Board of Directors/Imua Awards From: Debbie Dierkes   Imua OCC BOD 2008-09 President: Debbie Dierkes V.P.: Big Wave Dave Treasurer: Jen Todd Secretary: Denise Mendelssohn SCORA Rep: Kathy Carter MWtE: Bobby Woods & Brian Cunha Imua Award Winners for 2008: Perpetual Trophies: Women's Perpetual Trophy: Dora Apodaca Men's Perpetual Trophy: Steve Macccharoli Coaches Awards: Most Improved: Female - Shari Anderson Male - Bill O'Rourke MVP: Female - Debbie Dierkes Male - Jim Picquelle Novice Categories: Novice Most Improved Coaches Award: Female - Laura Pellegrini Male – Ryan Cooke Novice Most improved Team Award: Female - Bryn Mathison Male - Sage Humphries Team Votes: MVP: Female – Heather Picquelle Male – Joe Bober Team Spirit: Female - Deena Kiley Male - Dave Martyn Most likely to volunteer Award: Female – Dora Apodaca Male – Bobby Woods Best Photographer: Mary Theresa Chin Best Website Master: Jim Gleason Best Designer: Stephen Caldwell Corporate Challenge Awards from Big Wave Dave: First to bring in a Corporate Challenge boat: Sharon Augenstein Couldn’t do it without you!: Julie Malley, Kathy Carter, and Cathy Viscounty Honorable Mention: Denise Mendelssohn and Dora Apodaca Fun Categories – voted on by the team: First to pay dues for 2008: Jim & Cat Perry First to arrive at the race site: Dean & Jeanette Burridge Best beach set up: Jim & Heather Piquelle Best post race fashion: Mary Theresa Chin Last to leave the race site: Steve & Elisa Burke Most likely to hit reply all: Bill O'Rourke Weirdest injury during the season: Merl Morales – Hurt his back doing the hula hoop during novice graduation. Kissing Bandit: Alex Cooper Winter Race Season From: Debbie Dierkes Aloha Imua: Following is an email from SCORA with all the Winter Series Info and Race Dates. Time to get on those 1-man, 2-mans,surfskis, paddle boards and standups to start training. I will be sure to forward any race flyers or info I receive in the future. Read on paddling fans! Debbie D ******************************************************* Cant get enough paddling? Need to get back on the oc1, oc2 and surfski? Looking for ap lace to race paddleboards and standup bords this winter? We have a schedule for you! Heres the skinny- we have a little series of races hosted from San Diego to Santa Barbara starting November ending in March. We’d love for you to come out and20play at all of our races! Each course, race is different, every host brings something unique to their event- none are to be missed! Race 6 out of the eight on the same type craft (or with the same partner if you race doubles) to count towards your overall point accumulation to be the series winner at the end of the season. Points are given to the top 12 places regardless of award division within that race (example: you may have finished 4th over all, 1st master, but you get 9 points for being in 4th place) Each time you participate in a race you get a raffle ticket thrown into the hat for the end of season sponsor supported raffle. You can not buy tickets into this raffle- it is participation only! At every race will have at least 3 support/safety boats, lunch, awards, lite breakfast items, and some clubs even throw in t-shirts for first 100 entries. All this for anywhere between 15 and 25$ per race. Prices flex depending on host and what they offer. Looking forward to another GREAT winter of SoCal racing! See you soon *********************************************************** Nov 8th La Jolla Shores Invitational Dec 6th Oceanside becky Stewart Memorial Dec 13th San Diego Tecolote 5000 Jan 17th Santa Barbara Pier Back to Pier Jan 31st Mission Bay Hanohano Ocean Challenge Feb 7th NAC Hal Rosoff Classic **Feb 15th Redwood City/San Fran Double Header- Hui Wa’a (Nor Cal) Feb 21st Lanakila- Carpet Beach Race March 7th Dana Ocean Challenge March 21st Marina -Paddleme.com Championships March 28th Catalina Relay -Ocean Ohana Men & Women --- Catalina - The numbers don't lie... From: Joe Bober   Aloha Imua, As we look back at the Catalina Crossing, it's easy to see what place you came in and what time you crossed, but knowing that the competition changes every year and the water and wind are always different, what do these numbers really mean? It's in my nature to dig a little deeper and analyze the result to see what we truly accomplished, and all I can say is WOW!!!! This year we entered 3 womens / 2 coed / 4 mens teams. We did the same in 2007 along with a 3rd coed. WOMEN & COED: 2007 Winning Team -- NAC -- 4:53:52 2008 Winning Team -- NAC -- 4:53:05 *** Improved by only 47 seconds which means that the conditions allthough different yielded the same result, and should leave all other crews to finish the same if they stayed same. However..... IMUA 1st Crew -- 5:26:08 -- IMPROVED by almost 7 minutes from '07 IMUA 2nd Crew -- 5:38:59 -- IMPROVED by over 17 minutes from '07 IMUA Open Coed -- 5:51:25 -- IMPROVED by over 43 minutes from '07 IMUA Masters Coed -- 5:56:53 -- IMPROVED by over 41 minutes from '07 IMUA 3rd Crew -- 6:26:53 -- IMPROVED by over 24 minutes from '07 ** Those numbers are amazing considering that NAC with another awesome ladies crew basically stayed the same MEN: 2007 Lanakila Mens Team -- 3:59:19 2008 Lanakila Mens Team -- 4:05:59 *** Slowed down by nearly 7 minutes with what was a better team in '08 2007 Team California Mens Team -- 4:13:08 2008 Team California Mens Team -- 4:15:35 *** Slowed down by over 2 minutes with what was a better team in '08 this means the conditions were slower, and should leave all other crews to finish slower if they stayed same. However..... IMUA 1st Crew -- 4:18:04 -- SAME TIME from '07 even in slower water. Closed gap on Lanakila by nearly 8 minutes. IMUA 2nd Crew -- 4:45:42 -- SAME TIME from '07 even in slower water. Closed gap on Lanakila by nearly 6 minutes. IMUA 3rd Crew -- 4:54:16 -- IMPROVED by over 17 minutes from '07 IMUA 4th Crew -- 5:13:38 -- IMPROVED by almost 12 minutes from '07 This tells me that every single team Imua put in the race truly IMPROVED from last year to this year. You should all pat each other on the back and be proud of what we accomplished. It's easy to find a club that had 1 boat do better, but to have a club with 9 boats in the race and all of them improve is unheard of. If all of you continue to work hard through the winter, just think what we can accomplish next year. Work hard, and have fun doing so! Congratulations to all of you! It has been a great season. Whitey Harrison Recap From: Debbie Dierkes   Aloha Imua, Whitey Harrison is one of my favorite races of the year and this year was no exception. It was a great day of racing and jumping in the ocean was easy with the gorgeous weather. Congratulations to all the former novice who participated! We're all proud of you and you should be too. Thank you to all Imuans who contributed to their success on their first 9-man voyage, I know they appreciated your generous support and team spirit. Thank you Billo for all your hard work in securing escort boats and keeping us organized. Thank you Scott M. for driving our canoes to and from Dana Point. Thank you to everyone who showed up with the sun to help get the boats ready before the race and stayed until the all the boats were loaded, secured and every loose item safely tucked away for transport. Thank you Jim Picquelle & Brian Cunha for volunteering your time and money to the pump systems. And thank you Steve for your email clarifying the pump protocol. It was great to have a pump on board this race, however, I've raced most races without one and I think it is important to remember that a pump cannot take the place of the basics, which includes attending practice to work on your paddling skills, build endurance and blend with your team mates. Always good things to stay focused on! On another note regarding equipment. Please remember that our Men With the Equipment are our Equipment Managers and we the team members are the worker bees. When pointing out areas of concern regarding equipment, please offer to be part of the solution and help fix the problem. Bobby, if you'll point me to the sand paper, I'll be happy to sand the harsh new non-skid in the boats Saturday morning before the race. Sam Couch sent out an email thanking everyone who bought Ocean of Strength jerseys in support of his efforts to raise money towards Cystic Fibrosis research. He is a man of few words but I know everyone's support meant a lot to him. It also meant a lot to me, thank you. As you all know, next up is Oceanside. I've attached a pdf of the flyer or you can go to the SCORA website at http://www.socaloutrigger.org and view it there. Please be there at 6:00 AM to, you guessed it, unload, rig and get our boats ready for another adventure at sea. To all the dedicated members that work hard to keep Imua surging forward with strength and heart, thank you . . . IMUA! IMUA! IMUA! Debbie D Thank You IMUA! From: Debbie Dierkes   Aloha Imua, Sunday was a great day for all of us! Corporate Challenge 2008 was a huge success and we should all be proud of our accomplishment. It was a busy but relaxed atmosphere and everyone I talked to was having a good time. In the early morning several of us met on our beach to load and put 11 boats in the water. We then paddled over to our site and the place was already humming with activity. There was lots of good camaraderie and problem solving as our little village was up and running in no time. As we welcomed our guests, I saw that many of them have the routine down too by dropping off they're gear at the entrance and then going to find parking. Repeat business is a compliment! Thank you Imua! Lunch time is always a bit of a stressor. There is nothing like a line of hungry faces to send terror through you veins. It's the real "Race the Imuan Challenge" and it was on. No problem, I do believe we were ahead by at least 35 plates the entire time. I know, you wanted more and really, if we could just get our patrons to run through the lunch line then we could really get our heart rates up! Great job everyone, they all walked away satisfied and eager to try all the good food. Thank you Imua! The Imua Keiki are wonderful! Not only are they great team mates and paddlers, they perform beautifully! Thank you Imua Keiki! This year was the quickest clean up I've ever seen. I turned around, the boats were gone and an hour later we were all but done with the site clean up. Way to see it through the end Imua! Thank you! The effort to put on this event is huge! Every year I'm amazed at how it all comes together. There is a long list of thank yous to go around and I do believe I've managed to thank each of you quietly in my heart at least twice since Sunday night. Some of you take on big jobs and others take on many small jobs, it's impossible to be every where to take it all in and see first hand what you all do, but the proof is clear in the end result. From what I saw, this is one of the smoothest running Corporate Challenges I've seen to date. Thank you Imua! Yes, it was a smaller guest list but that made it easier to keep folks happy. Looks like we went for quality this year and that will bring in more folks next year. And we'll be ready! IMUA! IMUA! IMUA! THANK YOU! Debbie D Points, Points, Points!!! From: Joe Bober   Imua, We had a solid performance yesterday to close out the Ironman Series of racing. There were some very happy people stepping out of the Imua canoes as they told stories of each of their races. The main goal of this sport (as should be in life) is to have fun. And we did! We felt a little empty (and some would say cheated) at the end of the day, as we watched the perpetual trophy leave it's 3-year home with Imua. Dana Point did an awesome job in taking it home this year, and we should all congratulate them on their accomplishment. Make sure we show ourselves as gracious competitors who enjoyed the competition leading up to the final point. Yes, there was some confusion on how the points were to be counted, but that was not on Dana or anyone else in the race for the lead. They just showed up, entered boats, did their best, and enjoyed each race like we did. The points race for next year and beyond will just need to be better clarified by Kai Elua and we'll do our part to make sure that happens. We move on..... More importantly, I hope all of you realize how amazing we did this year! We won this trophy in the past years with point totals in the 60's and 70's, with our highest total for the season being 81. This year, we came into the race with 84 points and if I recall all of the Imua crews I saw marching up to the podium yesterday we probably earned around 100!!!! That is impressive, and is a huge accomplishment and team effort. The whole goal of pursuing this trophy is to build the ohana of our team, and the importance of EVERY crew and EVERY person on it. EVERY BOAT MATTERS, and every person contributed to that awesome talley of nearly 100 or more points. IMUA is a force from top to bottom and all of you make the difference in working towards this goal and any other we choose to pursue. I couldn't be prouder to be a member of this team. This Ironman Series of '08 has been are most successful yet. Enjoy it! Mahalo, -joe Details, details... and some quotes to ponder. From: Joe Bober   Imua Men & Women, I think Bill'o already covered the Avila race so no reason to cloud over his work. In case you missed his recap... It was hot! The San Diego State Champs are here! and Imua is ready to defend its' 3-time Ironman State Championship Trophy. Dana Point is fighting us shoulder to shoulder to the finish, and it will all come down to who gets the most points this weekend. I've talked to their Novice coach and Mens coach and they said we should be worried. I told them we are never scared of who's behind us! Use this week in practice to make sure your boats are rigged the way you want them, you have talked about hydrating during the race, you have a race plan, and more importantly a race goal! I will do my best to have crews set prior to Tuesday night practice so you can race in your crews. Almost everyone has confirmed their race status or spoke to me except for Don F., Jung, Scott A., and Per. So each of those guys please let me know now. And ladies, if you haven't confirmed with Heather then please do so now as well. We pretty much have every single person on the team racing this weekend which should make every crew the fastest it can possibly be, however I'm sure all of our competition can say the same too. This race brings out everyone, and demands the best from each of them. I haven't given you guys many quotes this year. I've been saving up till now. Here are a few to ponder as you prepare yourself for the coming race.... “I am a member of a team, and I rely on the team, I defer to it and sacrifice for it, because the team, not the individual, is the ultimate champion.” “I've worked too hard and too long to let anything stand in the way of my goals. I will not let my teammates down and I will not let myself down.” “Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence wins championships.” “I am building a fire, and everyday I train, I add more fuel. At just the right moment, I light the match.” Saturday morning, when you gather together as a crew, look each other in the eyes and somebody strike a match. Winning will always be more about attitude then it is about ability. Aloha, -joe 4 Kinds of Hot From: Billo   It was just a shimmer on the horizon… the kind of distortion that makes thirsty men crawl the desert thinking that they found water only to dive into endless baking sand… that shimmer can only come for something HOT!!!! Oh and it was one HOT weekend! Race Fans, Avila Beach was smoking HOT. The first kind of hot was the drive up on the stop and go freeway. The second kind of hot was the record breaking heat in Avila – the hottest ever on record by 30 degrees. The third kind of hot was the way our crews ran on the water – can you say medals by the molten ton!!!! And then we had the heroic kind of hot – the reaching into a burning RV to save a teenage boy from a sure death – VERY HOT. However you can describe it, race fans, it was one HOT weekend. To jump to the heroic kind of HOT first – Our very own, always ready to lend a hand, Mr. Big Wave himself literally reached into a burning RV and pulled an unconscious boy to safety. He truly saved this kids life as the RV became fully engulfed in fames literally minutes later. Super hero’s come in all shapes and sizes but none will ever be bigger or stronger than Big Wave. And the great thing about Dave is that he can pull over, save a life, and still make his tee time. Just another HOT moment in the life of a Super Hero. Nice!!! Nice and HOT… so I think you got the picture that it was one hot, Hot, HOT drive and one hot day at the beach… The only place to “escape” the heat was to be on the water – but it was just as hot there! Imua started the day nice and hot with the Novice crew crossing the line first – that’s right – first over the line, first overall!!! Our novice crews all did awesome – in fact they were all so fast that they were back in a flash… hardly had we cooled our feet from cheering them off when we had to race back across the desert hot sands to welcome them back. And then we place 6 crews on the water for the women/ coed race. This race brought a new kind of hot in the heat of a race. We had two of our coed crews paired with husband and wife combo’s (and a fiancé couple) helmed by two top steerwomen – blood sisters at that!!! You can only imagine the pre-race chatter between these two crews – late into the night the two opposing warriors in my tent were shooting the subtle digs. Now it was race time and it was ON!!!! But it was our first women’s crew that was 4th over the line… our coed crews battled neck and neck. And the finishes were all crowd pleasers. The women’s race had quite the finish and our crews added many medals and many perpetual trophy points to the tally. And then the both men’s crews took off… remember how it gets hotter as the day progresses. Well the men’s race was the HOTTEST yet. We (yes I was in this race) had a great HOT run. After the last turn, we headed into winds of Dante, what a HOT dry smack in the face. But we persevered, we pressed on and we finished hard. Both the men’s crews medaled. And the perpetual tally grew. After one baking hot awards ceremony – where I swear every other crew on the podium was IMUA – the clank of Imua medals could be heard all over Avila. Now don’t quote me here folks – but the bleary minded count back in camp appears to have IMUA one point in the lead… And then we had one small, quiet, alcohol free party at the campground… wait that was the bible study group I stumbled upon by accident. The campground rocked with parties from one end to the other – and INTERESTING – the best one was in the cul-d-sac. HMMMM, the cul-d-sac was all populated by Imuans - interesting. For more details check out the attached… naaaa, you’ll have to show up