Team News

Team Primo looks to claim top paddling honors over Tahitians

Surfersvillage Global Surf News, 1 September, 2010 : - - Every sport has its great rivalries. Whether it’s the Lakers and the Celtics or Kelly Slater and Andy Irons, we find our finest moments when two equally talented and driven individuals or teams square off. And in the islands, where six-man canoe paddling is king, that great rivalry occurs when the Tahitians and the Hawaiians man their canoes and race.

And this year, Team Primo is stacked from stern to bow with Hawaii’s strongest paddlers and is thirsty for a long-awaited victory over their Tahitian counterparts. Historically, the professional Tahitian teams have been a dominant force in the paddling world, claiming victories left and right. But last year, with an all-star team of Hawaii’s best paddlers on board.

Team Primo gave the Tahitians a run for their money in the Molokai Hoe, the Super Bowl of Paddling, and narrowly came in second. This year, with a shoulder-burning training season already underway coupled with a new, state-of-the-art canoe, Team Primo is already looking for redemption. “Team Primo is looking really, really strong this year.

We’ve got the best paddlers in Hawaii on the team and they’ve been training really hard,” said Primo ambassador Keoni Watson. “The rivalry between the Tahitians and the Hawaiians is pretty rough, but the two teams are very different. Where the Tahitians paddle professionally, Team Primo is made up of guys that have 9 to 5 day jobs, but they’re still able to really challenge the Tahitians.”

As Keoni eluded, the members of Team Primo hold down regular jobs, one of which, Peter Konohai, is an actual rocket scientist by day, and paddling animal after work. With an eclectic and talented lot in the boat, this year’s team, led by four-time paddling solo champ Kai Bartlett, is in good hands as the hui moves into the long-distance season and the much anticipated Molokai Hoe.

Kicking off the season, Team Primo will be competing in the upcoming 43rd annual Duke Kahanamoku Classic on August 15, followed by the Queen Liliuokalani Race and the Henry Ayau race in September and lastly, the crown jewel of distance paddling, the Molokai Hoe in October 10. “We’re really looking forward to watching Team Primo compete this year,” added Primo’s Keoni Watson. “Primo is super stoked to be supporting this part of Hawaiian culture and to help our best athletes carry the Hawaiian flag to a win this year.”

www.primobeer.com

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Jon Holecz

Team - Surfersvillage