A large contingent of Eastern Bay waka ama paddlers are heading to Hawai’i for the world championships.

About 20 waka ama paddlers from Tarawera Outrigger Canoe Club and Waka Ama o Whakatāne are leaving for the world championships, which run from August 13 to 24.

The medal efforts will be spearheaded by the Tarawera OCC  6 Pack crew, who are reigning New Zealand champions in the senior master class (50 years and over) in the three waka ama racing divisions.

The team includes Max Holder, Mark Pilcher, Greg Patterson, Tangitehau Thomson, Daryll Hyne and Steven Hohepa.

Pilcher said they had been successful at the New Zealand sprint nationals and had been training the house down since qualifying.

“We now have the opportunity to put all that together on waka ama’s biggest stage in Hawai’i next month. I’ll be disappointed if we don’t get on the podium.”

Holder’s main objective is to make the finals of all the divisions they are in.  

“Once you are there, then it is a one-race campaign and anything can happen, so, basically it will be one race at a time until the finals and then, it is what it is.”

What attracts them to waka ama as a sport?

The answer is two-fold, with Pilcher, Patterson and Holder enjoying the competitive edge of the sport and the fierce competition they encounter on the water, but also the camaraderie.

“Before and after, it’s all very social with plenty of banter and laughter, but also genuine support among the clubs and teams,” Pilcher said.

He and Holder became involved in waka ama through their connections with surf lifesaving.

Pilcher confesses to being “a pretty average paddler” at the time.

“It was suggested I join an outrigger club to improve my paddling technique,” he said.

Patterson was introduced to the sport about a year ago when he started to paddle in a mixed team alongside his partner at the Rotorua Lakes regattas.

His talent and ambition for more was picked up and he was drafted into the Tarawera 6 Pack team. Since then, he had been on a steep learning curve to achieve his current position.

He shares the same ambitions for Hawai’i as his teammates.

“My attitude is to win, whether that be bronze, silver or ultimately gold. The result will be the takeaway for me; failure is not an option.”

The team are grateful to F45 and the Rock Pit Gym for their support in helping them physically prepare for the event. They also appreciate the contributions of ITM Whakatāne, Pak’nSave, Extreme Boats, Gibbos, Robert Harris, Bed Bath and Beyond, Bunnings, Noel Leeming and Mata Brewery.

Other paddlers from Tarawera OCC leaving for Hawai’i are exciting young waka ama talent Kaedyn Thrupp and waka ama stalwart Steve Monk from Kawerau. Kaedyn is the youngest Whakatāne paddler leaving for Hawai’i and his main ambitions are to make the finals in the singles, sixes, and 12s.

“Making it to the podium would be the ultimate,” he said.

Kaedyn said waka ama was a whānau-friendly sport. He learned paddling under the watchful eyes of his dad, Richard Thrupp, and uncles.

His progress didn’t go unnoticed, and he was invited to join the Horouta training squad to prepare for last year’s long-distance national championships.

As part of that team, he was crowned J16 and J19 champion and qualified for last year’s world championships.

So, for Kaedyn, Hawai’i is his second world championship. For all his achievements in waka ama, he was awarded the sport personality trophy at Whakatāne High School last year.

Steve Monk will compete in the Golden Masters Men class in the same team as Waka Ama o Whakatāne’s Ivan Hindmarsh. Asked about his motivation, Monk said paddling had helped him stay fit and active when he was getting too many injuries from other sports.

“Going for a paddle can be a great way to relax and unwind,” he said.

Tui McCaull will travel to Hawai’i as a part of a Horouta Masters Women’s team, which as New Zealand champions are seen as serious medal contenders.

Hindmarsh will lead the contingent of paddlers from Waka Ama o Whakatāne.

He became involved in the sport years ago when urgent advice from a specialist who was concerned about his knees, prompted a change of lifestyle.

“I was introduced to waka ama as an alternative and as they say, ‘the rest is history’. With a lot of support and encouragement from my now partner, at the time and the new friends I had made in the waka ama circle, I don’t know if I would’ve/could’ve kept on going.”

He has managed to lose a lot of weight, thanks to the sport, saving his knees.

For him, the core values of waka ama are manaakitanga (kindness and respect to others), whanaungatanga (family, relationship and friendship), hauora (health and well-being) and tu tangata (standing together).

He said you saw these values practised at every waka ama event in New Zealand.

Hindmarsh also hopes to make the podium. He is paddling with a team in the Golden Masters Class (60 years and over) with Monk from Tarawera and other paddlers from Gisborne.

His previous top achievements were a silver medal in 2012 in Canada and a bronze in London in 2022.

Another medal hopeful is the Waka Ama o Whakatāne Master (40 years and over) Women’s team.

This team is built around local paddler Mihipeka Sisley and consists of several others from around the motu, including Hiria Rolleston, Ngawai Ormsby and Rebecca Hoani.

The team have been travelling and training together since November 2023 and achieved a bronze medal at the New Zealand Sprint championship in the W6 1000 m race and finished just outside the medals in the 500m race.

Some of its members will also participate in singles’ racing.

Asked about their ambitions for Hawai’i, Sisley said: “It would be amazing to podium. However, it is my first worlds waka ama competition, so the experience will be valuable. I want to go represent my people and my country the best I can and hope to bring home a medal.”

Rose Herewini, Sonia Stewart and Steve Curtis will paddle in Golden Masters teams with mainly Gisborne-based paddlers.

Stewart has been paddling for more than three decades. Being a coastie and brought up in, on and around the water, she has had waka ama in her genes from early on.

“At that time, things were pretty much different. For instance, we had to make our own paddles,” she said. “And there was nobody around to tell us how to paddle, just get out and do it.”

What keeps her paddling?

“Waka ama connects us to our past and brings us to our future. This connectiveness (whakawhanaungatanga) is vital for our whakapapa and our wellbeing both physically and mentally,” she said.

She also appreciates the inclusivity of the sport, which allows anyone to jump into a waka.

“I love to paddle with my grandchildren,” she said.

In Hawai’i, she is looking forward to representing her whānau, hapū and iwi with respect, dignity and humility.