next year if you really want to know happens when you mix the winningest club, great ohana, a few beers, great tunes and – oh yeah – a whole lot’ta HOT. Keep it that way. Imua, I’ll see you on the beach!!! Billo Keeping it Hot in MDR! From: Debbie Dierkes   Aloha Imua, If I wasn't part of the hottest team in SCORA I would need a hot iron to press out the wrinkles & kinks from the crazy washing machine on Saturday. No worries though, Imua is keeping it hot and we'll be fresh off the line come this Saturday in Ventura. A quick recap of the days winnings are as follows: Novice Men - Spec - 2nd (2pts) Novice Men - Open - 4th Women - Open - 1st (3pts) Women - Sr. Master - 1st (3pts) Women - Golden Master - 3rd (1pt) Co-ed - Open - 2nd (2pts) Co-ed - Master - 1st (3pts) Co-ed - Master - 3rd (1pt) Men - Spec - 2nd (2pts) Men - Bradley - 1st (3pts) Men - Golden Master - 2nd (2pts) Woohoo, that's a total of 22 points! Can you hear the sizzle? And, that's a lot of beer mugs gang! If we ever get tired of paddling, we could open our own bar. Or maybe we already own Little Knight? Congratulations to our coaches and everyone on the team! I've been hearing a lot of "I don't like competition" from folks outside of Imua. I love paddling with my friends and the challenge of improving my skills. The way I see it, my teammates bring out the best in me. Our teammates inspire us in many ways to take our game to the next level and any success we have as a paddlers belongs to the them too. In turn we inspire others. This exchange of energy between us is the spark that ignites results like the ones we had Saturday. And we all get to be friends and have fun together on the beach! The highlight of my day was when the Open Co-ed passed us, the Sr. Master Women, on the last leg in the ocean. Of course, we don't like to be passed, but when it's your own team, it's all good and when you look up to see your daughter in seat one, it's awesome! What a great crew, Maddie, Michelle V, Julie Way, Mike M, Don & Mauricio, the energy off your boat was motivating, congratulations on a great race. And kudos to the Sr. Master women I paddled with, they fought a strong battle with Kahakai on one side and MDR on the other side with steely determination all the way to the last mark in the harbor. Not once did you let up and I'm proud to have been a part of your team. A big round of applause to the Imua SCORA volunteers! Our very own Cathy V is in charge of the central So. Cal area and helping her unload the SCORA van to set up PA system was Kathy Carter, Mary Trumble and Michele Early. Kathy & Michele then went over to Registration to help Caren Thompson. Mary Trumble (appointed by Bobby, go figure . . . ha, I wish I had that figure) was out on the Safety Boat, with Bobby, for the men's race. Miss V reports that these fantastic folks went above and beyond the call of duty! Marina OCC was very appreciative and very thankful for the help. It's great to know that Imua is doing their share to help make the races go smoothly and I must say, with such a great group of beautiful women, you make us look good too. Thank you all! Mothers Beach is a special boat unloading/loading challenge of it's own, so an extra big thank you to Scott for driving the trailer! Thank you Mary Theresa for the pictures, they are always great to see, no matter if you nap in between or not. Thank you to the MWtE, Bobby & Steve, for your constant care of our racing gear. Thank you to everyone who has remembered their rigging dates and shown up and on time to help out this year. We were done in an hour last Sunday and once you get going, it can be an enjoyable time on the beach with your teammates . . . yet again ;) IMUA! IMUA! IMUA! Keep up the great work team! Mahalo, Debbie D Crystal Pier Update From: Debbie Dierkes - 05/13/2008   Aloha again Imua, Congratulations to Heather & Joe! What an incredible set of crews you put together for our race last weekend! Spirits were high, the energy focused and the team was hot! It was wonderful to have everyone together on the beach and out on the water paddling toward a common goal! We were the force to be reckoned with and we backed it up in every division. If you're counting (and I know most of you are), the unofficial point count towards the Perpetual Trophy is at 19. What a great way to kick off the season! I hope you're all beaming from all we accomplished this weekend. Thank you Scott Murdoch for towing the boats!!! Thank you to the teammates who showed up to help unload/rig boats and to those of you stayed to reverse the process at the end of the day. There was a lot of help at our race site too. Thank you to everyone who helped lug the race jerseys back and forth from my car and our race site. Thank you to the teammates that brought pop-ups and food. Thank you to Wave for selling t-shirts and bringing in extra money for the team! Thank you Jen and Denise for keeping us legal! And a big thank you to the teammates who stayed and cleaned up our race site. It looked awesome and as you read in an earlier email, it made a great impression on Hanohano! And MwtE, thank you for all that you do to keep our boats in racing condition! Next up - RIG RUN! - in Santa Barbara. You can view the flyer here http://www.kanaia.org/rigrun08.html and here http://www.kanaia.org/rigrun.html. The list of no is now familiar to you all, no dogs permitted on beach, no alcohol, no glass, no bar-b-ques, no stakes for canopy tent(how would that work in sand anyway?), no vendors, no overnight camping on the beach or in cars or red mini-vans in the parking lot. Let's respect Ka Nai'a OCC and all the work they put into securing a permit and putting on an awesome race. And how about the Novice and their coaches! What an awesome job our newest members did on Saturday! Our Novice men crossed the line first and the women took 3rd in the Bradley division. Congratulations to all the Novice! Sometimes the crew numbers don't work out and I want to say a special thanks to Laura and Kathleen for being such great teammates and sports. Congratulations to the Novice Coaches, Dora and Bobby. I'm sure you're both still beaming with pride! Also Steve Burke sent me a great link with Cheance's recap. It's a good read, however Oceanside Sr. Master women did not take third too. That was Imua, thank you! And yes, SCORA has been contacted on the "little mistakes" that always show up on the posted results. The best part of the article is a paragraph that highlights Dennis & Brent "1st Spec, 2nd overall was from Imua- I find it worth mentioning here that the stern of this crew was Brent Campbell, Dennis Campbell's son! The legacy continues.. For those of you who know Dennis it is extra special to see him beaming with pride over Brent's accomplishments in paddling, and for him to be able to pass along the torch- so to speak. Congrats to both father and son. This is the 2nd father-son combo of SCORA notoriety-Al Ching and Danny have been on the radar for many a year." Read on at http://notes.socaloutrigger.org/2008/05/11/hanohano-crystal-pier-ironman-race--continued.aspx . We're all proud of both Dennis and Brent! Mahalo again to all of Imua for a great day at the races! Debbie D Crystal Pier Race From: Debbie Dierkes - 05/05/2008   Aloha Imua, The race season is upon us and we are ready to rock and roll! Be at the race site this Saturday at 6:00 AM to unload canoes and rig. The race flyer is to large to attach so please check it out on our website at http://www.imuaocc.com/ and remember you can always go to the SCORA website http://www.socaloutrigger.org/ for all the latest updates and race flyers. If this does not work for you please email me and I'll send you the flyer directly. Potluck - Yes, we will have a grill fired up and ready to go. Please feel free to bring your favorite breakfast and after race grub to cook up and share. STRENGTH TECHNIQUE HEART We know about STRENGTH, we've been paddling off the winter tires and building the summertime buff for weeks now. We all know about TECHNIQUE and you don't need to hear anymore from me, well, at least not until I'm perfect and I wouldn't hold your breath on that. How about a word on HEART? HEART comes from you! We all make it happen by being good teammates. We're there for each other at 6 AM on race day to prepare our equipment, we're there for each other to load the canoes at the end of a long race day and we're there for each other when we show up for scheduled rigging days. We respect each other and work at celebrating our differences through understanding that each of us brings a unique element to the whole. While racing, we stay focused on the task at hand and support each other all the way to the finish line. Working together keeps the boat up and running. And it keeps the team moving forward to our goals. Most of you would like to see us win the Perpetual Trophy again this year. No sugar coating, it will not be handed to us, but it is possible with the right attitudes and team work. Lets give it our all by showing up on the beach Saturday (6am) ready to go the extra mile and do whatever it takes to make it happen. Let's see the Imua ohana shine! The List of NO! Alcohol - Please be aware that as of January 2008 the City of San Diego has a new city ordinance - No Alcohol on the beach. The ticket is $250.00. Glass on the beach is another big NO! Our host teams could lose their permits due to this problem! I can't even begin to explain how hard they work to secure race sites for us. Let's honor them by being respectful of this simple request and know we'll be able to come back to race next year. NO GLASS ON THE BEACH! Also, no dogs and no smoking! A big thank you to all of our teammates who have helped prepare for this season! The equipment is ready, the dues are collected, the waivers are signed and the rigging list is complete. We have a great looking jersey and an opportunity to order more great clothing from Patagonia. Our new website is up, we have Clif as our first sponsor this year and our SCORA officials are in place. Our coaches have worked hard and worked us. The new paddles are in the mail. Many thanks again to Bobby, Steve, Jen, Denise, Kathy C, Wave, Heather, Dora, Joe, Billo, Dennis, Scott M, Corry, Ruben, Andy, Elaine, Jim G, Jim Perry, Jim Picquelle, Nikki Nus, Stephen C, Cathy W, Cathy V, Stephanie, Mary, Beth, Scott Burrows, Kamalu, Willie, Deena and Maddie. Thank you to all of Imua for helping out with the equipment and the beach clean up! Bring it and keep it hot Imua! Woohoo! Debbie D Boat Blessing From: Debbie Dierkes - 04/24/2008   We will begin setting up at 9:30 AM and the Boat Blessing will begin at 10:00. Everyone is welcome; please bring something to share according to your last name: A thru K – Muffins, bagels or breakfast bread L thru R – Fruit S thru Z – Juice, coffee Jerseys & t-shirts will be available for purchase. Corporate Challenge Raffle Tickets & Packets will be available too Kick-Off Luau 2008 From: Debbie Dierkes - 04/22/2008   5:00 – 10:00 at Rick & Lysanne Sebastian’s. The main course, pork, chicken, rice and macaroni salad will be provided. Please bring your choice of drink & a dish to share according to your last name: A thru L - Dessert M thru Z – Appetizer At 7:30 enjoy our live entertainment performed by The Polynesian Paradise Dancers. Our 2008 Jerseys are here! And will be available for purchase at the Luau. The cost - $25.00 each – COD. In addition to jerseys there will be Imua t-shirts, Imua visors by Big Wave Dave and Imua backpacks by Josh for sale, also COD. Check out our new Corporate Challenge Raffle Tickets – Pick yours up and let’s start selling those babies! Corporate Challenge Packets will also be available. Ho'ike 2008 From: Debbie Dierkes - 03/25/2008   Aloha Imua, Randy Chang blessed our boats last year and will be doing so again this year. He performs a wonderful ceremony while taking time to enlighten us by sharing some of Hawaii's traditions and customs. Randy's Haulau and their annual ho'ike is this Saturday, March 29 at 7:00 pm and this is their fundraiser which keeps Randy's Haulau open. It sounds like another great opportunity to enjoy the Hawaiian culture and learn more about their traditions! Mahalo, Debbie Wikipedia Translations: A halau is Hawaiian word meaning a school, academy, or group. Literally, the word means "a branch from which many leaves grow." Today a halau usually describes a hula school. A common Hawaiian adage is "?A?ohe pau ka ike i kau halau," which means "Don't think that all wisdom resides in your halau." A ho'ike is an exhibition of Hawaiian songs and hula. It Is On!!! From: Debbie Dierkes - 03/10/2008   Aloha Imua, The excitement is building as we all hit our beach this week to begin practice for the 2008 Season! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you . . . to Steve and Bobby, our MwtE (aka Equipment Mangers) And more thank yous to everyone who came out the last couple of Saturday's to help out. The paddle box and the area around it look great. Everything has a place, with not a stray PFD or paddle in sight. Our trailer is empty as we have all of our boats sitting on the beach rigged and ready to go for practice. It is a blessing to have such dedicated Equipment Mangers. Please make sure you thank them for all their planning and follow through when you see them! There will be a couple of more opportunities for everyone to come down and help out. On April 26th after practice we will be cleaning our beach and giving our boats another cleaning/maintenance check. Also our boats will need to be weighed at some point, the exact date is yet to be determined. Please try to make it to one or both of those days and contribute to the high performance of our boats and equipment. Big news! We have a new website at http://www.imuaocc.com . Bigstep is shutting down on March 31st. Many thanks to Jim Gleason for taking the lead on this project and to Nikki Nus for backing him up. This was a bit of a set back for us, but their willingness to step up and help out made a big difference. We will continue to fine tune it as we go, but it already looks great (I think I saw a picture of Diggler wearing Billo's grass skirt) and we have cool new address. Please feel free to congratulate Jim and Nikki on a job well done! We also have a jersey design. Congratulations to Steve Caldwell's and his Side Hook design! Steve's design won by a healthy majority and we're already rolling with it. A big thank you to Denise Mendelssohn for heading up this project. It was the BOD's wish to include the whole team as much as possible in our jersey design for 2008 and Denise made it happen. And a big thank you to Steve for stepping up to help see this project through to the end! We all really appreciate it! Kick-off Luau and Boat Blessing The Evite for our Kick-off Luau came out last week via email. The luau is on Saturday April 26th at 5:00 PM and we will gather at 10:00 AM for our Boat Blessing the following day, Sunday the 27th. It's all coming together and we will continue to keep you updated as the season rolls out. Many thanks to the BOD and their continued dedication! See you on the beach! Woohoo, it's on! Debbie Website Changes From: the webmaster   Hey Team! As the new season moves forward there will be regular updates to our website. One big change you may have already noticed is the name you typed in to get here. Gone is Imua.Bigstep.com and in is ImuaOCC.com. Also, some minor changes are happening to the site itself. The past news is now archived and we are hoping to have regular updates, stories and pictures throughout the season and a link is provided to help us keep this area active. The new race schedule is up and when times are confirmed the practice schedule will also be updated. Our fearless President will be providing her words of wisdom and encouragement along with team updates. If you have any questions, suggestions or ideas to make this site and season great let us know! Mahalo, Jim Gleason Rig Run 2007
email from Billo 05/21/07
Aloha Imua, What a day! We are a racing club, and it always comes down to the finish, it always comes down to a sprint… And the Rig Run was no exception; the boats really poured it on at the end – two boats battling it out… So I kicked it up a notch, and everyone around me did the same. I pushed and the boats started pulling away. Damn, I thought, I don’t think I can run any faster… That’s right – Run - The Novice made us run on the Rig Run!!! The novice boys brought us a very tight finish, as close as the last turn they were running second. But an awesome turn brought them to first and the sprint was on. When they passed in from of camp battling to maintain their half boat lead, the finish line was 300 yards from camp – hence the problem, hence the sprint. It dawned on everyone that this was going be close and the foot race was on. In the end, we were rewarded with an awesome finish!!! Our boys were first over the line. It was a great finish and one you can check out thanks to Scott Murdock’s photo finish. Check out page three for the finish, but check out all his photos here. And the crews kept the finish line hot!!! The next Imua boys over the line medaled as well. What a great start to a great race. I don’t have all the stats, but across the board, the crews did well, showing great improvement from last week. All the training and all the focus on technique is paying off. Make sure to thank your coaches for returning to the basics and building on what we have been learning for the last several seasons. I could see it in the novice crews, I could see it in the women’s crews and I could see it in the men’s crews. We are just going to get stronger and stronger, paddling smarter and paddling better. We collected a pile of medals, and as I predicted earlier this year we are going to have a great season! Not only are getting stronger and smarted, but our spirit is growing as well. Imua has become a large extended family. I mean just to catch the novice finish you had to run ½ mile just to get past the edge of the Imua camp. Not that long ago we fit under just two tents… now we need a dozen. And that is what I love about this team - Mindy, of Offshore fame – was taping video for her blog and asked finish this sentence - I love paddled because… and I answered because of the ohana. We are one big extended family. Imua was one on the last to leave the beach, the spirit of the day too hot and too fresh to extinguish easily. Back in Carpinteria where a third of the team was camping and the celebration continued. There were numerous fire pits blazing, campsites filled with people, food to feed two armies, beer, stories, noise and music, the bonus feature a breathalyzer to see which novice was more over the limit… thankfully we only had to walk to a tent… which happened around 10:30 thanks to the Park Ranger. What a great day on the beach, what a great day at the races… What a great day PERIOD. In two weeks we concur Marina . I look forward to seeing you on the beach!!! Mahalo Imua, Billo

