"Foti Brothers & Rigg-Guild simultaneous crew change at Makai Pier halfway into the race" -
Photo by Colin K. Perry

(Honolulu HI April 7, 1996) -- The first team relay race of the three race "CanoeSports 0-1 Relay Seris" was held on Sunday April 6 on the Island of O`ahu. The race course was 34 miles in length and required paddlers to trade positions at designated points, around the east end of island, by pulling into shore to make switches.

The course was broken down into four legs between six and ten miles, and ranged between forty minutes to an hour twenty for the leaders.

The women started half an hour ahead of the men and paddled a straight line course along the coastline while the men's course took them seaward around various islands and then along the reefline and in to the same change points as the women.

This race was a great spectator event with all teams coming to shore and making changes in front of the crowd that traveled along to veiw the race. Conditions were ideal with favorable tides and currents, trades winds 15 to 20 knots and seas three to four feet.

132 total paddlers participated with, 48 men's teams, 13 women's teams, and two mixed teams. Competition was fierce between all divisions with the the lead changing between the top womens teams three out of the four legs.

The men's race turned out to be all it was billed to be, the long awaited showdown between the sports top paddlers in a team format provided for exciting racing.

At the first change point, at Lanikai Beach, the two leaders, Mark Rigg and John Foti, were side by side. Walter Guild and Jim Foti left the beach together and for the next hour exchanged the lead eight to ten times with neither leading by more than two boat lengths. The two finished the second leg dead even again.

In the third leg Mark Rigg gained an advantage in his familar waters around Makapu point and gained a five minute lead on John Foti. Chris Kincaid and Courtney Seto came on strong throughout the race and finished only thirty eight seconds behind second place.

Match racing of teams provided exciting races throughout the field with postions changing continiously. This race format is one of the most exciting, and allows long distance padding to become a spectator sport.

Results are as follows:

	NAMES			         TIME		 BOAT
OPEN WOMEN
1-DONNA KAHAKUI/ HADLEY GAFFNEY -	5:02:03		"CONNER"
2-MARY SMOLENSKI/NICOLE WILCOX-	        5:04:17		"NAIA"
3-MELANIE BAILEY/LEANN ANDERSON-	5:09:15		"HONU"
4-JUDY SANGIULIANO/JULIE HORNER-	5:17:51		?
5-MARY BREWER/ANN DUARTE-PEDROSA	5:20:21		?

MIXED
1-PAULA CRABB/CHRIS CRABB-      	4:40:59		"ARROW"
2-ABATAY/GARDNER        		6:26:16		"TWOGOOD"

OPEN MEN
1-MARK RIGG/WALTER GUILD		4:18:59		"CONNER"
2-JOHN FOTI/JIM FOTI    		4:27:58		"THUNDER"
3- CHRIS KINCAID/COURTNEY SETO  	4:28:37		"THUNDER"
4- TOM CONNER/ERIC LAVORA		4:34:38		"CONNER"
5- ALAN LIPP/PETER BINNEY		4:37:18		"BLYTH"

MASTERS MEN 40+
1-MARK BREEWER/JONLI ALO		4:48:43		?
2-RON KIMBALL/GREG DAVIS		4:59:53		"NAIA"
3-GREG POOLE/ JOHN COITO		4:05:08  	"ARROW"

GOLDEN MASTERS MEN 50+
1-JEFF METZGER/DENNIS YAP		4:50:56		"AVENGER"
2- TAY PERRY/RODNEY ROMANS      	5:01:20		"THUNDER"
3- HANK LEANDRO/BOB BRUCE		5:05:15		?

NEXT UP FOR TEAM RACING - SECOND OF THREE IN THE RELAY SERIS - 
KAIWI CHANNEL RELAY- MAY 4