Awad claims two titles at Pohai Na Keiki Nalu
Kaden Awad was a double winner at the 28th annual Pohai Na Keiki Nalu at Launiupoko Beach Park on Saturday.
Over 200 competitors, ages 5-13, surfed in 53 heats in 14 divisions.
Awad won the bodyboard 10-12 and the boys shortboard 11-12 competitions. The finals for those divisions were back-to-back in the Kihei peak, with the bodyboard final first.
“It was fun, I thought it was a 15minute final,” Awad said of his bodyboard heat. “But it was actually 20 minutes so I kind of stopped like pretty quick, but I was able to catch a few waves.”
He was able to rest for those five minutes in the water as a friend paddled out his shortboard and brought his bodyboard back to the shore.
The shortboard final was a little more challenging as the higher tide and onshore winds played havoc with the shifting lineup.
“It was still fun,” Awad said. “It was pretty grindy the waves, it was like pretty grovely, hard to get a good one to maximum the turns.”
The Montessori eighth-grader-tobe did enough to post the highest winning score of any of the finals, a 14.00. This will be his final year in the Pohai, as he will be too old next year.
“I’ve been doing this contest since I was like six,” he said. “It’s my last year so I wanted it to be a good experience.”
Awad leaves next week for the National Scholastic Surfing Association national championship in Huntington Beach, Calif. Last year, Awad won the Explorer Menehune (U13) division, and was third in the Open Mini-Groms (U12).
“This is good practice for Huntington because the waves are usually pretty small and, like, pretty shifty,” the 13-year-old from Haiku added.
Aila Daian won the 10-12 girls longboard title and was third in the 11-12 girls shortboard.
“Last year, I didn’t make it past my first heat,” Daian said. “It was really fun this year but the waves were kind of small. They weren’t really consistent. There was a set now and then, but if you didn’t catch the set then you had to wait for another set.”
Competitors were allowed to catch a maximum of six waves, with the top two waves being scored. Daian caught her six waves in the first 15 minutes of her 20-minute final. She then had to wait and watch on the sidelines as the other girls were able to catch waves.
“I got out really early,” Daian said. “I was just sitting, looking at the other people. It was really stressful.”
Stella Pogni came close, but her last ride was still one point short of overtaking Daian.
Other girl winners included: Juliet Farinas (shortboard 5-6), Sayler Udell (shortboard 7-8), Indy Forbes (shortboard 9-10), Koryann Mouery (shortboard 11-12), and Anala Van Pelt (longboard 7-9). The other boys winners included: Eli Lee (shortboard 5-6), Axel Baptiste (shortboard 7-8), Mason Burns (shortboard 9-10), Brixton Craig (longboard 7-9), Nahuel Messera (longboard 10-12), and Aukan Messera (bodyboard 7-9).