 

San Diego First race 2007
email from Billo 05/14/07
Aloha Imua, I M U A We are going to win today… I know I started last years recap with this, but the cheer was heard again on the beach and even though our cheerleaders were mostly at home, hearing it just charged me up! I want to hear the cheer at the next race and the next one and the one after that! It amazing to think we celebrated Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years, a couple Imua parties, a boat blessing… and yet Catalina seems to have finished just yesterday. But this was San Diego and the Imua clan gathered in strength – we placed 16 crews on the water. We are nearly 140 members strong. That’s quite the family, quite the ohana spirit!!! When you add in all the support from friends and family, the number nearly doubles. Imagine 200 plus Imua folk gathered to celebrate racing, 200 folks cheering the team and the crowding the finish lines …and 200 folks getting fed at the Imua grill. I swear, it seemed the line stayed 20 deep at the double grills for an hour – we truly feed an army. Many thanks to all who made that possible bringing food, drinks and grills – especially Cathy, John and Tim. Next race bring a 5 spot to cover the cost, this is purely a donation on their part. And of course, thank Mike and Teri for driving our boats. And of course we raced – we officially cheered our novices to their first race, their first time competing, their first finishes. Next to racing yourself, cheering the new guys is a blast. We owe a big thank you to Dora for coaching and guiding this amazing class of athletes. You guys were awesome, and once again I grew hoarse cheering. And we had great reason to cheer. Our novices got medals!!! Some of our boys even medaled after getting forced off course. What a great finish the crews provided, and what great stories they came back to tell. And the ladies were off on their first race and they had quite the run – as the stories were told afterwards…. The finish was another yell fest as we cheered our women on. Bobby would call with updates from the course and the buzz kept growing as the word spread boats were in the harbor. With the first boats spotted, the cheers grew louder and the energy grew stronger. And there, in battle for placement with the front of the pack was our women, charging hard and moving forward. Again, it was a blast to watch. We had 8 crews in the water including coed – we had to cheer for quite a while… Quite a few great finishes and quite a few medals were collected. And then the men… hey, being a spectator is fun, being a competitor is even better!!! The boats lined up – sort of – they mostly kept “moving” in place… and we were off. The pack spread out, I saw our mirage crew battling with the leaders and we battled with the boats around us. The swells made for some sloppy conditions, but our crew kept charging. We made the turns, ran the course and hit the bay entrance. It might have been the cloud of smoke billowing off the grills but our boat to really surged – apparently we could taste the meat, or the water felt like home but man did we kick up the pace – we were going to pass some boats! And when we rounded the bend and were hit by the Imua energy heard the Imua cheers – well our boat really started flying. And we crossed the line and inked the first race of the 2007 season! What a great day on the beach, what a great run on the water, what a great start to the season. In the end we captured at least 7 medals and we went home hungry and eager to do better at the next race. Yes I M U A We are going to win today…. …went the cheer And we surely had something to cheer about. I’ll see you on the beach! Billo

