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Sports

Pokah!

Thursday, January 10th, 2008

Players battle for bragging rights and trip to Vegas

By: Brandon Roberts 

Caution tape cordoned off the table; the chips were divvied and awaiting the final eight. An air of anxiety hung about as players nervously paced or sat with fingers tapping.

The stakes: a round-trip for two to Las Vegas, $670 in cash vouchers, and absolute bragging rights. The players: Maasi He, Kekama Helm, Shirley Burrows, Honda Paleka, Sonny Reyes, Shannon Crivello, Noe Pascua and Bernice Traxler.

As the players were announced cheers rang from friends and ohana who had packed Paddlers Inn to watch the show. The characters began to take their places; Kekama smelling his flower, Shannon in shades, and the piercing eyes of Maasi from under his Red Sox hat.

The night grew on, cheers erupted, onlookers crowded in and all eyes were focused on the table as both players and spectators bantered, laughed, and held their breath to see who would be sent off to Vegas with pockets full of cash.

 As players were eliminated, spectators clapped and competitors shook hands maintaining smiles throughout. Maasi was cool and calm all night. The only words he spoke were “I raise”. In the end, luck and skill came together giving Maasi the tournament win. 

The free tournament began Nov. 8. Every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday players had battled it out until only the top eight remained. The total chip value on the final table was $50,000, split by percentage between the eight players. 

Kamuela Kamakana, Paddlers Inn owner and entrepreneur, along with Loke Kamakana, created a professional atmosphere for the Molokai ohana to enjoy and compete in.  Loke was crucial to the smooth success of poker night but offers much mahalo to the Paddlers kitchen, wait staff and security.

The tournament was the first of its kind in Maui County. Kamakana said he obtained permits from the liquor commission for Texas hold-em and Bingo tournaments. When asked why poker, Kamakana emphasized that “everybody enjoys entertainment, but we strive to diversify Molokai’s entertainment opportunities.”

According to Kamakana, the tournament won’t be the last. He is working with sponsors in hopes to pay the $10,000 buy-in fee for one lucky Molokai resident to enter the World Series of Poker. Another local tournament would decide the player.

Kamakana is also in the process of obtaining a permanent permit for Bingo so everyone will know that Sunday afternoons are synonymous with Paddlers and bingo. The past bingo tournament featured 8 different games and prizes ranging from $40 gift cards to pupu discounts.

For those eager to compete at Paddlers, a team pool tournament will be featured every Tuesday and Thursday’s at 9 p.m. with similar fun and prizes.

Congratulations to Maasi He on a spectacular poker game.

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Kaiho Road Running Group Visits Molokai

Sunday, December 16th, 2007

Kaiho Road Running Group Visits Molokai

Japanese runners make 10th visit to Friendly Isle

(Left) Mitsuko and Etsuo Ono of Tokyo show that couples that run together, stay together. (Right) Hiroko Iioka of Osaka celebrates her successful run from Halawa to Kaunakakai.
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Growing Green

Saturday, December 15th, 2007

Milo: Molokai’s High End Sustainable Resource

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Growing green will feature another Hawaiian tree this month.  Unlike Kukui which has a number of medicinal and soft wood uses this tree has a valuable hard wood.  Milo (Thespesia populnea) is a classic coastal and low land tree throughout the Pacific.  In Hawaii we see it in parks, school grounds, other community areas, and naturalized along the ocean. 

Milo is one of the many plants which came with the native Hawaiians to these islands.  Being indigenous to the pacific it is adapted to the common coastal stresses such as wind, full sun exposure, and sea spray.  The Hawaiians planted this tree extensively for its wood and stature which creates an inviting space at the beach. 

Written by an early missionary of Milo: “It was planted about the houses of the al'i, as is well remembered around that of Kamehameha the Great at Waikiki."  Then, as well as now Milo has created 'umeke or wooden calabashes of the highest quality.   Many of these calabashes were so cared for they were named and passed down for generations.  It was also used in making dye and a simple cordage.  Interestingly it was kukui nut oil that was used to oil these calabashes.

Milo is a medium sized tree in the Hibiscus family (Malvaceae) 10-50 feet tall with a wide range of growing characteristics.  Milo can be seen as a large sprawling shrub with its main stem nearly prostrate on the ground or as a stately specimen planting.  This style of growth is one of Milo's strengths as well as what can make it hard to control. 

