Learning to surf

Kekai was born in Honolulu, Hawaii, in 1920, and lived with his five siblings and parents near the shore at Waikiki. He first surfed at the age of three when his uncle, a lifeguard, began to teach him how to surf, and by the age of five, Kekai was surfing on his own. As surfing became a bigger part of his life, the boy looked to role models like Duke Kahanamoku, who instructed the ten-year-old Kekai in surfing and outrigger canoeing.

Teenage years

Although surfing was consuming more of his life as he grew older, Kekai managed to concentrate on his school work and excelled academically. He was offered athletic scholarships to attend college, but chose to enter the workforce after high school, and earned a living on and off the beach through numerous odd jobs.

By the mid 1930s, Kekai had risen in the ranks of surfing devotees as he innovated drop-knee bottom turns and hotdogging on shortboards, and surfed on finless boards called "hot curls". He is often mentioned as having been the top hot curl wave rider of his day.^[2] At this time he also began surfing on the North Shore, which is still a popular world-class surf spot.

Duty in World War II

Like most young American men of the time, Kekai served in the military during World War II, and was fortunate to be stationed in Haleiwa on the North Shore for part of his service. Not wanting to let his surfing skills deteriorate, Kekai would surf after finishing his duties for the day. He worked on the Underwater Demolition Teams, or UDTs, that operated in the Pacific Theatre deploying depth charges to destroy Japanese ships and clear the way for American troops to capture the Federated States of Micronesia from Japan. After serving three years, Kekai was discharged from the Navy. He returned to Honolulu and worked in construction and as a longshoreman.^[3]

Return to surfing

Kekai was one of the founding members of the Waikiki Surf Club and helped it win numerous surfing championships and canoe races; he also won numerous international surfing titles independently. By the 1950s, Kekai made a point of passing on the surfing techniques he had acquired over the years to a younger generation, including Joey Cabell, Donald Takayama, Harold Iggy and many others. He also catered to celebrities who visited Hawaii on vacation, teaching them the basics of the ancient sport.