 

Services for Scott Griffin
Billo, October 2006
Imua has a lost a member of our ohana, Scott Griffin (pictured far left), who passed in his sleep Saturday, September 24th. Scott paddled with us earlier in the season, but wasn’t able to make the races. Scotty was a novice with Imua in 1997 and raced for several seasons. He was in my master’s crew when I first paddled Kona along with Rick Sebastian. He moved back to Rode Island a few years ago to be near his family and only to return to CA because he missed it out here. Scott rejoined Imua – though shoulder injuries kept him mostly off the water. I raced many a race with Scott and will miss his spirit and generosity. A memorial service will take place on Saturday, October 14th at 10:00am at Dilday Brothers Funeral Directors in Huntington Beach. A memorial paddle will be held the same day from North Star Beach to the Wedge at 1:30pm. We hope you can join us to pay our respects. In lieu of flowers, the Griffin "Ohana" requests that donations be made to either The Surfrider Foundation or Habitat for Humanity. To Scott - a Friend, a Father, a brother, a member of our paddling Ohana Ho'e Hapai', "paddles up".

 

Rupert Remembered
September 30, 2006
Several paddlers, kayakers and Newport residents joined hands at Offshore beach to honor and remember Rupert, the Australian black swan of Newport harbor, while more watched from the water. Escorted with a Harbor Patrol water fire display, canoes and boats decorated with Rupert flags then headed to the harbor entrance where Rupert's ashes were returned to the water. Mahalos to everyone who came out to honor Rupert. Click below for photos and stories: OC Register, 10/1/06 Daily Pilot, 10/1/06

 

HOLY COW
email from Billo 06/05/06
Holy Cow, Batman, Imua kicked butt this weekend! Robin, one could deduce that that’s an understatement. Imua, we truly we did more than just kick butt, we did so well, they should name the race for us! From the first to the beach – Jung & Mike - to the end of the day with the wild women dancing on the sand – [don’t worry ladies what happens on the beach stays on the beach] - it was a spectacular day. If you didn’t yell yourself hoarse cheering – you must have been at another beach! From the Novice race where the Coed team started the medal madness continuing into the Ladies and Coed races and not stopping until the last men’s crew arrived across the finish line the cheering and the medal count just kept growing. For the record Imua, we placed 17 crews on the water – 10 crews for the Women/ Coed division alone. All through the ranks, we had winning combinations. Make sure to thank Dora, Bobby and Joe for the crew lineups – they were golden this week. Golden!!!! (what did Batman say about an understatement????) Yes Imua we were golden - I believe of 17 crews that 13 medaled. I could list them all, but I don’t have the finger strength to type all that ;-) Actually, you can soon see the listings in the SCORA website – heck we should get a dedicated page! True to your Coaches word, the crews this week were completely different from the previous race. Their goal has been to take some chances and try different talent in different combinations to determine the best and fastest crews for the Iron Championship. I can say that your Coaches will have their work cut out for them - how do they choose from so much talent - because ladies and gentlemen, the crews are all getting faster and stronger and better. I want to share kudo’s with a couple of my brethren – first time race strokers Jim Picquelle, Chinner, Pam Bierce and I all stroked our first race – and the icing on the cake each of our boats medaled. Congratulations to all who tried a new seat and prospered. Of course I am truly proud of my crew the First Bradley’s men’s crew – we rocked – only two people in that crew had raced together before and yet we were a solid, cohesive, positive team. Lad’s it was such a pleasure to paddle with you! Yes Imua it was a great day. We have three reasons to thank John this week – first he towed the boats, second John just brought his son Joe to the team and Joe raced his first race on Saturday, and third he grilled up a mess of fish for everyone. Your Co-pres Cathy started a great Imua tradition of grilling at the races and thanks to both Cathy and John; we now have dueling grills to feed our 120 members. Help them out and bring some food and propane to the next race. And then it was medals time. As you can see by Mary’s picture email we were up there many times. There was much cheering, much joy and much celebrating. It was a great day on the beach. Thank you Imua for working as a team, for pulling as a crew, and celebrating as a family. I had a great day on the beach… till the next race Imua – Mahalo and Aloha! Billo

 

