BOE still contemplating school surfing program

By Derrick DePledge
Advertiser Education Writer

Six months after the state Board of Education seemed ready to recommend surfing as a high-school sport, some board members are having reservations, and will now look at whether surfing should be part of a broader ocean-sports policy.

"It's cool that they're trying to incorporate other water sports. But I think they should just hurry up and do it," said Reis Harney, a Kahuku High & Intermediate School senior who surfs on the school's club team.

The BOE's committee on special programs will discuss a new policy tomorrow. Since the school board last heard testimony on surfing, others have asked to make kayaking a high-school sport, so some board members want to examine whether there should be an ocean or water-sports policy. Kayaking, if it were approved as a sport, would likely take place on the Ala Wai Canal.

"We want it to be broad enough so that each sport would not have to come back one by one," said Breene Harimoto, the board's chairman.

If board members decide to draft a new policy, it would likely have to be reviewed by labor unions, which would mean that it would take at least several more weeks before it reaches the full board for final action.

Even if the state school board approves surfing as a sport, three of the five conferences that make up the Hawai'i High School Athletic Association would have to agree to sponsor surfing before it could be recognized as a championship event.

Several high-school athletic directors have raised concerns about the potential costs and liability of surfing, fears that have been compounded by two recent horrific shark attacks on surfers. Others have questioned the logistics of setting up practices and meets when the surf is so unpredictable, and whether coaches would be able to adequately supervise students in the ocean.

The state Department of Education estimated that surfing would cost $2.6 million a season if lifeguards on watercraft were used for meets and practices, and $1.2 million without lifeguards, figures that surfing clubs believe are too high.

But a more problematic issue may be safety.

Bethany Hamilton, a promising teenage surfer, lost her left arm in a shark attack off Kaua'i last October, an incident that received international attention.

Last Wednesday, Willis McInnis, a regular at a surf break off Kahana, Maui, bled to death after being bitten by a shark.

Shark attacks are rare, given the number of people in the water, but the incidents have given some educators and board members pause.

"I was thinking about it," said Garrett Toguchi, a BOE member who surfs. "Personally, I wouldn't let it bother me. The attacks were very unusual."

Hamilton, now back in the water, has set an example for other teenagers, he said, and her positive attitude since the attack has won her praise and support from around the world.

"I think we would be lucky if everyone would be a little more like Bethany Hamilton," Toguchi said.

Mary Cochran, a BOE member from Maui who chairs the special programs committee, said she is ready to support surfing as a sport.

"There is so much interest out there," Cochran said. "It is something you can't ignore."

State Senate Minority Leader Fred Hemmings, R-25th (Kailua, Waimanalo, Hawai'i Kai), a legendary surfer, said making surfing a high-school sport would give it legitimacy and would allow surfers to be recognized as athletes, just like football and basketball players.

"It's very important for the kids to be recognized," Hemmings said. "It's sad that the very birthplace of surfing did not lead the way."

In California, school districts have recognized surfing as a sport and schools compete against each other in competitions, but the California Interscholastic Federation does not sanction surfing statewide.

Andy Verdone, who coaches the surf team at Huntington Beach High School in Orange County, Calif., said Hawai'i should recognize the sport at schools.

"Hawaiians started surfing. They invented it. It's a long time coming," Verdone said. "I'd love to bring a team out there, and then invite the Hawai'i kids back over here."

Hawai'i teenagers already compete in events sponsored by the National Scholastic Surfing Association, although they do not officially represent their schools. Several young Island surfers are going to the association's national championships at Lower Trestles in San Clemente, Calif., in June.

Some surfers believe the delay with the school board is because many people see surfers as slackers, not student athletes.

"The general (belief) is that surfers are not scholars," said Kahuku's Harney.

Reach Derrick DePledge at 525-8084 or ddepledge@honoluluadvertiser.com.