I was contacted by someone I hadn’t seen or heard from in nearly 12 years via email the other day and of course they asked how I ended up in Hawaii and how is it living out here.   I would rather not write a novel to someone trying to explain how great and different life is here, so I jumped on the Internet and started digging up pictures and video of the various things I do and enjoy. (I usually lose friends at that point since it comes of as if I am rubbing in the lifestyle that we live here) It made me realize that I have not posted a Why We Live Hawaii category post in a while.

Well, I came across this website that had some video of the Eddie Aikau Big Wave Classic held in 2004.   There is a great explanation of what “The Eddie” is and it goes into the Background of “The Eddie”.   Check out the video here.

This day was especially memorable because it was my first Eddie contest (the have the holding period for it every year but if waves don’t remain consistantly above 25 feet they don’t hold it so it only happens once every few years) and I was getting ready to fly out to North Carolina in the dead of winter and wanted some surf and sun before I went back to freezing cold weather.  I remember hearing on the news the night before that as long as the wind cooperated then the Eddie was a go for the next day and that waves were expected to be upward of 50+ feet, possibly 60. (I start losing my lunch when the surf gets above 10 ft.)

Myself and a buddy of mine left before the sun was up to make the trek to the North Shore for the Eddie.  As we made the hour long drive the radio stations were all reconfirming what we already knew, that the Eddie was on and that the surf was massive. The waves were coming across the roads during the night in some spots.

We pulled up “near” Waimea Bay about 7:15 and could not believe how far away we had to park.  We had to park more than a mile away and walk, since there were cars already parked on both sides of the road all the way down to Waimea.  Traffic is grid-locked and the waves begin to come across the road in certain spots when the waves get to be this size.  The Eddie definitely brings out a lot of people and the beach was packed along with any upper viewing vatange point from the cliffs above.

Being able to watch all the pros that are invited for the contest is an amazing sight and a special event.  The video above is a great watch, it also captures what surfer magazine deemed the worst wipe-out of the decade, which you can watch here in the first scene (Flea’s Wipe-out Video), along with some other nasty spills.

Also Bruce Iron’s winning wave had the crowd on the beach giving a standing ovation as Bruce put his hands in the air during his close-out barrel in the Waimea Shore break.  This is one thing you definitely don’t see elsewhere in the world.

Have any stories with pics you want to share?  Email them to me at scott@kahalaassociates.com

The day I took this photo I counted 14 turtles in front of 3 side by side beachfront properties.  That is an amzing number of turtles in the tide pools in a small area. They do a release every year of green sea turtles and a lot of them end up coming back close to the area they were released from. 

French Lick, Indiana (home to Laryy Bird) has nothing on Hawaii’s basketball courts.  Would Jimmy Chipwood have been a better player if he had grown up playing on this court?  Probably not.  He would have been out surfing instead. If you don’t remember Jimmy Chipwood, then this clip should refresh your memory. What a movie!

How is this for a view.  This is the view from the top of the hike to Makapuu Lighthouse with rabbit island out in front.  In the distance on the left is where TC from Magnum PI used to land his helecopter on the show, also shown is Sea Life Park. (40 first dates).  They also showed a segment of Dog, The Bounty Hunter here. (a least I was told).

I just made an addition to my house.  I added a study, or is it a reading area in the sunroom? Who knows, but it sure was affordable.

I found this video on YouTube that I thought was great.  Check it out.

People always ask me why I live in Hawaii, and I can’t tell you all the reasons why.  There are just too many reasons. I can, however, show you some of the reasons I live here and what there is too look forward to on a daily basis.

Another day at the office!  Even though I am playing hard, I am always working just as hard for my clients, finding them the right property.  Why work in a white-walled office with no windows everyday?  The Coconut Wireless hard at work?  You can write your own caption, like: Idiot in business clothes sitting in a tide pool on his cellphone.  On the serious side,  this is my spin on the relaxed lifestyle and relaxed business environment of Hawaii.  No stuffy suits.  Only here can you work hard and play hard all year around.

Can you beat this!  17th hole par 3.  Ocean in the background with Maui in the distance.  Not a bad day.  Actually my first ever birdie.  (I decided I needed lessons after this day).  I had to pull a Tin Cup and put my cellphone and keys in my right side pocket to try and correct my swing.  I hit a couple of houses that day.  FORE!!!

North Shore surfing.  “Yes…Yes….  I am sorry I missed your showing appointment earlier, I had a last minute Board Meeting.”  Small but fun day none the less.   Hopefully I can get some South Shore photos soon.  It has been good lately.

Pro Bowl.  Need I really say more.  This was actually the game when I caught up with fellow App State Alum and Pro Bowl Player, Dexter Coakley. I used to lift weights next to him every morning at App when I played soccer there. (Embarrassing when I weighed 150 lbs.) I will never forget when Payton Manning was asked to respond to the fact that his kicker said he can’t ever win the big game.  His response was “I will deal with that when I get back to America.”  OK?

Here is the view from my lanai.  Want a reason to live in Hawaii.  This view every late afternoon is it.  After 8 years, I still love this view and never take it for granted.