I M U A (Crystal Pier race recap)
email from Billo 05/15/06
I M U A We are going to win today!!!! That was the cheer from the Imua pep squad cheerleaders. Boy how right they were and on so many levels. I thought I’d be the first one there only to have both Debbie D followed by Pam slide in in front of me at the off ramp – only to be greeted by Ruben in the parking lot. He wins first to site rites!!! I M U A - We are going to win today!!!! We started out right; the trailer arrived thanks to Mike and Terri Martinez. The boats were quickly unload and the rigging crews went to work. The boats we ready in no time thanks to Brian Cunha’s organization. We even changed out three boats worth of seats. From a logistics side that was a winning start. I M U A - We are going to win today!!!! Cathy W started the grill and Imua was off to another grill fest. The ladies started to carbo load… and the novices started to get nervous – the call for their steering meeting went out. Imua put three plus crews in the novice race. We gathered at the waters edge and the cheer started. wwoooo wwwOOOO WWWOOOO WWWWOOOO the cheer kept growing louder and louder. The energy was amazing. I felt it all through my body and the energy kept growing. There wasn’t a person at that race that didn’t hear it, that didn’t feel it, that didn’t ‘Wow, Imua is in town’. Even thinking about the cheer still brings a rush to me! Another winning start! I M U A - We are going to win today!!!! And the novices were off. The stories they brought back to the beach told us they had a crazy start and a great race. Their stories even topping the wild huli show of the women’s crew at the finish line (interestingly, we found a banana peel in the boat at unloading last night). Every Imua novice hit the beach with a smile on their face. They were soon rewarded with a special novice gift. But I think the biggest gift went to Dora who watched the people she has been training leave the beach as greenhorns and return as hardened racers – thank you Dora. I M U A - We are going to win today!!!! And then it was the ladies turn… Under Bobby’s guidance, Imua launched a fleet for this race – 8 Imua crews hit the water!!! It was a sea of blue as boat after boat after boat of ladies and coed teams hit the water. The guys had a chance to rest – the novices to party – and the camp waited for the return… I M U A - We are going to win today!!!! And they returned, charging hard – boat #27 Kaila Kahiko and then Kamau and crew after crew after crew crossed the line. The ladies had three boats finish in the top 11 spots. – OUTSTANDING. We also medaled in 4 divisions. Following my own axiom I yelled myself hoarse almost to the point of completely losing my voice. I M U A - We are going to win today!!!! And then the guys hit the water… This time under Joe’s guidance, Imua launched 5 crews. We paddled of and all gathered in the jetty to stretch and assess our competition. Paddled to the race start – and we were off. All that training, all the charged up energy of 8 months off – BAM released. And, and I M U A - We are going to win today!!!! Boat #27 Kaila Kahiko – crossed the line first minutes ahead of anyone else - so impressive a finish the Jim Picquelle as actually ‘speechless’. Great job boys. Of course my crew followed strongly behind and like the ladies finish, we had three boats in the top 11 spots and took medals home in 4 divisions. I M U A - We are going to win today!!!! We are the winning team off the water as well. The boats were loaded onto the trailer IN TIME to allow everyone to attend the medals ceremony. To the people who work hard on the logistics of getting Imua onto the water – we thank you - for taking care of that so well. I M U A - We are going to win today!!!! The medal’s ceremony was an Imua fest. Jim Perry brought bongos – (thankfully because my voice was gone) and we celebrated all the teams and all the crews. But we were the loudest for Imua… I M U A - We are going to win today!!!! I didn’t list the medals as I don’t want to leave anyone out – check the SCORA site for details. Imua, we are off to a huge start. We have another race on Saturday – another chance to paddle, party and celebrate!!! I M U A - We are going to win today!!!! We won on many levels and even some unexpected ones – an Imuian took home the most raffle prizes - Chelsea M I have all 5 of your raffle prizes… I M U A - We are going to win today!!!! Mahalo, Billo

 

Imua Paddlers Compete at the 2006 World Sprints in New Zealand
March 20-25th, 2006
Cathy Weinberg and Stephanie Snead of Imua represent for California at the Waka Ama World Sprints at Lake Karapiro, New Zealand, March 20-25th. Click here for pictures.

 

Imua Makes the Cover of the Daily Pilot and Featured on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno
December 2005
Daily Pilot: No motor needed... Imua's triple-hull Newport Boat Parade entry was spectacular! Check out the story on the Daily Pilot web site. The Friday night crew was also shown on the Tonight Show in a segment about the boat parade! Check the pictures on Saturday night from Dora.

 

Catalina Recap 2005
email from Billo 09/12/05
Aloha Imua What a great race. What an exciting close to a spectacular season. What a great way to BRING IT for our 35th season! Catalina is done and once again we have ended the season better than we started. I was hoping that the results would be posted before I wrote this; instead we have to wait to determine the overall finishes for the men. Of course we already know Imua finished 7th overall for the women and ….. drum roll please 3rd overall for the guys. This year we had 6 boats receive a medal. Saturday Mirage class – Imua 6th Open Bradley – Imua 4th Coed Master – Imua 2nd Coed Open – an awesome finish Sunday Mirage class – Imua 3rd (and overall 3rd) Open Bradley – Imua 3rd Open Bradley – Imua 6th Open Bradley – an awesome finish The race was not without some extra work on our part. This was the year of escort boat mix-ups. We had all we needed two weeks to the race with spare and hit three days before the race one boat down and no spare. It was a stroke of good fortune that we ended up with all the boats we needed including getting our spare back. Then we lost a transmission for the escort of our men's canoe #29. This boat had some deep reserves of strength in that for the last two hours some people had only a 10 minute rest while Stuart ironed that whole piece – his food and drink on the broke boat. But that crew, like all Imua this year – BROUGHT IT. It appears that your coaches' Catalina goals came true. The first boats set new records while the second boat matched last years first boat finish and the third boat the seconds and so one. That could only happen with a dedicated effort on everyone's part to push harder. We all improved, we all grew stronger, and we all moved forward together. Despite celebrating 35 years, Imua is a young team. But as this year indicates, we keep setting the bar higher and higher. Next year – I predict – I'm writing it down – setting it in stone – Imua will win Catalina. If you saw the race flyer, Imua has done this about 10 times before. I think we are about to do it 10 times MORE. We can do it – we can bring it - because we have unlimited potential; we have unlimited opportunities; and we have unlimited spirit. It has been a great year. We have celebrated the graduation on another great Novice group (Brian and Nikki raced every race!!!)(…they wanted to make sure I told everyone that) And we saw the club grow. We welcomed members back who paddled with Imua 15 years ago and welcomed members who joined us from other teams. Imua our family, our ohana has grown steadily for 4 years. I look forward to the ohana growth for next 4 years. It's hard to look at any one crew, any one race, or any one moment and pick a favorite. I feel like the proud dad who won't pick a favorite child and I can't pick a one favorite time over so many great times. I've raced with the best, I've partied with the best, I've gotten drunk with the best and I've become friends with the best. You can't do better than that. Now it’s time to give your paddles a rest. Well for a week anyway… because technically the pre-season started today ;-) Imua, I look forward to our party on Saturday – then I'll look forward once again to see you on the beach! On behalf of the Board, the Coaches and your bad-a$$ selves. Mahalo, Billo

 

Riding Some Bumps
email from Billo 06/13/05
IMUA, Imua, Imua they cheered – new voices were added to the chorus this week as my parent’s, sister and nieces watched the race. All our races made for an exciting finish at the line. We had another great day on the water – and with awesome water to surf. Cue the surf music… Both the open races had some great bumps to ride home on. In my boat, it would have been easier to count the waves we didn’t hit… it seemed like we rode a constant bump all the way in. (It was really fun to ride all the way past and ahead of NAC) All those crazy “victory at sea” practices are paying off big time. The bumps made for a fun race. But the finish was even better. I think all of Imua was hoarse by Sunday from cheering the crews at the final push. The novice men rounded to rocks for the final push home packed tight with two other canoes. Those boats locked on the turn and Chris’ thinking quick throttled his crew back, bypassed the jack-knifed canoes and powered forth. They continued to walk past boats a seat with every stroke all the way across the line. It was the start of the constant cheer the continued all day – it only got louder as the novice women came into view. And then the women and the coed crews were off. The open women took Kamau out for another run, and had a great finish. It was fun watching Number 19 cross the line, the women pushing hard, competing well! We had some other excellent finishes as well as with the Masters’ Women medalled –again! And drum roll please! We had our first husband and wife team medal this year as Tony and Carolyn pushed hard in a Coed crew. And another drum roll – we continued to rack up the medals. All the boats in the men’s race finished at the top. Kamau, lucky 19, once again claimed 1st place and 1st overall. New this race Imua placed a crew in the Master division - my boat - which took 6th overall and 1st masters. And the Open crew took 2nd place and improved their overall finish. So my family got to see a great finish, and enjoyed hearing that Imua was in the lead blasted over the loud speakers. Once again Imua, thank your selves for the effort you put forth. We placed 11 crews on the water and raced across the line to collect 5 medals. The real gage, though, is how we finished. I think just about every crew finished stronger and better this race over the last - A measurable improvement. This race, your Coaches – Joe, Heather and Dora mixed crews a little differently and we had extraordinary results! We had different steersmen, different crews and different categories. Through our efforts as a team, we are continuing to develop some substantial depth. Great job Imua, we are pulling everyone up together! Now these coming two weeks we “rest”. Actually your coaches have crafted the workouts to allow our bodies, our minds, and our strengths to peak for the Kai Elua Ironman Championships in the 25th. Keep up the push Imua. And thanks for the great day on the water, it was gratifying to hear my parents relate the stories you all shared on how much you enjoy Imua. It’s something they hear from me all the time. Finally get those Corporate Challenge crews signed up. Remember our goal of 75 boats, and my goal to have those boats all filled by June 30. Let’s keep charging together, my friends. I’ll see you on the BEACH!!! Billo

 

What I've Learned
email from Billo 05/22/05
Hello Imua, I’ve just returned from spending the Sunday in Santa Barbara and the first thing I do is race to the computer to send the update – I’ve got my priorities!!! What a great day at the races Imua, we did well. It was also one of the most enjoyable races I attended. And as I was more relaxed, I had the opportunity to learn a few things. I learned that experience can win over youth. I learned I learned it makes no difference what color you are. And I learned that I learned that a women can look pretty bad-ass when she covered with tattoos. I’m talking about two Imua women specifically! This weekend these two ladies had a little contest and experience won over youth! Oh, their ladies have attitude alright and have been talking trash to each other on the beach. And interesting this race is both these ladies each won two medals in Santa Barbara. Still don’t who I’m talking about… Why its’ only the two badest women in all of SCORA - Kamau and X boat. (Note: You always call things of beauty a she ;-)) Our experienced beauty - X boat #29 brought home two 1st place medals; while our youthful - Kamau #19 brought home a 1st and 3rd place medal. It was quite a battle; our tattooed ladies competed in both the open men and women’s races. But in the end experience won this round. Still wondering which crews took what – well, I’ll let your excellent Coaches - Joe, Heather and Dora share that news. Yes Imua, it was a great day at the races. I’ve spend too much time writing about the experiences of my boats’ racing, instead I’ll just share some of the other things I learned. I learned this year, this race… …our novice men are THE most experienced huli racers in SCORA – they can right a boat in moments – something we hope they will stop demonstrating in races ;-) …our novice women paddle hard and with a great deal of heart. …our coed teams are a force to be reckoned with – our crews have a lot of depth! …I’ve learned that our ohana has multiplied ten fold with all the new Imua family member and kids. … I’ve learned that Dennis can get his crew to surf on flat water. … I’ve learned that our ladies finish the race as hard as they start. …I’ve learned that Diggler can motivate his crew to reach deep and kick-on the turbo charger for an end-of-race sprint. (Okay I had to say one line about my boat) …I’ve learned that at the end of a race Joe smells like he bathed in a 6-pack of beer. … I’ve learned that Chris Chen can order a Helicopter to pick up Imua members at 11:00 at night from a campsite 100 miles from LA, send them to work and have them delivered back their sleeping family by first light. … I learned our open men crews are a tough set of bad-ass paddlers (yes, Imua took first overall men’s – again) (You guys rocked) … and I learned (really I’ve always known) of just how proud I am to be part of a team that works together, plays together and grows together. From our coed to our women to our men’s crews we move forward together. Thanks everyone for the great racing in Santa Barbara; Marina – in 2 weeks – is our next opportunity to shine. Imua, I’ll see you on the beach. Billo

