A 麻豆社国产resident is on his way to the Aloha state but there probably won't be any luaus in his immediate future.
Local adventurer Norm Hann is making his way to Hawaii, not to soak up the sun but to compete in the 32-mile Molokai to Oahu paddleboard race on July 31.
"I've been an ocean guy for the last 12 years and I've had this race on my radar since last year," he said. "I think it'll be a great challenge and it's also a great opportunity to raise funds for the StandUp4Great Bear organization."
Last year, Hann paddled 400 kilometres from Kitimat to Bella Bella along the proposed oil tanker route to help raise awareness and support to help keep oil tankers away from the north coast of British Columbia. However, Hann should be in for a much more bumpy ride in one of the most treacherous bodies of water in the world.
"It's going to be a true test of my waterman skills," he said. "You have to be able to deal with swell, with the wind and the tide. It's really a chance to test yourself against those conditions."
Hann said the Molokai Channel is known as "the channel of bones" due to the high number of lives it has claimed. Ancient canoe fleets, fishermen and even well-known big wave surfer Eddie Aikau have all perished in its choppy, shark-infested waters and strong winds.
"Over the last few hundreds of years lots of people have been lost in that channel," Hann said. "The winds blow really strong and it's in between two islands, so you have currents and winds that funnel really strong there. It really bumps the swell up. Aside from the conditions, you have to have the endurance to paddle for at least six hours or more."
But Hann said he is confident in his abilities to take on the daunting challenge.
"I'm not really nervous about anything," he said. "I'm more excited to test my skills and endurance."
Hann will be competing in the stand-up paddling two-man division with Bodie Shandro of Kelowna. The two will trade off during the race and Hann expects the duo, who are representing Canada, to fare well.
"I would think as a two-man team that we should be able to beat most of the single guys aside from the elite paddlers," he said, noting that the race is regarded as the world championships of paddleboard racing. "I want to represent Canada well and I'm going out there to win the two-man race. My goal is to podium and also help bring awareness to StandUp4GreatBear to keep our coastline oil-free."
He said he's been training hard, mostly a lot of down winding in Howe Sound, but that his endurance and strength will be ready for the race.
"You can simulate the choppy conditions out here but you can't simulate the size of the waves we will be dealing with," he said. "I've just been spending a lot of time on the ocean in variable conditions and constantly pushing myself. We're going to be able to surf some of the big swells and that will be the fun part, but you need to build up your strength and endurance. Overall I feel pretty good right now."
Hann, who owns and operates Mountain Surf Adventures, also encouraged those interested to pledge support to the StandUp4GreatBear organization.
"If people want to donate a dollar a mile, that would be pretty cool," he said. "The money donated goes towards continued education and conservation initiatives on our coastline."
Partial proceeds raised will also be shared with Hawaii's Na Kama Kai Youth Organization. Na Kama Kai's mission is to empower youth by creating, conducting and supporting ocean-based programs, specifically targeting ocean awareness and safety in order to increase the capacity of youth in the community through cultural and environmental education.
For more information, visit www.mountainsurfadventures.com or www.standup4greatbear.ca.
