After a conference among the Hokule'a's officers, they decided Eddie could go indeed, he could not be restrained. Lanai, he estimated, was only 12 miles away.īut the canoe was being battered by choppy waves and gale-force winds, and the capsized hull rode low in the water, making it difficult to accurately gauge distance. After a night of clinging to the overturned hull of capsized voyaging canoe Hokule'a, ignored by close-passing ships and aircraft, flares sputtering futilely in the darkness, and islands growing smaller on the churning horizon, in the mid-morning of March 17, 1978, crewman Eddie Aikau insisted on paddling his surfboard for help. THAT Eddie would go was never seriously in doubt. Posted: Friday, March 6, 1998.Īikau on the day the Hokule'a set sail. He was saying to me, 'Raise those islands.' His tragedy also made us aware of how dangerous our adventure was, how unprepared we were in body and in spirit." Is it perhaps from trying to make sense of Eddie's tragic death that Nainoa has come to understand that success should not be measured by the outcome of something we do but by "reaching a new place within ourselves?" Eddie Riding on the Crest of the Myth Twenty years ago this month, big-wave surfer and lifeguard Eddie Aikau lost his life in a brave effort to save crew members of the capsized Hokule'aĪrticle by Burl Burlingame, Star-Bulletin. But then Eddie wouldn't have had his dream fulfilled. "After Eddie's death, we could have quit. He had great dreams, he had great passions. Eddie cared about others and took care of others. he guarded life, and he lost his own, trying to guard ours. Whenever I feel down, I look at Eddie and I recall his dream. "Eddie had this dream about finding islands the way our ancestors did. "Come, I want to show you something." Nainoa steps into another room and points to a picture of a young man, tanned with long hair, smiling, and looking as if about to talk with you – it is Eddie. Eddie was never seen again, Hokule'a finally found. Fearing that they might drift ever further away from help, Eddie Aikau, lifeguard on the big surf beach of the North Shore of O'ahu and at home on his surfboard in even 30-foot waves, left on a surfboard to get help. For hours airplanes flew overhead between the islands but did not spot them. I must tell you about Eddie, because he had, and still has, great influence on me he's one of my great teachers." Nainoa tells of how Hokule'a, a few hours after leaving Honolulu harbor, capsized in the Moloka'i Channel and floated upside down, the crew clinging to her overturned hulls. "It's only fair to mention that it wasn't all perfect and glorious. Speidel, Editor of The Kamehameha Journal of Education, and Kristina Inn, Associate Editor Remembrance of Eddieįrom an Interview of Nainoa Thompson in “The Ocean Is My Classroom,” written by Gisela E. Despite great search efforts "Eddie" was never seen again. Hours later a commercial airplane spotted the Hokule'a and the rest of the crew was soon rescued by the U.S. In an attempt to get to land to save his crew and the Hokule'a, Aikau paddled toward Lanai on his surfboard. The double-hulled voyaging canoe developed a leak in one of the hulls and later capsized in stormy weather about twelve miles south of the island of Molokai. The Hokule'a left the Hawaiian Islands on March 16, 1978. At 31 years of age, Aikau was selected for this voyage as a crew member. In 1978, a second voyage of the traditional sailing canoe was planned. In 1976, the Polynesian Voyaging Society sailed the Hokule'a on a successful 30-day, 2500 mile journey following the ancient route of the Polynesian migration between the Hawaiian and Tahitian islands. "Eddie" became involved in perpetuating his Hawaiian heritage. The local saying, "Eddie Would Go," refers to his stoke to take on big waves that other surfers would shy away from and his courage to make a rescue in impossible situations. He became very famous for surfing the bigHawaiian surf and won several surfing awards including First Place at the prestigious 1977 Duke Kahanamoku Invitational Surfing Championship. Eddie braved surf that often reached 20 feet high or more to make a rescue. Not one life was lost while he served as lifeguard at Waimea Bay. In 1968, he became the first lifeguard hired by the City & County of Honolulu to work on the North Shore. "Eddie" was a true symbol of Aloha.īorn on the island of Maui, Aikau later moved to O'ahu with his family in 1959. He saved many lives and became well known as a big-wave surfer. He was the first lifeguard at Waimea Bay on the island of Oahu. Eddie Aikau (from the Eddie Aikau Foundation Website)Įdward Ryon Makuahanai "Eddie" Aikau (– March 17, 1978) is one of the most respected names in surfing.
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