March 19^th, 2020

Aloha kakou,

The HCRA is closely monitoring the COVID-19, Coronavirus situation through contact and communication with numerous government agencies.

While Hawaiian outrigger canoe paddling is a very important, meaningful part of our activities and our lifestyle, it is not as important as protecting ourselves and our loved ones. This virus presents a very real threat to all of us, and we must all follow directions and guidelines to prevent its spread.

State Championships : Our HCRA State Championships is a highlight and a goal for all of us, and we intend to hold the event August 1 at Ke`ehi lagoon. HCRA does everything it can to prepare for, and host the event, but we must deal with county, state, and Coast Guard rules and regulations to allow the regatta to occur.

There is currently a Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources directive cancelling all new and existing marine event permits with more than 50 participants. Although this cancellation could apply to our state championships, we do not know how long the policy will be in effect. Our goal is to hold the state championships, and we will continue with that until we know for certain it will not be allowed.

A further update regarding state championships will occur not later than June 1.

Regatta Season : As of this writing, we are not aware of any association that has cancelled their regatta season. We are aware of pre-season races and fundraisers being cancelled in observance of the requests that we voluntarily exercise social distancing and not congregate in groups of 10 or more people. We will continue to encourage the associations and member clubs to address these issues in a meaningful fashion taking into consideration their own circumstances. If we face a situation where we must require clubs and associations to cease activities, we will provide that information on the website (HCRApaddler.com) and thru the association representatives.

World Sprint Trials : As the event that is closest calendar-wise, HCRA is working with the County of Hawaii and DLNR to determine whether or not we can hold the event and if so, utilizing any necessary restrictions to better protect health. We expect to have a "go - no go" determination made by April 1 and will have information posted to the website and the world sprints website by April 3.

We appreciate your patience and understanding during these challenging times. Please look out for yourselves and your loved ones and stay safe and healthy.

Malama Pono

Mike Atwood

March 25^th, 2020

Aloha kakou,

In 2015, then HCRA President Walter Vierra and then HCRA Race Commissioner Bo Campos began communicating with the International Va`a Association (IVF) to have HCRA host the IVF world championships in Hawaii. Hawaii had previously hosted IVF regattas in 1988 in Honolulu, and 2004 in Hilo.

The IVF sanctions worldwide outrigger canoe paddling, and has held regattas in Australia, Brazil, California, Canada, Fiji, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Samoa and Tahiti.

Through Bo and Walter's communications, the IVF Board of Directors selected Hilo for the 2020 IVF World Championships , and the work began to organize the many activities involved.

Unfortunately, the worldwide Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic necessitated the IVF Board of Directors to evaluate the 2020 Sprints, and on March 21, IVF President Lara Collins issued a statement cancelling the event.

In planning and organizing the World Championships, HCRA, and in particular Race Commissioner Samantha Moikeha, reached out to our statewide Hawaiian community and we need to recognize and thank you for your support and cooperation. There are so many of you we need to say mahalo nui loa to that we can't list all, but we can start by recognizing Hawaii County Departments, Mayor Harry Kim and Director Maurice Messina. The state and county agencies along with our travel industry partners, and local businesses and organizations were there and waiting for us to tell them what we needed. With any event there are volunteers who support by bringing their energy, and participation, and we were fortunate to have the numbers of you who got involved. We also couldn't have done it without our HCRA Association members and paddlers. Mahalo to all of you.

We also want to thank President Lara Collins and the IVF Board of Directors. You needed to make a very difficult decision, and we respect you for that. While HCRA was not able to host the World Championships, we were able to establish relationships, and bonds that we can continue to share as we look to the future. As in outrigger canoe paddling, it takes a team to accomplish our goals, and we are blessed to have an outstanding team..

Mahalo piha,

Mike Atwood