Few trees allow the grower the ability to utilize multiple main stems or branches the way Milo does.  For example Norfolk Island Pine has one main stem, if you cut this top it will produce a multiple number of tops which will be structurally compromised as they become larger and larger which will need to be removed or will more than likely fail.  Milo on the other hand can have a number of main stems from the ground level all taking different angles of growth.  This becomes useful in the case of a windbreak tree under 30 feet or when you want to harvest a portion of the tree without cutting the whole tree down.

The second style of growth mentioned is the single trunk with a bell shaped canopy.  This is what is commonly found in the parks and around the house as it allows a shaded area below the tree to enjoy.  Milo is a fast growing tree, often attaining the height of 10-15 feet in 3-4 years.  The flower is yellow in the morning fading through the day to a light red.  They are one day hibiscus like flowers.  The seed pods that arise from the pollinated flowers are abundant even on a young tree which makes propagation usually easy.

I like to propagate Milo the same way as Kukui.  I take the mature seed pods which are dark brown not green and smash the pod up with my hands leaving the seeds exposed.  Then I use standard bagged potting soil and a seed flat.   Put about an inch of potting soil in the flat, lay the seeds down on the soil, and cover the seeds with another inch of potting soil.  Keep the soil moist and within 1-3 months you will have small Milo trees. 

Using the right tree in the right place is important.  Due to its fast growth and medium size, Milo might overwhelm a small space.  Also the leaf litter and constant rain of seed pods might be too much for some people in tight areas like patios and decks.  Understanding these characteristics ahead of time will help you decide if Milo is right for that space. 

Milo is one of my favorite trees.  Due to its ability to be pruned extensively I have found many uses for this tree at my nursery.  It also has a slightly poisonous nature which makes it resistant to a wide range of pests and pathogens.  This is a nice trait in horticulture, but it is also something to be aware of.  The properties of the wood are for another article, but it is of the highest quality.  I feel Milo wood could be one of Molokai's high end sustainable resources which could be exported as "Made in Molokai".

Growing green is written by Fred Richardson/ Botanist, Owner of Molokai Nei Organics a Nursery and Landscaping company, 558-8215.

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Growing Green

Wednesday, November 28th, 2007

Milo: A Truly Hawaiian Tree

 Growing green will feature another Hawaiian tree this month.  Unlike Kukui which has a number of medicinal and soft wood uses this tree has a valuable hard wood.  Milo (Thespesia populnea) is a classic coastal and low land tree throughout the Pacific.  In Hawaii we see it in parks, school grounds, other community areas, and naturalized along the ocean. 

            Milo is one of the many plants which came with the native Hawaiians to these islands.  Being indigenous to the pacific it is adapted to the common coastal stresses such as wind, full sun exposure, and sea spray.  The Hawaiians planted this tree extensively for its wood and stature which creates an inviting space at the beach. 

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Winners of Paddling Race Proud of Molokai Roots

Wednesday, November 14th, 2007

Three of the six team members on the State Championship winning boys 12 division A paddling team are “transplants” from Molokai to Maui.

The boys are all members of the Wailea canoe club in Kihea, Maui. After winning all of their season races, the team went on to win the 2007 State Championship held in Hanalei, Kauai.
Joe Kang (son of Endilei Reyes Mendoza and Faron Kang formerly of Molokai) helped the crew win 5 of their regular season races and was an alternate at the state
championships. Trent Corpuz (son of Lou and Brandi Corpuz formerly of
Molokai) was a powerhouse throughout the season for his team and Max Oneha
(son of "Macky boy" Oneha formerly of Molokai) has paddled for Wailea for
a few years.  

Proud grandmother Margaret Blount says, “you can take the boys out of Molokai but you can’t take the Molokai out of the boys! These boys are champions of Maui and Molokai and we are very proud of them.  Its also pretty cool that just as their parents grew up
hanging out together on Molokai, these Molokai/Maui boys are growing up together on Maui...but LOVES to visit family on Molokai every chance they get!!”
Pictured left to right...Max Oneha, Justin?(team member), Trent Corpuz,
and Joe Kang.