 

Can you say BRING IT!!!!
email from Billo 06/05/05
Can you say BRING IT!!!! Imua, we brought it Saturday!!! It’s only the third race and we set the bar even higher! 75% of our crews medaled… I should say mugged – we brought home beer mugs. Colleen stated it was her most useful medal to date!!!!! The excitement started with the novice race. The novice men completed the entire race upright; they were almost dry when they hit the beach. The novice coed charged hard across the finish line. The novice women brought home the first novice medal of the season. The first of many great medal finishes throughout the day. And Imua BROUGHT IT in so many other ways!!! Marina is an awesome race site and this year it was back at the site the race from 3 years ago. It was a perfect start. Mike and Mario claimed first on the beach, driving the boats and arriving at 5:40am. Nice job guys. We quickly claimed an immense area for Camp Imua and the day was off. This day made even more special because our sponsors were able to be a part. Don Murray – we all need to give him a big high-five - pulled off a major sponsor appreciation day. He arranged a boat party with prime race viewing for our sponsors to enjoy a bit of the action. We had representatives from Fastener City, West Marine, Aloha Printing and Paddleme.com. We also had Laguna Tribe on hand – but we made Steve Caldwell paddle the race rather than hang out on the escort boat. Reports from our sponsors say they were mighty impressed and were grateful to be invited out. Tim from Fastener City may even attend the Ventura race. And back to the race. The women’s race saw an entire fleet of Imua boats on the water! And they did great, and then the men’s race started. Oh, I got a little ahead of myself. The women did great YEAH!!!! The women and the coed crews rocked!!!! In fact they rolled the history books over. Every boat – yes EVERY – boat mugged. The mugging ceremony was an Imua fest. Crew after crew jumped up to the podium and were ceremoniously mugged (I can get so much action out of this mugging thing). Yes, and then the men’s race. The competition was the toughest we had this year and we pushed hard. All through the day, crews kept reporting the sloppy conditions. Well the men’s race was also favored with the same conditions. But, my GPS tells me we have some great surfing after the second buoy turn. And once we hit the harbor, our flat-water training really kicked… we closed the gap significantly on the two boats ahead of us. We made Lanakila push hard for every inch of water. Our training paid off for the final push, the final sprint to the finish line. Yes, it was a great day on the water. And back the Sponsorship boat – I’m sure the open men and women’s crews were all jazzed by the cheering and enjoyed that boost of hearing Imua called out. Don got the West Marine guys so fired up they are ready to start paddling. We shared the sponsor boat with Lanakila – their sponsors with ours. Don made sure our sponsors out cheered the Lanakila sponsors. Even the sponsors BROUGHT IT!!! And we finished. Imua we had a great day on the water. We have people who never been mugged, get mugged for the first time. And we had people take their first - first place mug… for their best finish yet. The final stats 9 boats mugged with 12 boats entered. All the crews pushed hard and returned excited. It was a great day to be on the water. And Imua, it was a great day on the beach. I had to take pause and marvel and the growth of our ohana – our family. This year we have the best support team in SCORA, so many spouses, so many friends, so many KIDS. We had the biggest campsite, the best grilling operation, the best spirit on the beach. For that my friends, Imua has grown because we give more than we receive. Thank your Coaches – they work their butt’s off for you. Thank your Board, they work their butt’s too. But really give yourselves a huge pat on the back for a job well done. Your enthusiasm and excitement are what keeps your Coaches and your Board working their butt’s. Keep on BRINGING IT! We have a new race that we can look forward to getting mugged at.. er medaled (or mouse padded at – as Ventura has awarded in the past). I look forward to seeing you on the beach. Billo And one last thing – CORPORATE CHALLENGE – We are looking to have our goal of 75 boats filled by June 30!!!!! Make it happen IMUA.

 

Double Blessing
email from Billo 03/14/05
Aloha Imua, What a great weekend for Imua and for ohana. This weekend we showed what Imua is all about, we put our house in order and we blessed it. It turns out we were double blessed. Saturday we had a tremendous response to get our beach and our boats ready for blessing. The club rented a generator and we polished the boats to a new shine. They haven’t looked this good since we last painted them. And the Blue and gold, lucky #10 - Dennis repaired her cracked supports and reinstalled her damaged seats. With her touched-up paint and newly buffed sides well she hasn’t looked this good in 10 years. All the boats received a thorough cleaning, but I think the biggest transformation was our beach. Imua Beach was cleaned from the shore to well behind the boats. The rut’s dug by the rains were filled in, mounds of weeds were pulled, and much trash carted away. Those who were able to participate left the beach in high spirits knowing our house was ready for a special day. And what a great day Sunday turned out to be. Sunday exceeded my wildest expectations. The boats were decked out in lei’s and Ti leaves, a gift from friends of Imua. People started arriving and the beach filled with people excited to share the day with us. We had spread the word that all were welcome and we were joined by friends from Newport Outrigger, NAC and Lanakila. Our food tents were decked out in fine fabrics and loaded with great treats and spirits. As I said, the Blessing exceeded my wildest expectations. I’m still a student in understanding the ways of the Hawaiian culture, and only recently learned that the boats and beach should be blessed every year. We asked Uncle Tubby from Newport Outrigger if he would honor us this year and preside over the ceremony. When he accepted, I had no idea the history of his family with ours. Today we learned that Uncle Tubby’s mother blessed Imua’s first canoe. That’s a family connection over 35 years. That’s ohana my friends. The other extraordinary moment, and one that moved me deeply, was Uncle Tubby’s request to have the group hold hands and form a circle as he blessed the canoes. My friends, our beach now holds 6 canoes, well spaced. When all hands linked we were joined together, a complete circle around every canoe – that’s our family, our ohana. That’s our double blessing our connection to our past, and our connection to our family. Truly, Imua has continued to grow and prosper. We did it, not by any one person’s effort, but by the team as whole. That’s how we race –all moving forward as one team; all moving forward as one spirit; all moving forward as one ohana. I thank all who made this blessing a success. Imua, we had a great weekend on the beach. We are going to have a great year on the beach – our 35th. I look forward to seeing you all there. Mahalo Billo

 

Ohana and Mana… thanks to Dave, Imua Adopts Beach
Through the fine efforts of Dave Martyn, Imua has adopted our beach through The City of Newport Beach and locally based EarthResource Foundation. Dave has been duly nominated the “Beach Captain” and is in charge of presenting data collection reports (debris and trash) on a monthly basis. The City and ERF supplied Imua with gloves, bags, buckets and data cards, which will be put to good use starting at the Imua Beach Clean Up day, Saturday March 12, 2005. Dave notes, “…we can really make a difference for the environment and our neighbors. After this weekends cleanup and blessing, all I ask is that we maintain our area by voluntarily policing it before or after each practice or whenever you can.” Cleaning supplies are readily available in our paddle box. Dave is also looking for a liaison from both the Novice team and the Women's team who can report to him on what was done via e-mail. (i.e. - we collected one bucket of trash @ our practice last night!). Dave continues, “Obviously our beach needs help, we use it more than the average citizen and through our Manpower, Womanpower and Kidpower we can make change!” In recognition of our efforts, the city will present Imua with a plaque in three months at their monthly meeting. All are invited to attend… Dave will keep us posted when the time comes. Imua, please support (and thank) Dave and do your part in keeping our beach clean.

 

Hey SCORA, have you got our number????
email from Billo 05/15/05
(711)-111-2344 That’s right, any team wishing to deal with Imua is going is have to call our number. Because, ladies and gentlemen, Imua showed what dedicated hard work and team building is all about. The number on our racing card showed some amazing depth! This is the 4th season that Scott Murdock and I drove the boats to the first race, this time with Pricilla riding along. We arrived at the race site ready to set up camp only to find 5 tents already up. There was an excited energy going around – just a start of the buzz that kept building all day. Soon our boats were unloaded, the grills were sizzling and the race fever was building. Then, oh my goodness did the buzz jump a notch (or 10) when the new uniforms were distributed. New bright blue with a bold IMUA OUTIGGER RACING emblazed across the back of the men, with the sweet Imua logo across the women. Suddenly there was a sea of blue everywhere thanks to nearly 70 members wearing the jerseys. Carol Schick, SCORA President personally congratulated Imua on the sharp look of the team. She was really impressed with IMUA! I had to step back and marvel at the growth of our club. Imua is one outstanding team! And then we raced and we started to flash our number 711-111-2344 Yes the races started hot! Our novice men and women paddled hard and showed great depth. They were rewarded first with the cheers from the entire club as they crossed the finish line and second with special novice gifts. The boats changed hands and the Imua women and coed crews were off. The big excitement was to watch Kamau as she was paddled on her maiden race. We couldn’t see the start, but we got updates from Don calling from the Official’s boat. The women have passed another boat, the women just made the turn; the women just passed another boat. The updates kept coming and the buzz kept growing (of course that could have been the kick-a-pu joy juices the novices were drinking). And then the first boats rounded the corner and into view… and there pushing hard amongst the best and the brightest SCORA has to offer, Kamau racing across the finish line. The ladies posted one of the best placements and set the bar high for the next race. The Imua crowd hardly had a chance to finish high-fiving each other when boat after Imua boat crossed the line to the constant cheering of IMUA. Once again, the boats changed hands and four men’s boats paddled off. Our start was truly a running (Caldwell crawl) of a start. The boats started moving – though no official boat was in front. Finally Billy Whitford raced through the pack and quickly raised the red and raised the green – we were really off – our training of all these months placed quickly into gear. What a great race. My boat pushed and performed well together. We gave ground to one boat… something we quietly and succinctly took back plus another boat once we hit the harbor and our flat water advantage was kicked into high gear. And we crossed the line. But Imua had already crossed the line - FIRST. Let's give a cheer for the crew of the Men's Mirage - First race, First place, First over the line. Good Job Team, good job guys! Can you say IMUA – the crowds at the beach, on the water and on the awards deck sure heard that we can! IMUA was cheered out loudly, proudly and often! All of you who raced on Saturday know the power and the joy received from the cheering of your teammates. I can tell you the spirits in our boat were really lifted when we heard that cheering and when that wave of positive energy hit the boat. What a rush. What a great day at the races. What an awesome day for Imua. So thank you Imua, thank you for dedicating your time and energy to take an ordinary day in May and turning into something spectacular. We shined from our campsite, to our jerseys, to our boats, to our spirit. For that, my friends, thank your Coaches Joe, Heather, Dora and Joel. For that, my friends, thank your Board for all the work you don’t see. And for that, my friends thank your self and your families for the sacrifice, the effort and the energy required to build our team together. We are Imua, and if your friends want to find out what it’s all about, tell them to give us a call, just tell them our number! 711-111-2344 ;-) 7 – Medals 11 – Boats 1st Place – Men’s Mirage (First place overall) 1st Place – Master’s Women 1st Place – Open Men’s Bradley (6th place overall) 2nd Place – Coed 3rd Place – Coed 4th Place – Senior Masters Women 4th Place – Open Men’s Bradley Thank you Imua, I look forward to seeing you on the beach! Billo

