fellow seabreezers, I did it and am hurting a day later! It was the best event I have ever done. I had been training on a 16ft Penetrator up and down the margaret river and doing some coastal runs when the swell wasn't too big. I flew to Oahu last week, hanging out and then went to Maui 2 days befor the race. It was great to escape the cold of Australian winter!
On getting to Maui, I hooked up with my friend, Maui Chief Lifeguard Archie Kalepa who loaned me a board, a 14ft C4 vortice for the race. On the Friday before the race we did a 8 mile training run, about 25 knots directly behind us, man it was stonking, just a long downwind run with heaps of runners. I was stuffed at the end and Archie was keen to go back and do another one! (I spose he is doing Molokai in a couple of weeks).
On the sunday of the race it was a beautiful day, with about 20 knots directly behind us for the start. About 200 people competed and there was a Hawaiian prayer prior to the start where everyone held hands in a circle. It was great and as the Hawaiians say I got "chicken skin".
The race was 9.5 miles of great runners, dodging turtles and trying to keep a straight line to the harbour. It's interesting that all those American boards are planing hulls, they are basically oversized surfboards. I would love to try the penetrator in those conditions, based on my clubbie background I reckon they are like a ski and go just as fast.
You can see some photos here
tracydudley.com/Surf/Maliko_Race/index.htmlI plan to do it again next year and hope to see more aussies there.
cam