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A Taste of Aloha

Friday, November 9th, 2007

As if it weren’t enough, four MHS students who are in Upward Bound will join other students statewide in a trip to Washington D.C. March 2008. Program Assistant Suliana Aki said that for one week, the children visit sites, meet with Hawaii’s representatives, and learn about politics.

Executive Chefs Scott McGill and Tom Muromoto, both from Maui, attended the event. Also attending the event were Maui Chefs Craig Masuda, Chris Napoleon, and Michael Gallagher; Big Island Chef Bully Shin; Molokai Chefs Don Hill and Erwin Kudoba; and Maui Community College Chef Dean Louie.

Mahalo to all who made the 5th Annual Molokai Food and Business Expo a success, from visitors to volunteers. Also, mahalo to all sponsors: Hawaii Maoli, Administration for Native Americans, Ho`olehua Hawaiian Civic Club, and Queen Liliuokalani Children’s Center. Finally, mahalo to Kuha`o Business Center for hosting the event, and for Annette Pauole-Ahakuelo for her tireless efforts in pulling all strings together, making this day possible.

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Growing Green

Monday, October 29th, 2007

New Series Kicks Off by Featuring Hawaii's Own Kukui Tree

Growing Green is an informative new series in The Dispatch, that is all about plants in Hawaii and how we can use and propagate them.  We use plants for food, medicine, shade, and the like with bonsai piece of mind. 

There are countless numbers of different plants from 'A'ali'i to Zamia, from as small as algae to as large as Norfolk Island pine, and as sweet as mango to as sour as lemon.  Growing Green will showcase one plant per article. 

I feel that it is right to start with the kumula'au (trees).  To many ecosystems, trees, are the foundation in which the secondary plants, animals, and people benefit.  Hawaii is a fantastic place to tree watch.  With climates ranging from ocean to snowcapped peaks and from desert dry to rain forest the potential for diversity is high. 

Being on Molokai we’ll start with the Kukui Nut (Aleurites moluccana) which is also the official state tree of Hawaii.   Kukui was and is important to the people of Molokai.   It can be found from high mountain valleys to coastal lowlands and all parts of the plant can be used. 

Brought to Hawaii by the early Hawaiians Kukui nut is found all over the Pacific as far away as Malaysia.  Kukui Nut is a medium-large spreading tree 10 - 20 meters tall.  The spreading nature of the tree gives it a classic shade tree shape perfect for parks and public places. The tree also has the ability to grow straight up with no branches for over 40 feet to get to the sun in the shady valleys. 

The leaves of the Kukui are a beautiful silvery green that can be seen from miles away.  Interestingly there are a number of different varieties where the leaves, nuts, and even chemical composition vary. 

Today we see on TV the skin care products made from the oils of the kukui nut having a healing property to sun exposure.  Hawaiians have used nearly every part of the plant for some beneficial property.  Some of the uses for the nut were medicine, inomona, oil lamps, and in modern times lei. 

The sap was used as glue and the leaves for medicine, lei, and decoration.  Kukui wood is a soft pulpy wood. The fallen trunks of the Kukui have also been used in the propagation of the edible Hawaiian mushroom, Pepeau. 

Having so much significance it is nice to know it is not endangered and easy to grow.  With trees it is always important to know if a particular location is right for a particular tree.  Kukui is the kind of tree you don't want to put under your electrical lines or in tight places.  It wants to have room to spread out.  Pruning can do a lot shape and train a tree but natural tendencies need to be taken into account.

 In propagating the tree I like to pick the nuts or sometimes pick them off the ground.  It's always a good idea to look carefully at the nuts and make sure there are no unwanted beetles, ants, or other bugs.  Then I let them dry out a little bit over about a week or so.  Take off the outer covering and you will see the hard seed inside.  I like to dry this out for about a week or so as well.  Then I put the seed somewhere that’s wet and shaded.  You can do this in a pot on the shady side of your house and keep it watered but not sitting in a puddle.  

Germination times vary widely.  It can be as fast as 2-3 weeks but usually is somewhere between 1-4 months.  Once germinated the following growth is fast. I have planted a number of Kukui trees over the years and it is a very rewarding tree to grow.

