crowd (of over 20 people) screamed for us to "dig dig dig". We came in first in our division with a time of 2 minutes and 58 seconds for a 1/2 mile race. Pretty good for a bunch of new(bees).

I've never really been part of a team or part of a competitive sport as I have done ballet for all of my life. This sport is something brand new for me...and I LOVE it! I feel so free on the water and love using all of my muscles to push a 4,000 pound canoe with a group of girls. This will hopefully be the first of many more races to come. And if we're lucky, a trip to Maui to compete in the Hawaii state tournament. GO BEES