Manny Veincent follows a strict order in his life, waking up early to work at his ranch in Waimea, and extending the day with his Kawaihae Canoe Club.
Manny Veincent follows a strict order in his life, waking up early to work at his ranch in Waimea, and extending the day with his Kawaihae Canoe Club.
That discipline has been a foundation for Kawaihae, a powerhouse in Division A (1-6 events) at the Hawaii Canoe Racing Association state championships.
Since 2007 when Division AAAA (21-42) was added, Kawaihae has won four A titles and finished second four times.
But sometimes even small giants go home with an itch they can’t scratch.
Kawaihae finished runner-up by a mere point the last two years, and in 2011. Otherwise, the gold haul could have been 7 of 8.
Because the HCRA state championship is at home, sparing airfare and hotel expenses, Kawaihae is competing in Division AA (7-12) for the first time since 2005. Back then, the club placed fifth on Maui.
The canoe club was formed in 1972, and Veincent is still paddling during the Moku O Hawaii season as a steersman in the men’s 65 races. He also founded and coached the Kuhio Canoe Club in Hilo from 1962 to ’68.
Oh, by the way, Veincent turns 83 years old in October, and he’s still going strong.
In fact, his wife Eunice, 79, also paddles, as well as their daughter Kahealani, who’s also the women’s coach.
“He was paddling when he was in high school, and he’s still paddling,” said Eunice, who’s been married to Veincent for 58 years.
His mind races back in time to recall a proud father-daughter moment.
“Kahealani has been paddling since she could walk, and when she was 11 years old she steered the state champion novice crew in 1975,” Veincent said. “It was an adult race, and she was only 11. Back then it was one race, no novice A or B. And it was one division, all or nothing.”
Veincent graduated from Hilo High in 1950 and was in the Marines and served in the Korean War. He later worked for Hawaiian Airlines on Oahu, where he paddled.
In 1961, he returned to the Big Island and worked for the state fish and game division, and joined the fire department a year later.
He’s good at remembering highlights and specific dates in his life. Luckily, he doesn’t have to bother to know canoe race times because Kahealani serves as the statistician.
If he could only find his glasses, though.
“Some things I’m really, really good at remembering. But I’ll forget where I put my glasses. It’s on my head all the time,” he joked.
On the beach, Veincent is easy to spot because he wears his trademark uniform: ball cap, white V-neck T-shirt and red Palaka shorts.
When he’s around his paddlers, Veincent recharges his batteries, after running cattle outside Waimea and climbing Mauna Kea once a month as part of his routine.
“I feed off the kids. Sometimes, I’ll get an energy burst for two, three, four days straight. When I’m tired, I’ll be really exhausted for two or three days,” he said. “Then I’ll build up again and feed off the paddlers.”
It’s the keiki who tug at his heart. The former drill sergeant wants to teach his young paddlers much more than powering a canoe.
“I want them to have respect for themselves and others, especially to respect adults,” Veincent said. “I push that. I’m really heavy on discipline. The first day the kids come in they’re indoctrinated in respect. It’s, ‘Yes sir. No sir.’ That’s what I demand.
“When I was in the Marine corps that’s what you learn, a lot of respect, dedication and commitment. What I’m most proud of is the kids we’ve brought up over the years, hundreds, maybe a thousand. We’ve had a kid who is a surgeon, another one of the top officers in the Navy Seals. We’ve had a lot of good kids developed here.”
The old Marine in Veincent propels him forward every day whether he’s on the water in one of the canoes he’s built, or on the mountain.
“Paddling is a personal challenge, how much I can push myself. It’s what I do all the time,” he said. “It’s the same thing with the mountain. I can handle the elevation. It’s challenging myself the whole time to see how much can be done. You find out who you really are sometimes.”
His daughter already knows. Kahealani was 11 years old, and produced a memory her dad can never forget, not even after 40 years.
“He’s very loving and giving. He would give the shirt off his back if you needed it or his last dollar if you needed it,” she said. “That’s as a father and friend. As a coach, he is very strict in his coaching, and is very respected by a lot of paddlers. The legacy he will leave behind will be well-nurtured.”
Even without a distinctive uniform of a ball cap, white T-shirt and red Palaka shorts, there are some people nobody can forget.