Parity among paddlers continues
By Dayton Morinaga
Advertiser Staff Writer
If anything, 2002 has been a season of parity for solo paddlers in Hawai'i.
Deborah Booker • The Honolulu Advertiser
So it was quite fitting that four first-time state champions emerged at the Kanaka I Kai Ka State Championships yesterday.
More than 150 competitors participated in the 23-mile Kanaka I Kai Ka State Championships from Makai Pier to Sand Island.
More than 150 paddlers participated in the race, which featured one-person canoes, one-person surfskis and two-person canoes.
Brian Rocheleau of Hawai'i Kai was the first to finish on a surfski, and the first overall finisher. He completed the 23-mile course from Makai Pier (off Sea Life Park) to Sand Island in 2 hours, 24 minutes, 27 seconds.
Maui Kjeldsen was the first to finish on a canoe, with a winning time of 2:29:01. Maggie Twigg-Smith won the female surfski division in 2:45:39, while Lauren Spalding won the female canoe race in 2:56:44.
"There were waves all the way," Rocheleau said. "But it was hard because it was real close. A bunch of guys were together the whole time."
In the men's surfski race, Rocheleau broke away from the lead pack in the last few miles of the course. Mark Sandvold placed second at 2:25:29, two seconds ahead of David Buck.
"Brian is really good in the flat so he pulled ahead in the last mile or so," Sandvold said. "But other than that, nobody ever got way ahead. The conditions were phenomenal, so we were all surfing together."
Rocheleau said it helped that he took an inside course to Sand Island. Sandvold and Buck were on the outside, and had to come back in to chase Rocheleau in the closing miles.
"I was just trying to hold them off because they came in real strong together at the end," said Rocheleau, 25.
In the men's canoe race, Kjeldsen proved his worth in the waves. He won two races this season, but both came in what he described as "dead flat" conditions. "One of my motivations was ... I wanted to win a surfing race," said Kjeldsen, who is originally from New Zealand, but now resides on O'ahu.
A frustrated Mike Judd placed second at 2:29:26, just 25 seconds behind Kjeldsen. Judd said he was unaware of a race rule requiring all paddlers to turn outside a buoy off Diamond Head.
"I was way inside," Judd said. "By the time I realized that everybody was turning outside the buoy, I pretty much had to go straight out to sea to get to the buoy."
Before that error, Judd and Kjeldsen were virtually tied. Kjeldsen never lost the lead after Diamond Head.
"Who knows? I might have won, or I still might have got second," Judd said. "It's just a bummer that it had to come down to that. The only thing I know is that it would have been a better race for me if I didn't lose that time."
The closest finish came in the women's surfski race, as Twigg-Smith beat Mary Smolenski by 22 seconds.
"It was rough water and that's what I'm better in," said Twigg-Smith, who had not placed higher than third in any other race this season.
Twigg-Smith traded the lead with Smolenski before pulling ahead for good off Diamond Head.
"Honestly, I didn't think I would be able to stay ahead off Waikiki," said Twigg-Smith, 27. "Luckily, there was a little bit of a bump and I was able to keep surfing."
The only decisive victory came in the women's canoe race, with Spalding finishing almost seven minutes faster than runner-up Noelani Sawyer (3:03:40).
"Conditions definitely made a difference for me," said Spalding, who is from Maui. "I felt pretty good the whole way because there was so much surf."
Kelly Fey, an eight-time defending women's state champion, did not enter yesterday's race.
The tandem of Pat Von and Greg Edwards were the first to finish on a two-person canoe in 2:39:46.
A 15-mile "short course" was also held from Hawai'i Kai to Sand Island. Doug Borton (1:40:42) was the fastest on a surfski, while Kealii Martin (1:50:10) was the first to finish on a canoe.
