Waikoloa Beach Resort guests have the opportunity to watch the canoes in action on August 29, as the Great Waikoloa Canoe Race (sponsored by Waikoloa Beach Resort and Lava Lava Beach Club) takes place in Anaeho`omalu Bay; and a busy practice schedule finds canoes and paddlers in the water almost every day of the week. Resort guests can also learn about and even try paddling for themselves, as Legler can be found at Anaeho`omalu Bay most days. Similarly, Club Beach Director Ed Teixeira is usually found on Thursday mornings on the beach sharing his knowledge of the Hawaiian traditions, language, and techniques of paddling with the `ohana paddlers.
“When someone gets in a canoe,” Teixeira says, “they are stepping into Hawaiian history. It is important for them to know something about that. In the pre- Western contact days there were canoes of all types that the Hawaiians used for transportation and fishing. In the days of Kamehameha I, canoes were used to conquer and unite the islands.
“Nowadays, the sport of outrigger canoe padding is the state sport. We have managed to take a sport of the past and make it modern, while still adhering to the traditions of the past. This is not only true in Hawai`i, but in many other parts of the Pacific also. We are very proud that Hawai`i has been a catalyst for the resurgence of canoe paddling throughout the world.”