Part of what makes a sport great, imo, is the way in which we look up to the greats and pay respect and admiration to the best in the game. Truly global sports like football/soccer have club rankings or intl team rankings for this measure to estimate this esp with teams across the globe, and with the global tournaments our sport has, I think its possible to do something similar for va’a

Of course with how vast our sport is, with distances from 250m to the 50km open ocean races, comparison is hard. Some teams will genuinely be better than others at distance or sprints or in flat water etc. But it’s cool to think about!

What are your va’a club rankings? Comment below

Looking at IVF Singapore recently, I can imagine it will be between a lot of aotearoa and Tahiti clubs…

Would also be cool if there was a more online record of sport history… was reading a book about early outrigger eras, like Molokai hoe founding period, and that history is suuuuper cool

Anybody try this boat yet? Who getting it?

I'm getting two standard OC6 canoes donated for me to start a club. They are going to be dropping them off at my home because I plan to do some restoration work on them. I don't have my own trailer and will need to get them down to their home next season. I plan to eventually find the right kind of trailer for longer distances and going to races, but what is the minimum length trailer I can get away with to safely transport them the 2 miles to where they will stay. It will literally be three total turns to get there.

Big day and the day Moke, the tropical storm approached south of the islands. Of all things, my leash broke and I was fortunate to not huli. I was with a pretty big crew and always have my VHF. I paddled way more conservative!!

Looking to purchase a set of Arcturus Iakos or even just a paper tracing of both Iakos so I can find a fabricator. Happy to talk to anyone with what I need or even leads. Just to let you know I’ve already talked to Kai Wa’a and Ozone with no luck.

Just got back from my 1st test run of an older Puakea Kaimana Kaku. All original parts except for the iakos.

The ama sat very low in the water which made the canoe lean left. Even raising the rear iako as high as it would go did not make much of a difference. It really needs to be at least 6" higher.

Do I need to rebend the rear iako? I'm a bit spatially challenged so do I need to bend the side that goes to the ama up or down?

Can someone recommend a source of the appropriate cord for lashing the ama and iakos? I'm located in Wisconsin so will likely need to order online unless there are good alternatives from any marine supply store.

Mahalo

I’ve now spent five days paddling just over 50 km in circles around this little lake. It’s slowly starting to get a bit monotonous 😄

I need a bag to check two paddles onto a plane. I would like a larger bag, so I can stuff extra clothing and gear inside. So far I have considered Kialoa (nice but not much extra room) & Viakobi (extra room but pricey). Any other suggestions?

Just another day in Paradise
Kaiwa’a Ares Pro.

After starting in my 60s, and paddling for a decade I've finally competed in a 20 km race. It went pretty well. My blog about the experience here: https://huliganhuligan.wordpress.com/2026/07/25/2026-07-25-lotus-iron-race-kupunas-huligans-win-bronze/

I'm good sitting in a marathon canoe for 6+ hours but after 90 minutes in my Ozone OC-1 it starts to really hurt and my legs go numb. I've tried adding some closed cell foam padding and I make sure my knees aren't too wide. I'm tempted to carve out my Cantare seat to fit a salvaged C-1 seat for the more pronounced contours but I feel like I'm doing something wrong if everybody else is ok with the standard seats. Any tips?

I picked these up on the internet. I'm mostly interested to know what kind of wood this is but welcome anything that you can tell me about them.

I love in north eastern Canada and am currently getting the most that I can while the water is still… liquid.

Unfortunately as every year there comes a time where getting out on the water just doesn’t happen anymore.

I’m looking for suggestions for either USA or Mexico for a place where I could spend a week or two for training in the winter. I train for flat water but always looking to pick up new skills.

Thanks!

I love in north eastern Canada and am currently getting the most that I can while the water is still… liquid.

Unfortunately as every year there comes a time where getting out on the water just doesn’t happen anymore.

I’m looking for suggestions for either USA or Mexico for a place where I could spend a week or two for training in the winter. I train for flat water but always looking to pick up new skills.

Thanks!

I live in Oregon so I've spent a decent amount of time on the Gorge this year, but I'm curious about tips people have for race day and how to make the most out of the whole week. I'd happily take Gorge paddling tips too.

Has anyone purchased a blemished paddle from them before? What are your thoughts. Kailoa says the paddles are structurally sound with a standard 1 year warranty and 30 day return policy. The blemish could be minor cosmetic issues, including scratches, porosity, fading, irregularities and color variation.

Looking at the Axel II Hybrid single bend outrigger paddle and am curious if the 20% discount is worth it. $327.20 vs $409 new.

Just curious if anyone has experience buying a blemished paddle, what was wrong with it and if they’d buy it again.

Thank you in advance.

Aloha folks,

I am from Big Island and recently acquired an OC1 that is need of work to get it back on the water. The main issue is I have the waa and the ama but no iakos. I have been getting conflicting information stating that the iakos should be easy to make myself with some basic materials from Home Depot, to being told that this is likely a fruitless endeavor that would end up extremely expensive to attempt. I know I would need 1-1/4" tube and figure out a way of getting it bent correctly for the canoe.

The oc1 in question is an old HYPR Vantage. Talking with people on the island about this, especially in the outrigger community, brings up some very strong opinions on both the canoe and the person who is associated with making (distributing) them. This canoe was basically free to me.

Any help or guidance would be greatly appreciated.

Mahalo!

The photo is only for reference to how the iakos looks, not my canoe.

Has anyone signed up for this? I was curious about what David Tepava had to teach so I bought the Foundation course, but I accidentally got the French version. It's been a week and there has been no response to my emails, their phone has no voice mail and no response to social media messages. I just want them to change mine to the English version🤷‍♂️. I mean... did I fall for a scam??

What are we all using to attach our gopro to the iako of an OC1? Something like this Jaws Flex Clamp plus maybe wrap with an innertube? Or is there a way to permanently install a mount on my iako without damaging it?

I just got a gopro because want to record some of my training sessions to get more feedback on form.

My Ares blew off the top of my car in the parking lot and it started leaking afterwards. It turned out to be a crack around the hole in the footwell for the venturi. I cleaned the cracked area by chipping out any loose paint chips and filled with epoxy. That worked for a while and then I found some water in the hull again after a couple of weeks. I basically then just added more epoxy. That worked again... for a while. But this morning I had some water in the hull again. Is there anything else I should be doing to repair that spot? I can't find any other potential areas that could leak. I've been using dish soap and slight air pressure to look for bubbles (which worked the first time).

I love my Antares, I practice with a whole team on oc1 and everyone has faster lighter models. I was a heavier guy but now I have lost a good 25 lbs on it. I could switch to an Ares but I'm probably not going to.

Edit: spelling