Hana Pa'a Fishing Tournament 2000 Report

2000 Hana Pa'a Fishing Tournament Report

Photos and Story by Mike House

Good weather and flat seas, but slower fishing than normal made for some tense white knuckles on most of the anglers at the 2000 North Shore Hana Pa’a Fishing tournament held June 21, 22, and 23 in Haleiwa, located on Oahu’s beautiful North Shore. In fact, the drama and suspense was so thick it could be cut with a knife.

At age seventeen, the Hana Pa’a is a well-established tournament. With 114 sponsors and fifty-eight boats, it ranks among Hawaii’s elite, drawing some big names to town such as Kewalo charter boats Magic and Kono, plus the Haleiwa charter boats Chupu and Kuuloa Kai.

But the Hana Pa’a is more than just a fishing tournament. It is one of the largest events held in Haleiwa each year, drawing hundreds of anglers and tourists, clogging up the streets, and giving the town’s vendors another reason to smile. Recall the road at Waimea Bay was closed for over a month, essentially severing Haleiwa from the rest of the North Shore communities. Businesses had to lay off employees as the traffic levels dropped drastically, and when the road did finally re-open, merchants rejoiced.

Rhoda Schwend, assistant manager at Haleiwa Joe’s, the restaurant right next to the harbor, said business is back up since the road re-opended. She said the tournament and the road re-opening did wonders for morale in the restaurant because over 80% of the staff lived on the Sunset Beach side of the bay, making it difficult for employees to perform the simple task of going to work.

As big supporters of the Hana Pa’a, Haleiwa Joe’s was happy to see the third week of June roll around so the anglers and visitors to the tournament could share their great stories over some dinner and a cold drink.

Yes, Hana Pa’a is more than a tournament. It’s a lifestyle, a feeling of togetherness, Aloha Spirit, and camaraderie that is found deep within the community.

In 1999, the vessel Millennium Y2K won the coveted crown and over $10,000.00 by tallying 1034 pounds of fish, primarily Ahi. They were back to defend their title in 2000, and the owner, Kenneth Terukine, was alive and well after a liver transplant resulting from cancer to see the boys fish another day (see side bar story on the Y2K).

On day one, several large Marlin and Ahi were caught, and the total weight and numbers of the tuna were reported to be more than the total for the Ahi Fever in Waianae held only a couple weeks previous. Tournament organizers from the Haleiwa Trolling Club knew they had another good event on their hands.

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A view of Haleiwa Harbor

As an example of how the fishing community comes together in this event, consider Alice Camber of the vessel Kaleimomi. At 3:30 pm, she called into Hana Pa’a base where Ron Hill worked the radio. She reported she was fighting an Ahi of some size, but broke down off Kaena Point. A boat in the vicinity, Aleka, called in to say they could help, and by 4:30, they had the vessel in tow. By 6:40 pm, with only 20 minutes to spare, the towed and the tower were in the harbor, calling to report their fish and get in the weigh scale lineup.

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Aleka tows Kaleimomi into the harbor

Both fish counted for the tournament. Aleka had a 155 pound Ahi, and Kaleimomi’s was an astonishing 178.5 pounds! Not a bad fish for being disabled, but still not large enough to take the crown for day one leader.

At the end of day one of this total weight event, the leaders were Lani Wai with 545 pounds, Marion B with 495.5 pounds, and Shaina M with 455 pounds. Interestingly Lani Wai boated a 483 pound Marlin along with 62 pounds of other qualifying fish, the Marion B spread their total weight over a few good sized Ahi, and the Shaina M got all their poundage with a single fish at 455 pounds.

Day two saw slightly increased winds, and the crews got wetter than on day one. The fishing was a little slower on this day, and the leader board didn’t change. In fact, both Lani Wai and Marion B were skunked on day two, and only the Shaina M added to their total with a 21.5 pound Mahimahi. The largest Marlin for the second day was 118.5 pounds, scant when compared to the second place fish of 455 pounds only a day before.

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The crew of Girlie T with their 128 lb Ahi and 26 lb Ono

Side categories also make the Hana Pa’a unique. In addition to total weight, the Hana Pa’a pays for the largest of each of the four species in the tournament, plus the largest of each day. Under this format, boats such as the Olu Kai managed to win two categories without grossing a lot of weight. They got a beautiful 67.5 pound Ono on day one, and picked up a 175 pound Ahi on day two to claim both of those prizes.

After day two, there were 29 qualifying Ahi caught totaling 3,710 pounds. Further, there were 4 Marlin qualified at a total of 1,145.5 pounds, 25 Mahimahi totaling 477 pounds, and 40 Ono totaling 1194.5 pounds. Combined at the end of day two, the total tonnage the boats brought in was 6,527 pounds. And with the third day waiting, this tournament was not over by any means.

Day 3, Friday, saw lighter winds and calm seas. Haleiwa fishermen are a hearty group, well accustomed to fishing in heavier conditions, and they showed a few signs of concern that the fishing might be slow when they saw the lighter seas. But there was work to do, and they got busy.

With Lani Wai’s 483 pounds as the mark to beat, several boats were within striking distance. One of the boats within reach was the Girlie T, skippered by Joe O’Neill, who had won the Pearl Harbor MWR tournament back on May 27. As they arrived at the scales on day three, they had 326.5 pounds to their credit. They then weighed in an Ono at 26 pounds and a nice Ahi at 128 pounds, giving them a total of 480.5 pounds and taking over third place by a mere four pounds. The crowd ooohed as Girlie T’s fish were called out.

Next to the scale was the previous third place boat, the Shaina M, and skipper Joe Soares. They were flying a Mahimahi flag, and if it met the qualifying weight of 15 pounds, it would reclaim third place. As it was hoisted up the scale, the crowd was quiet. The fish looked close, but soon weighmaster and president of the Haleiwa Trollers Eddie Baladoy called it out at 14.5 pounds. Shaina M remained in fourth, missing by just a half pound.

Girlie T kept third place, and watched nervously as Olu Kai came to the scales. They needed 135 pounds to move into third, but with just a smaller non-qualifying Mahimahi, they weren’t able to step into position. The race for the total weight was complete. Lani Wai retained their first place position through the whole tournament after two days of no fish, as did the Marion B, both retaining first and second from their day one efforts.

Third was secured by the Girlie T, and fourth went to Shaina M. Fifth, the last paying position, went to Olu Kai, and the race turned to the individual fish categories.

The largest Mahimahi of day 2 had gone to Haleiwa’s Bob Goodman on the Akele, and he watched in anticipation as Kono brought a nice bull Mahi to the scales just after Olu Kai. The greenback came in at 43.5 pounds, narrowly edging out Akele for the largest Mahi of the tournament.

Last year’s winner, Millennium Y2K, ended up in 8^th place with 248 pounds, 118 of which came from the largest Marlin of day three. Though they didn’t defend their crown, it was obvious the strong will of Mr. Terukine was with them throughout the event, and they claimed several prizes including $500.00 for the largest Marlin of day three, artwork worth $550.00, and $150.00 in gift certificates.

Here’s the final result of the 2000 Northshore Hana Pa’a tournament.

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Kono with their 43.5 Mahi