The Ka Mo`i is reputed to have been built by James Takeo Yamasaki and Kyuhei Takimoto in Kailua, Kona circa 1931 from a single koa log. The original log was from the North Kona forests on Hualalai.
According to Club lore, it took 14 people to carry it from Kalakaua Avenue to the beach at the OCC when the canoe first arrived in Waikiki. It was finished by James “Box” Kaya, an employee of the Outrigger Canoe Club in 1933. Jimmy as he was known, removed nearly four inches of thickness from the hull to lighten the boat so that it would be manageable in Waikiki. He was also largely responsible for the beautiful lines the hull has today.
The original canoe weighed about 650 pounds. Today it weighs in at 547 pounds. (Compare that to our racing canoes Kakina, Leilani and Kaoloa which weigh close to 400 pounds.)
Though its original builders probably intended it as a large fishing canoe, it did not serve as such. From the time of its arrival and completion in Waikiki the Ka Mo’i was a surfing canoe and on occasion a racing canoe. When the canoe was finished it was placed in service on the beach fronting the original Outrigger Canoe Club with the OCC Beach Services.
A six-man canoe with two passenger seats and a child seat behind the steersman, it served the tourist industry and Club members from that time until the Club moved to its Diamond Head location in 1964. It was used in attempts to revive the sport of canoe sailing in the late 1940s.
The Ka Mo’i was used by a beach boy crew in the Molokai to Oahu Race in 1954.
Steamboat Mokuahi Sr. used, cared for and maintained the Ka Mo`i during its most active years in Waikiki, and according to some the two were inseparable after the end of World War II until OCC moved to its current location.
After Duke Kahanamoku’s funeral in 1966, the canoe was placed on display at the Ulu Mau Village at Ala Moana Park. There the moisture, termites and lack of attention took their toll. When the village closed in 1977 the Ka Mo`i came back to the Outrigger and an uncertain future. Some saw it as a useless relic, just taking up space. Fortunately others saw it as a piece of our heritage, something that should be preserved to remind our young people of the times that came before them and the people who made what we now have possible.
In 1978 a group including Bob Fischer, Timmy Wong, Charlie Martin, Bill Cook, Mike Mason, Walter Guild, Wayne Faulkner and others began working on the canoe to make it seaworthy again.
They removed 50 years of accumulated varnish, patches made with pitch and tar, as well as termite damaged wood. A technique for making new patches, designed not to destroy the old butterfly patches was developed. Research was done to make certain that the restoration was authentic. Redwood seats and plywood bulkheads were replaced with koa; brown paint was removed from the `iako to return them to their original natural state.
They finished their work in time to display the canoe at the Macfarlane Regatta on July 4, 1978. The canoe was paddled to the race site and back that day.
July 4, 1978 was the last known time the Ka Mo’i was paddled for more than two decades. After this event the canoe remained stored on the Outrigger Canoe Club premises until 1982.
To our knowledge the canoe was placed on a lease to a restaurant in Poipu on Kauai in 1982. It is rumored that it was used as a salad bar until the restaurant was destroyed by Hurricane Iwa. It survived this calamity and was worked on by members of the Hanalei Canoe Club and prepared for exhibition in the Princeville Hotel where it remained until 1992, when that hotel was destroyed by Hurricane Iniki.
The canoe again survived and was taken to the nearby Hanalei Bay Resort where it was hung from the lounge ceiling. In November 1998, at the request of the OCC Historical Committee, Tay Perry and General Manager John Rader went to Kauai to locate the Ka Mo’i and to determine how to arrange for its return home.
On January 17, 1999 a party consisting of Tay Perry, Kawika Grant and Allan Dowsett went to Kauai to retrieve the Ka Mo’i. With the help of the Hanalei Canoe Club they were able to deliver the canoe to the dock.
The most recent restoration work on the Ka Mo’i commenced in August 2000. The condition of the canoe was far worse than originally estimated. A complete and total overhaul was begun and lasted for two and one half years. Work was completed on the canoe itself at the end of January 2002. The work involved stripping the former finish, removing all of the metal fastenings, rebuilding the stern, patching the cracks, termite damage and dry rot. The existing fir and plywood manu were discarded and new ones fashioned from a koa log. The ama and `iako are new with wood gathered from the Maunawili forest by Club members.
The principal members of the restoration crew in the order of time participated were Tay Perry, Kawika Grant and Allan Dowsett who contributed more than 85 percent of the total hours worked. Also participating were Norman Ho, Jay Dowsett, Mike Mason, Clarence Au, Cale Holman, Norm Dunmire and Bret Chuckovich. In all, a total of 1,155 man hours were contributed to this project. All of the labor was volunteered.
Donors of material were George Norcross of Epoxy Sales of Hawaii and Ted Wilson of Fiberglass Hawaii, Inc. The Friends of Hokule’a and Hawaii Loa provided us with space, electricity, equipment, moral support and lunch.
The Ka Mo’i was launched again in a simple Hawaiian ceremony conducted by Hokule`a navigator Kawika Kapahulehua at Sans Souci beach on February 25, 2001. This launching party included mostly the workers, close friends, and those associated with its history. Upon launching, it was paddled out to sea and then back in to the Club for its homecoming blessing which was conducted by the Rev. Thomas Van Culin.
There is a lot of history of the Ka Mo’i that is not known to any one person. This canoe has had an intimate relationship with the Outrigger Canoe Club, belonging to it for more than 70 years. Many members have their own experience and history with this canoe. There are many thousands of people who have had thrilling surf rides in it who will never forget their experience.
Sadly, most of the steersmen who have surfed this canoe have passed on. They would have been overjoyed to see the Ka Mo’i as it is today; finished and ready for the sea.
The Ka Mo`i hangs in the Club Bar, which was renamed the Ka Mo`i Boathouse in its honor.
Long live the Ka Mo`i!