[outrigger] Good Press for Kauai & Puuwai Canoe Club
Bcu...@aol.com
Posted on 06 July 2012. Tags: Judy Byfield,
Luke
Evslin, Margaret Steinhardt, New York Outrigger Hawaiian Airlines Liberty Challenge, Pu`uwai Outrigger Canoe Club Pu`uwai Women Masters at 2012 Hawaiian Airlines Liberty
Challenge post race Lu’au and Awards Ceremony. At left and right in blue are
representatives of Hawaiian Airlines. Kaua`i paddlers front (l-r): Nancy Graf,
Mary Pixler. Back (l-r): Cynthia Osborn, Margaret Steinhardt, Judy Byfield,
Joanne Woltman. Photo © 2012 by Adam Stoltman; Credit: Jennifer Olsen Outrigger canoe teams from Hawai`i swept first place in all divisions of the
annual Hawaiian Airlines Liberty Challenge hosted by the New York Outriggers
Club recently. From Kaua`i, the Pu`uwai Outrigger’s Makauahine O Puuwai of
Wailua took First Place Women’s Senior Masters Division in a 15-mile course with
a 2:32:39 time, while a handful of paddlers from here also won a first place in
the Mixed Division as members of a crew calling themselves Mixed Nuts.
Mixed races are 11 miles; the Mixed Nuts time was 1:32:49. Crew members for the Puuwai team included: Cynthia Osborn, Margaret
Steinhardt, Joanne Woltmon, Nancy Graf, Mary Pixler and Judy Byfield. Team member Byfield, raised on O`ahu before settling on Kaua`i 42 years ago,
said she’d never been to New York City. “It was quite the cultural shock, but the people were friendly and the food
great,” she said. “I was impressed with how clean it is. “The day we raced, it was 80 degrees. You get hot when you’re racing, but the
water was cool — you could jump in it and not freeze.” Byfield continued, “There was lots of traffic, a little scary in there. We
had to stop for a barge. I’d much rather paddle in the ocean.” Another team member, Steinhardt, originally from New York, said that for a
few days prior to the race, the weather was hot, but the day the raced, she
says, “It was fantastic, and the water was way clearer than I had expected. The
whole experience was positive — I had a great time and love being in the
city.” One unusual thing, she said was that “It was a little frustrating that we had
to halt the race because of traffic — in Hawai`i, we never stop paddling.” Also from Kaua`i, members of Mixed Nuts included: Luke Evslin and `Ilima
Sanchez. Beth Kauwe was slated to be on that team but took ill. And paddler Chris Kauwe from Kaua`i was part of another mixed crew calling
themselves the H2O Ninjas, and as well, Luke Evslin
paddled. This annual challenge is the largest outrigger regatta on the East Coast.
Over the past 16 years, the Liberty Challenge has grown to become one of the
most prestigious outrigger canoe races in the world. The race is unique among
world outrigger regattas as it takes place in a bustling urban harbor. Each summer, crews from across the country, Europe and the Pacific travel to
New York City to compete in its kinetic waters. According to race director Ed
Acker, as seen on the race website, [http://libertyoutrigger.org/racers/] “The
15-mile race race begins under the Manhattan Bridge in the treacherous East
River, passes around the Battery by the World Trade Center site and heads north
up the Hudson on the Manhattan side, then crosses over to the New Jersey side by
the Empire State Building and proceeds south passing directly in front of the
Statue of Liberty. “After passing the Statue, the course veers east across New York Harbor and
around Governors Island and finishes directly in front of the Brooklyn Bridge
Park in Brooklyn.” Elsewhere, gleanings from the website state “Crews not only have to gauge the
strong tidal currents with their dramatic and sudden shifts, but they must also
negotiate the vast number of ferries, cruise ships, tour boats, barges, tankers
and pleasure craft that fill New York Harbor, the East River and the Hudson
River. “Men, women, and co-ed crews race along a challenging and visually-stunning
course, which includes landmarks such as the Statue of Liberty, Brooklyn Bridge
and Ellis Island. The regatta is comprised of three races run in heats over the
course of the day.” New York Outrigger has hosted the annual event since its inception in 1996.
Since then, the Liberty World Outrigger Competition has welcomed participants
from all over the world including Tahiti, Australia, Costa Rica, England,
Sweden, France, Germany, Italy, Singapore and Canada along with clubs from all
over the United States including the West Coast, Arizona, Florida and
Hawai`i.Categorized | Home Page Slideshow, Kaua'i Bits
Pu`uwai Outrigger Grabs a Title in New York
