Lahaina Harbor hosts MIL surfing championships: ‘The first anything’ in burn zone since the fire 

On Saturday, nearly two years after the deadly Aug. 8, 2023, wildfire in Lahaina, the first official event was held inside the burn zone.

The day was so special to Chrislyn Simpson-Kane and her extended surfing family that she broke into tears.

Simpson-Kane, a King Kekaulike High School senior, was one of 77 high school surfers — 36 girls and 41 boys — who competed in the Maui Interscholastic League individual surfing championships at Lahaina Harbor. The event included competitors from 12 MIL schools.

In small, 2-to-3-foot surf with windy, choppy conditions under a baking hot Lahaina sun, Simpson-Kane, a world-ranked big wave surfer and two-time MIL champion, had just finished second in her final high school event. 

The Old Lahaina Courthouse stood — with braces holding it up — a block away. The world-renown Banyan tree in front of the courthouse also showed the perseverance of the town, with many destroyed branches cut off but leaves now growing on what survived. The boathouse near the entrance of the harbor stood with burn marks and a little bit of debris still scattered around it. And, the harbor had another crane sitting in it to help dredge the facility.

But onshore and offshore, near where the Lahaina Library stood before being destroyed by the fire, more than 300 surfers, coaches, parents, surf judges, officials and school administrators were allowed to witness and compete in the daylong event that organizer Kim Ball said was “the first anything in Lahaina since the fire.”

Lahaina Harbor, once a bustling hub of whale-watching tours, fishing charters and ocean adventures, has been closed since the fire. It is expected to cost at least $30 million to rebuild and will not reopen until next year at the earliest.

On Saturday, no one was allowed past the security guard on Front Street without an official parking pass.

Sloane Jucker, a Maui Prep junior, conquered enough solid waves in the girls final to beat Simpson-Kane, 12.30 points to 9.10. The rest of the final six girls: third place, Mikaia Barnes, Maui Christian, 8.50 points; fourth, Thayane Colpis, Maui Christian, 7.23; fifth, Layla James, Kihei Charter, 6.93; and sixth, Kela DeCaro, Kīhei Charter, 3.76.

Angel Jardine, a junior at Maui Christian Academy, won the boys title with 11.47 points, just in front of Maui Prep’s Zolten Poulsen (10.97). Kahlili Pineres-Schooley of Seabury Hall was third (10.40), Kai Nelson of King Kakelike was fourth (10.26), Kanoa Kuailani of King Kekaulike was fifth (7.77) and Ezra Offergeld of Maui Prep was sixth (5.30).

Simpson-Kane was nursing a sprained ankle and strained Achilles in her right foot as well as her emotions on this special day. She suffered the foot injuries playing water polo for her high school team a little over a week ago.

“Wow, I honestly, I showed up this morning and I had no emotion … sorry,” Simpson-Kane said as tears started to flow. After pausing to collect her thoughts, she added, “But being able to surf my last high school event here, yeah, it really hits home.”

Ball said his emotions also ran the gamut from the opening traditional Hawaiian blessing at 7 a.m. to the final boys heat that ended past 3 p.m.

“It was only fitting that the first activity here, the first event was surfing,” Ball said. “This is our sport. We brought this sport to the world, so it’s only fitting.”

The surf community also received news it was waiting for on Wednesday when Bill 133 that will fund high school surfing passed both the state House of Representatives and the Senate. The measure has been sent to Gov. Josh Green, who is expected to sign it soon.

The bill appropriates $685,870 for each of the next two school years to fund the sport for Hawai’i Department of Education schools that wish to participate. The budget number was developed by Ball.

“I don’t know when he’s going to sign it, but to me that’s just the cherry on top of the sundae,” Ball said. “We’re still going to have MIL surfing no matter what, but when the governor signs it, it’s really an opportunity for these kids to participate in a state tournament.” 

Three of the state’s five high school leagues must sanction the sport to hold a state tournament. The all-private-school Interscholastic League of Honolulu has said it will sponsor the sport next year, meaning just one of the Kaua’i Interscholastic Federation, Big Island Interscholastic Federation or O’ahu Interscholastic Association need to join the MIL and ILH to hold a state tournament. The MIL officially sanctioned the sport in 2014, the first high school league in the nation to do so.

“I’ve learned not to get my hopes up too high,” said Ball, who has been working on making surfing a statewide sanctioned high school sport for more than 30 years. He spearheaded the beginning of surfing as a club sport in high schools here in the early 1990s. “But yeah that (state tournament) would be awesome.” 

When Wilmont Kahaialii gave the tradition Hawaiian blessing to start the festivities Saturday, the emotions of the day started flowing.

“It was a little emotional this morning. We had several people here involved in the contest and participating in the contest who lost everything in the fire,” Ball said. “Wilmont (Kahaialii) said, ‘This is the beginning of the healing.’ So it was awesome. We had waves all day and everybody was real respectful of Lahaina town and all the protocol that was involved in even having it be here.”

Ball credited the County of Maui, the Department of Land and Natural Resources, Army Corps of Engineers, and Maui Emergency Management Agency with helping the event take place.

“They were all so supportive and a big thank you to them,” Ball said. “Basically everybody had to stay in this footprint in front of the old library. It’s all private property, no trespassing especially in the banyan tree area where everybody wants to walk. They had to stay on the sidewalks and on the side of the roadways, which they did.”

Keith Amemiya, the sports task force chairman for Green and executive director of the Hawai’i High School Athletic Association from 1998-2010, gave credit to Maui legislators and Olympic gold medalist Carissa Moore for helping move Bill 133 to the governor’s desk.

“We’re so grateful for the Legislature’s funding of high school surfing,” Amemiya said in a text message on Wednesday from Japan, where he is visiting family. “It’s been a 12-year journey. … Hopefully, this is the last hurdle removed so that surfing can finally be adopted as an official high school sport statewide.”

Jucker, a junior, is hopeful to be able to compete in a state tournament in her final year in high school next year.

“I think it’s super awesome,” Jucker said. “I’d love to go to states with other high schoolers. … It’s really cool to be a part of MIL surfing because we’re starting the charge on this.”

Jardine, a junior who plans to pursue a professional surfing career, said he was happy to win after finishing second last year. 

“I just got second every last year, pretty much every event, so it means a lot to win this one,” Jardine said. “This might be my last one. I’m thinking about it, probably like 50-50. Just because it’s getting in the way with my school, traveling, but I hope to compete next year. I want to make the (world championship tour). This is definitely a confidence booster for me. This means a lot, and yeah, I’m stoked.”

Simpson-Kane plans to enroll at the University of Hawai’i at Hilo in the fall to study Marine Science and Hawaiian Studies. She will always surf for fun, but also plans to compete in professional big-wave events whenever her schedule allows.

But she will leave high school knowing she helped Bill 133 over the finish line. She testified in support of the measure several times before the state legislature despite knowing it will be too late for her to compete in it.

“I’m overall just stoked that I had a part in being that extra step to getting the bill passed and I look forward to the many years ahead and being able to actually watch states,” she said. “I think that’s more meaningful.”