 

2004 Medal Count
The 2004 season has ended with Imua having the best year in decades! Check out the medal count… 1st Place: 16 2nd Place: 12 3rd Place: 9 4th Place: 6 (actual hardware – not all races recognize 4th place finishes with medals)

 

2004 Season Recap from Head Coach, Joe
Aloha IMUA, I end this season the same way it began..... reviewing your goals. At the beginning of 2004 (and some even earlier) many of you sent me your goals for the season. I've looked them over this morning and noted that together we have accomplished almost every single one. The season had so many highs but of course was not without turmoil from time to time. But when you bring 60+ competitive people together all willing to work hard and all wanting to be the best paddler possible..... all goals will be achieved, all difficulties will be resolved, and all will have known they have done their best. Above all, this season was fun, which was the top item on most everyone's agenda. If you go out to have fun and enjoy the team you are a part of, then you are bound to have many great stories to reflect upon along the way. IMUA came from nowhere this year, no one, maybe not even ourselves would have thought we would accomplish what we did out there on the water. Our updated website highlights the fact that 42 of our boats have medalled over the course of this year!!! That is amazing considering where we came from in 2003. Our club strived to be competitive, fun, and welcoming to all levels of paddlers. I feel we have done a pretty good job of being all of that and more. We have built a family that cheers each other on through the best and worst of times and never loses site of the fact we our a "TEAM". I can only hope this mentality will carry forward for many years to come. I look back and remember headlights on the boats in January, the Newport Beach boat parade, watching Debi and Todd on the surf canoes at the "day at the beach", the excitement and nervousness before the first race, Mary's great photographs, Cathy's grill, Dave's face when he found out he medaled for the 1st time, Brian's elephant foot, Diggler's ... well just Diggler, Ana's glasses, Novice juice, our cross-dressing novice men, shots after the Rig Run, Car-bombs after Dana Point, watching Abi cross the finish line during her OC-1 time trial and all of you cheering her on, Tecates in the boat, a surprise Birthday party, the deafening roar of IMUA, the girls talking dirty at practice, keepin' it hot!!, pineapple - coconut, the many parties, the many victories, etc., etc., etc...... I could go on for days, and I'm sure I haven't even scratched the surface of the many things that have brought a smile to each of our faces throughout the year. But most of all, I remember the new friendships I have found, the respect our club has earned, and how privileged I feel to have been chosen to be your coach. It was an honor for me, and a position I never took for granted. You trusted me to make decisions for the club and I can only hope I made more good ones than bad. You guys built the club, you guys made it fun, you guys brought home the medals and I'm glad to have played some role in making that happen. The 2004 season now comes to close for IMUA, everything you do from here forward will have an impact on the 2005 season. For me, I am putting away the clipboard for now and focusing on my own personal goals for the next few months. I encourage all of you to make some level of commitment to continued paddling throughout the winter. If you are fortunate enough to have access to either a 1-man or 2-man canoe, you will make the biggest strides forward. If you don't you will still progress by finding a way to get together with your fellow teammates and take out the 6-man canoes. I'm not planning on organizing this process, but maybe someone (heather has already sent out 1 idea) can coordinate a best time for everyone to get together. I know Jim Perry isn't shy about starting up a "rebel" practice. Last year we had boats out EVERY weekend, I really hope IMUA can show the continued fire and excitement to do this again!! It was one of the biggest reasons for our success this past year. I also hope many of you will compete in the Winter Series of OC-1 and OC-2 races, it is a blast as well! Again, thank you for everything each of you have done over the course of this year to support our club and to make it more fun than I could have ever imagined. No one will ever forget 2004!!! Mahalo, Joe

 

Catalina Recap 2004
email from Billo
Imua, We did it. Another season under our belt, and what a season it was. We started strong and wow, did we end it strong. For those who heard the sonic boom on Saturday night… it was our open women finding out they took 4th place open Bradley. Holy cow, the first Imua Catalina medal in I don't know how many years. There had been a discrepancy in the way the boats came over the finish line and at the "official" medal ceremony and other team was awarded fourth. Stephanie and Jackie thought about it and couldn't recall 4 Bradley's ahead of her. We talked to Cheance about 7:30 and ….. Yahoooo, Stephanie was right! 4th Bradley was ours. It turns out a Coed had been counted as a women's crew. When the news spread, the partying really got started. Of course the men went to their tents or hotel rooms to sleep. As the saying goes… for the Ladies and Coed guys of Imua… what happens on Catalina stays on Catalina… all I know is talk of body shots and dancing and drinking… but I digress. This year, the managers of Descanso Beach made sure the sprinklers were off, made sure there were no wild pigs, the girls were quiet when they returned from the bars… the night before was calm. Sunday was partial overcast as sunrise…. Thank goodness because it was hot on Saturday. The guys awoke and headed over to "Eat at Joes" for a hearty breakfast. The camp and Descanso was dismantled and the boats launched. My boat, Boat 29, was ready to rumble! The start was ON TIME and we were off at 9:30 sharp. I rode the escort boat first and it was exciting to see both our open men's crews running in the front of the pack; our Master's men charging down the middle. My boat did really well. Kathy Campbell from PaoPao was our change coach… she runs a tight crew. She monitored boat speed, crews, everything. Dennis only had to mouth something and she knew what to do. Plus, she really knows how to use a megaphone. She was a positive voice the whole time. After we moved through some chop mid channel, the boat hit great water and we moved - at times hitting 7.6 knots. The boat felt great. The run to the Dunes was my personal best and Imua's personal best for my tenure in the club. And we finished well! But all our boats did well this year. We had crew members join us from both Santa Barbara and Texas. We set 6 crews on the water, (1) women, (2) coed, and (3) men's crews… and all finished well ahead of the last boat. In fact, the two open men's crews bested our crossing from last year… and last year was another personal best for me! Good Job guys, two boats bettering last years time. It shows the dedication the club has had as a whole and our members as individuals. We have all worked hard and the entire club has moved forward and our skills have improved. That is all thanks to you and thanks to your coaches – Joe, Ruben, Stephanie and Heather. Coaches rarely get the credit they deserve…. Make sure you let them know you appreciate their work. …. Oh, but I digressed, again!… yes our men's crews did great!! and, And, AND… Boat 29 medaled. Yes, the first men's Catalina medal in many, many years! Boat 29 took 2nd Open Bradley – 4:16: or close (I had a couple beers and am a little blurry on details). To recap, 2 boats medaled for Catalina – Open Women - 4th, Open Men 0 2nd. Excellent run my friends, excellent job Imua, excellent season. So, we have one last task for the 2004 season. PARTY, PARTY, PARTY. The End-of-Season-Party is this Saturday at the Perry's, I'll announce time later (once I know when the Perry's will let us come over) This is BYOB. And elections…. Keep those candidate nominations coming!!!!! I'll post the nominations Wednesday. I've enjoyed seeing you…. On the beach!!! Billo

 

Long Beach Sprint Recap 2004
email from Billo
Did we kick butt this weekend or what! I can only marvel at the accomplishments of Imua this year. This weekend showed our depth as a club – from Saturdays Race Warriors to Sundays polished race host. Imua, you did yourselves proud. Saturday the sprints showed just how important your cross-training is. In this race it was just as important to be a fast runner as a strong paddler. More than one race outcome changed as a result of the foot race. Next season, Joe is going to teach the importance of running --- upright!!!! I only wish I had a camera, America's funniest home videos would have enjoyed our footage to Jim running, of course nothing can top Greg's Emmy winning portrait of the Sandman… only Greg's smile was recognizable after his famous face (and full-body) plant. But despite the face plants – medal we did! Deena looked like Royalty with all her Bling Bling. In fact Imua was covered with Bling. I can't even tally all the top finishes – from 1-man to 6-man Imua did great. And we had another first time medaller – Eileen – you go girl, she sprinted in for a first place for her team. I only wish I could have done the same for my team… Thankfully Gil was able to not only paddle his boat, but run to the finish as well. Your hapless President was so busy pumping Eileen up that he didn't realize it was also his race to run. Next year boys… Novices Deena and Sherri proudly wear their hardware! Congrats Novice Coed – Brandon, Jeremy, Jeff, Adar, Deena and Debbie! Master Coed – Winners of “The Cup”

 

Ironman State Champs Recap 2004
email from Billo
THE WINNING TEAM - That's the thought I carried with me all day and on the drive home Saturday. The Ironman State Championship was the 5th race and Imua is a pro at what we do. From our campsite to our racing, from grilling to rigging; Imua has really gelled as a club. This is an extraordinary THANK YOU to everyone, because no one could have or did do it alone. From our earliest practices, when our pre-season was most every other club's post-season, we have worked and practiced and grown stronger. Not just in body, but in spirit and ohana as well. We have pulled together, we have accomplished goals – goals set very high - and we have exceeded beyond my hopes. And, by all that we are the winning team. Plus, hells bells, we collected medals, not just here and there, but by the ton. Yehaaaaaa, more medals in the last 5 races than I think in the last 5 years. And, AND, I think SCORA would have to look far into the records before they found another club to sweep a division. 5 #1 finishes, with 5 top finishes for the second boat –mens. Excellent job well done - Top finishes in all categories. Excellent job Imua, excellent job on being my winning team. The winning team pulls together to bring everyone forward. I think Imua's excellence in that regard can be summed up by one name – Dave. Dave won his first medal this race. He helped power the Master Coed to 3rd place. When he found out he medaled, I think we thought he might explode. Never have I seen someone so excited and so thankful for being on the winning team. When Dave went up to receive the medal, we all figured he was going to give a speech. Instead he yelled Imua. Of course, all of Imua was chanting Dave, Dave, Dave. The other teams look at our extraordinary spirit, and wonder what awoke Imua's sleeping spirit. We know that answer – its 75 members just like Dave. People who work hard and play hard and realize a winning club is a sum of the parts not the efforts of any one individual. So we finish the Ironman season, this race adding a 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th place medal to our inventory. Thank you Imua, thank you for your efforts. Personally, I'd like to thank the men of my boat, the men of boat 7, for all the positive energy towards me for joining the crew. I'll remember this race for many moments, but more so for this being my first steering with a men's crew – in a State championship no less, and for how well we were able to perform. You guys never let up never slowed down and I enjoyed passing boats under your steam! Thanks guys and thanks Imua for being the winning team. Now we have a new challenge, SPRINTS. It's going to be short runs, fast fun, and another more great races. We have some great practices lined up. Keep up with your conditioning, sprints demand a real burst of sustained energy. Imua, we still have many races to finish, much meat to grill and more chances to grow as a club. Thanks to all of you, you have made Imua the winning team. I'll see you on the beach! Billo

