(Honolulu Advertiser) Oscar Chalupsky, 42, of South Africa powered his way to win the Moloka'i World Championship in the surfski division.
Folks, this is a big deal, paddling on open water across the channel from Moloka'i to O'ahu is hard....hard...HARD. That's probably why I like to row longer distances...much easier even if it's backward.
Chalupsky completed the 32-mile course from the Kaluako'i Hotel, Moloka'i, to the Kona Brewing Co. in Koko Marina, O'ahu, in 3 hours, 28 minutes, 38 seconds. The race is considered the world championship of solo ocean paddling, and Chalupsky has now won it an unprecedented 11 times. Chalupsky, 42, won his first title in 1983 when he was 20.
"I can't say it was an easy win; probably one of the hardest," he said. "I did my homework and it paid off. It shows you age is not a factor." My hat's off to Oscar. What an accomplishment! If it was me I would have run out of gas and drifted down to Papohaku. Where's my Mai Tai?