Growing green is written by Fred Richardson/ Botanist, Owner of Molokai Nei Organics a Nursery and Landscaping company, 558-8215.

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It’s Wedgie Season!

Monday, October 29th, 2007

October and November is fledging season for Wedge-tailed Shearwaters. “Wedgies,” as they are affectionately called by wildlife biologists, are part of a mixed flock of seabirds that commercial fishermen rely upon to locate schools of ahi and other marketable fish. Young birds fledge from burrows excavated into coastal cliffs or dunes to life at sea.

The `ua`u kani, or wedge-tailed shearwater (Puffinus pacificus), is 17” in length from bill to tip of tail, with a wingspan of 38”. Adult birds leave coastal colonies at dawn to feed on fish and return after dark. Behavior while in these colonies is generally nocturnal and throughout the night birds emit weird moans, groans, and loud screams, thus they are nicknamed the “moaning bird.”

Wedge-tailed Shearwaters nest on all the major and offshore islands in the Hawaiian chain by digging a burrow with their bill and feet or utilizing natural crevices. Nesting sites are reused from year to year. Egg laying begins in June and July, with one bright white egg forming the clutch. Parents share an incubation period of 52 days, sometimes sitting side-by-side. The chicks are fed fish by regurgitation.  Parents leave the nest site 2 - 3 weeks before their young have fledged, which is typically at 109 days of age. Young birds not yet capable of flight may wander from their burrows in search of food. At this time they are highly vulnerable to predators and often fall prey to mongoose, cats and dogs. Many fledglings are attracted at night by urban lights and fall into residential areas or onto highways where they are struck by automobiles.

Organized community efforts assist in the recovery and release of several hundred juvenile birds annually. Chicks that have wandered too far from the nest and are not yet capable of flight must be briefly held in captivity by State and Federal permitted wildlife rehabilitators. Seabirds found on Molokai can be turned in for rehabilitation to Arleone: call 553-5992.

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Paniolo `opio O Molokai

Tuesday, October 16th, 2007

 

The last time a HHSRA event was held at Kaunakakai Arena was in 2003. From that point, the rodeos were held in Maunaloa, which had a better suited arena. But the Kaunakakai Arena has been through renovations and improvements, making it once again suitable for HHRSA rodeos.

HHSRA officials sent in their state secretary, Marilyn Napier, and their state treasurer, Marilyn Higa, to help Kamakana during her first rodeo as a district secretary.

Napier had a second reason to be on Molokai for the HHRSA rodeo. She is also the chairperson for animal and rodeo inspection. Because the Kaunakakai Arena went through necessary renovations, it needed a thorough inspection by an HHRSA official.

“It was fantastic,” Napier said. “It was a great improvement from the last time it was used for a HHRSA rodeo.”

Napier’s job included checking if the children were following the rules properly, if the livestock was competitive, and if the arena’s facilities were up to standards. She said there were only minor flaws regarding rules, which could be easily fixed.

Molokai’s second HHSRA event of the season will be on Jan. 19. Four more events after that will happen until the season’s champions are crowned in April.

In May the State Junior Wrangler competition will take place on Maui. The State High School competition will happen the following month on the Big Island.

The children who amount the most points on both divisions will qualify for the National HHRSA competition, which will occur July in Gallup, New Mexico.

Good luck to all the young paniolo, and mahalo to the HHRSA for providing such a fun family day for all who attended the rodeo.

Mahalo nui loa for all the sponsors that made this day possible. A list of all contributors is published in this issue’s Letters to the Editor section.

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2nd Annual Molokai Stampede

Thursday, August 30th, 2007

2nd Annual Molokai Stampede

Stampede! Paniolo from Molokai and the neighboring islands spent last weekend mounted up at Kapualei Ranch, roping cattle for fun and prizes.

Though it was primarily a team roping competition, the Molokai Stampede also hosted ladies barrel racing. Zhantell Dudoit took first place overall.

The rodeo was originally scheduled for last weekend, but was postponed due to hurricane Flossie. The delay caused some cowboys from neighboring islands to have to pull out of the competition. This is only the Molokai Stampede’s second year, but the Kapualei Ranch hopes that it will continue to grow and eventually be recognized state-wide.


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