 

Imua Takes Home 24 Medals at the 2004 San Diego Crystal Pier Race!
Novice Men – Second Place Open Women – Third Place, Bradley Open Men – First Place, Bradley (Second overall) Open Men – Second Place, Bradley As the team grew and progressed during the off-season, dedication and hard work by ALL paid off and Imua made an incredible showing at the San Diego Crystal Pier race bringing home 24 medals at the first race of the Iron season. Congratulations to everyone who raced this weekend, 57 people making up ten crews - 2 novice, 3 open women, 5 open men! First to bring home hardware was the Novice men, Steve M., Brandon, Jeremy, Gabe, Scott B. and Jeff C. finishing 2nd place. Excellent job, gentlemen. We knew you’d do well! Congratulations to our novice women as well for completing their first outrigger race! Next the Open Women in boat 29… they managed to navigate through a congested and chaotic start, passed and kept ahead of strong crews (on their tails the entire way back) and then caught the last two bumps just inside the harbor to safely secure their 3rd place victory! Congrats to Junette, Debi J., Heather, Cathy W., Cat P. and Stephanie. Our Open men nearly swept the division with 1st and 2nd place finishes. There can only be one first crew but our “second” crew men showed they are only second to their own. Congratulations to Pete, Bill, Marc, Steve C., Paul and Todd for finishing 2nd place Open Bradley and 10th overall! Now for that first men’s crew! Scott M., Joe, Brian Ma., Jim Pi,. Ruben and Dennis showed, undoubtedly, what Strength, Technique and Heart can do! After a great start, getting off the line and out front, this crew managed to pass and stay in front of EVERY boat (Bradley and Spec), except for one, NAC’s Mirage crew. Finishing an amazing and well deserved, 2nd overall and 1st place Bradley, the beach went wild with Imua people cheering and other clubs scratching their heads. Several crews from other clubs congratulated this crew on their phenomenal win. Excellent job men, keep it up!

 

Another Five Medals at Ventura 2004!
email from Billo
Ladies and Gentlemen… start your engines. And start them we did, but we finished even better! This weekend, Imua rocked. Another awesome week, another awesome race and another awesome Team Record. Five, count’em five medal finishes…. But Billo you ask, didn’t we have 6 medal finishes last week? Yes, I answer that great and wonderful record was set with 11 crews. This week, we set that record with 8 crews (though 9 crews raced, hmmmm….) And the icing on the cake, we took home a third place and four first place finishes - that’s the record. Thank your coaches, Joe, Ruben and Stephanie for the changes to the crews, they made some sacrifices and took some risks. They could have stayed the course, took the easy way – they didn’t and it paid off. For that I commend them and so should you. The efforts of all our members to move Imua ahead has produced the results of these last four races. Imua has depth. We work hard, we play hard – we grill seriously, and we have a good time. The conditions in Ventura were picture perfect. It was clear and sunny early… even at 5:30 am (thanks to no traffic.) Our newest member Steve was already setting the boat blocks as I walked onto the beach with our tents. Imua was first up and running. Imagine that! Tommy and Steve had driven to boats out Friday night and slept under the stars. Katherine, Don and Gil arrived shortly after me; the camp was set and soon the grill was sizzling with eggs and eggs and more eggs. Boats were rigged; crews were set and off went the novices… And then they returned, first just a orange sliver around the jetty… it’s our boat went the cry… and we started to walk to the finish line… only our boys were moving fast and we had to sprint to catch them cross the line… first boat, first place, unstoppable energy. They rocked. Our ladies followed soon after and we placed the open women and the coed crews in the boats and sent them off. More grilling ensued when quick enough more orange and blue was spotted and another sprint to the finish line… to see the Masters Coed finish 6th overall and first place. Only minutes later then next boat races around the bend. Open women moving through the pack even as they approached the flag to finish first again. What was in those eggs???? Then the men’s race, this time, with your author as a participant…. The water was wonderful out there. We could see that the ride home was on some big swells. The flag drops and boom we are off. I had the thrill of paddling with Dennis steering. We raced and pushed Lanakila through the entire event. Almost catching them, but dogging them the whole way. And we finished well, continuing our standing of First place men’s Bradley and second overall. We hardly caught our breath and Todd’s boat raced across the line to take 3rd Bradley – 7th overall – a three boat improvement from their last three races. Excellent job. But the Cinderella moment, the Mighty Ducks ending, the hop to your feet and cheer story are the novice men. A couple of them got a wild idea during the week. They determined that they wanted to stand in the tall grass with the big dogs… They asked to race with the open boats, though they still wanted to race the novice heat. After a quick review of SCORA rules… oh heck with the rules… They raced, again. And they raced well, and they passed plenty of boats…. They got their chance to race with the big dogs… no more puppy chow for them. Watch these guys come 9-man season – an Imua force to reckon with. Once again a great weekend! Thanks to all who made this another awesome Imua production. We have two weeks to the State Ironman Championship. Your coaches have a ramp-up workout planned to allow Imua to peak at the race. It’s going to be another great day. Don’t forget the Team Meeting this Friday at Sgt. Pepperoni’s 6:30. I’ll see you on there and on the beach! Billo

 

Imua Enters the 2003 Newport Boat Parade
In true Imua spirit, team members pulled off an amazing feat creating an incredible canoe entry for the 2003 Newport Beach Boat Parade. Led by Joel Chouinard and a few handy craftsmen and women, an amazing triple-haul, human powered vessel was created complete with lights, garlands and a platform with a 12 foot high center mast acting as a trunk for the Christmas tree of lights. Joe, Ruben, Joel and Jeremy (the token novice) took turns as King Kamehameha waving to crowds of cheers and Mele Kalikimakas. Johnny, master steersman, yelled commands from the center six-seat (nearly taking out a few moorings and coming within mere inches of an 18th century Cutty Sark and a few million dollar yachts) over the blaring sounds of a Hawaiian Christmas song replayed about 50 times. Bikini clad Debi pleased the crowds by dancing and tossing candy to other boaters and beach goers. Scott, Colleen, Jackie, Bill and Don paddled the 1200 lb plus rig nearly the entire time while Cathy and Stephanie assisted in steering. The only downside to the entire night is when the “spiked” beverages ran dry, some falling into the harbor. Mahalos to everyone who made the night amazing, particularly to the builders and Joel for getting us all fired up. This will be a new Imua tradition for the year’s to come. Aloha and Mele Kalikimaka

 

Orange and Blue for 2002
By Bill O'Rourke
Hello Imua: We had our first season practice on Saturday 2/23/02. I must say it felt good to be in a practice once again.  I know that some of you thought it was just too easy to stay in bed and hit the snooze button... preferring to stay cozy under the covers. But HELLO the weather was nearly summer-like. We had absolutely fantastic day. It is really hard to beat winter in Southern California - 85 degrees, clear and sunny. We paddled out to fair and open seas and rode a few waves.  You could almost see where we landed on Catalina. It really got my blood going. Our next open practice is SUNDAY MARCH 3rd 8:00 am. We will set future practices based on bodies that show up. Get your bones out of bed!  Bring out your novice friends. Saturday MARCH 2nd is the novice season start. Bring them out at 9:00 to start them on their first winning season. We have had awesome response to the website, flyers and cards. Bring your buddies and let's hit the water. Smooth bottom good! You may wonder what that is all about. Well Rick has been leading a small (very small) contingent of sanders getting our first two boats ready for painting. We sanded and sanded and SANDED and removed years of scratches and backbay gunk. Boat #11 (the one I've worked on for two days) now has a very smooth bottom. These will be painted on Tuesday. We are prepping the next two boats after Sundays practice on March 3rd, and we need people.  It took 4 people 5.5 hours to sand 1 boat and two ama's.  Please stay after practice Sunday. Bring yourselves, and a palm sander (orbital or otherwise).  Or just show... we will put you to work.  We have 2 more boats and two more ama's to sand. We need you all. And we need you now.  We are starting a new season. We have new colors (Hawaiian orange and blue). The new trailer was picked-up on Saturday (this thing is state-of-the-art). We are going to have fresh shiny boats... And cool uniforms (a KOA requirement now). We have Sam as our Head Coach and Tommy as our Men's coach. We are looking for interested men or women to be the Women's coach plus we need novice coaches. Unfortunately Donna and Linda will not be able to coach this year. Always wanted to coach or assist a coach???? Now is your chance. Let's make this an awesome year. We have everything in place to make that happen. As I said earlier.... Get your bones out of bed! See you on the beach. br> Billo

 

Goodbye Whitey
by Billo, December 22, 2003 Mele Kalikimaka, I have great news; Whitey is off our beach and on a journey to start a new club in Texas. A native Hawaiian, Aaron Olds, purchased her. He arrived Sunday with his brother, driving out from Las Vegas. Joe, Joel & I helped them load the boat onto a very, very small trailer. This trailer is “collapsible” for easy storage and Aaron had welded an extension of 2”x2” tube steel to make the trailer long enough. It was still a little undersized, and the boat hung off the back about 20 feet. I’m not sure which weighed more… the trailer or the boat. We strapped the boat on and they left about 1:45. I called them about 5:30 to check progress… their trip was a little rocky, they weren’t home yet. The front two straps had broken near Norco and the boat almost came off the trailer. They then reversed the direction of the boat on the trailer, and re-secured her. Aaron emailed me this morning that they arrived in Vegas about 10:30. From there, it’s another 22 hours to Texas… if they can drive at 60 mph. He thanked us for the boat and plans to come back and paddle with us some time. Merry Christmas, my friends, and be ready for the New Year. Imua is going to have an awesome season! Mahalo, Billo (photo located on Club Pics page)

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