Tahiti’s Shell Va‘a back to defend crown in 69th edition of Molokai Hoe

While there’s no forecast of a storm on the horizon, a collection of the world’s top outrigger canoe paddlers will be on the lookout for a familiar Lightning strike this weekend.

The elite Tahitian paddling squad Shell Va‘a is back to defend its crown at the Molokai Hoe World Championship presented by the Hawaii Tourism Authority as it seeks a fourth straight victory in its aptly named “Lightning” fiberglass canoe.

In what has become the “Super Bowl” of paddling, Shell Va‘a coach Tauatua “David” Tepava says he and his team look forward to the annual race featuring “Good surfing, good guys and good feelings.” The skipper, who served as the crew’s steersman in multiple Shell Va‘a victories, continues to pass his knowledge on to the pipeline of talent coming through Shell’s program.

Unlike many competitors who paddle for fun and exercise after work and on weekends, Shell Va‘a paddlers are employees of Shell and its subsidiaries in Tahiti, and often practice twice a day as part of their professional duties.

Sunday’s 69th running of the men’s world championship race will feature what officials report as a record 107 crews making the 41-mile trek from Molokai’s Hale O Lono Harbor to Duke Kahanamoku Beach in Waikiki. The field includes squads from Hawaii island, Maui, Molokai, Oahu and Kauai, as well as teams from California, Washington, Australia, Hong Kong, New Zealand and Tahiti – including three-time defending champion Shell Va‘a, which has won 13 of the past 15 Molokai Hoe competitions.

Competitors in the ultimate test of strength, endurance and strategy will face unpredictable winds and waves in addition to the varying currents throughout the treacherous Kaiwi Channel.

Wednesday’s National Weather Service forecast called for moderate tradewinds and 4- to 6-foot seas as paddlers prepare to navigate the vast channel.

Shell Va‘a set the course record in 2011, finishing in 4 hours, 30 minutes and 54 seconds — nearly eight minutes faster than the previous record, which it also held. After claiming their eighth straight Molokai Hoe crown in 2013, some Shell paddlers remarked that they would continue chasing the outrigger canoe paddling world championship “until we die.”

However, Shell’s run for nine straight titles was denied in 2014 when Tahitian competitor EDT Va‘a, which paddles under the banner of a competing energy company, claimed the Molokai-to-Oahu crown. After Shell Va‘a reclaimed the Molokai Hoe in 2015 and 2016, Red Bull Wa‘a emerged in 2017 to best the two-time defending champions by 31 seconds as the Kona-based crew blended a crew with paddlers from Hawaii and Tahiti.

In a successful effort to right the ship, Shell Va‘a bounced back in 2018, and outpaced the competition en route to winning its unprecedented 11th title in 13 tries by nine minutes and five seconds ahead of runner-up Red Bull Wa‘a. Shell then racked up win No. 12 in 2019 — the final running of the race before a four-year pause due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the devastating Maui wildfires — in runaway fashion, besting Team OPT of Tahiti by nearly 13 minutes. It then added another 13-minute-plus victory over Wailea Canoe Club of Maui last year to establish its current three-peat run.

Tepava notes that the team’s goal had been to win 10 straight Molokai Hoe races. After the initial winning streak, which he described at the time as “routine,” was ended, the team vowed to return and begin a new winning run — which it aims to continue on Sunday with what the coach refers to as “the younger paddlers taking over.”

Lanikai Canoe Club still holds the distinction as the last crew composed completely of paddlers from Hawaii to win the Molokai Hoe after triumphing in 2005. The competition continues to evolve as more crews from around the world attempt to conquer the battle in the channel, and locally based crews incorporate paddlers from other states and countries to build “all-star” paddling squads.

Participating crews will have their canoes outfitted with GPS trackers that allow supporters to track teams along the channel crossing at pseresults.live; the website also features real-time results as canoes cross the finish line.

The race will be broadcast live on KHII television, khon2.com and the KHON+ app.