HANALEI — Namolokama Canoe Club teams made a strong showing on Saturday, including claiming the top overall spot, at the Namolokama O’Hanalei Canoe Club Mick Callahan Memorial long distance canoe race held at Hanalei.
The overall winners, in the mens 40 division, finished the 8-mile course with a paddle that stopped the clocks at 1 hour, 11 minutes, and 29.0 seconds, nearly three minutes ahead of second overall finishers Hanalei Open racing.
In addition to grabbing the overall title, Namolokama clubs topped the female class and the W40 traditional division when that team crossed on a 1:25:11.9 run.
Kaiola Canoe Club took the female/male (mixed) race on a 1:20.29.6 run.
Eric Shewchuk said the course started and ended next to the Hanalei Pier, with teams paddling out of the bay before heading east to ‘Anini, where they turned at a marker and raced back to the finish line.
The race included two starts with the women, mixed and na ‘opio racing first, followed by the men’s teams in the second start.
“The Mick Callahan Memorial typically has low participation because the race is traditionally held the week following Na Pali Challenge,” Shewchuk said.
“It comes at a point when many teams are preparing to race in other world-class races, such as Queen Lili‘uokalani along the Kona coach of Hawai‘i Island. That didn’t keep it from being great fun for all of the competitors and spectators when the event concluded with an awards ceremony and a taco bar that left everyone who attended with a smile on their face.”
Full race results can be found online at https://www.webscorer.com/race?raceid=325115.
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Dennis Fujimoto, staff writer and photographer, can be reached at 808-245-0453 or dfujimoto@thegardenisland.com.
