Talk about a coincidence!
by Spennie    4/4/07

   When the new 2007 Wind Junkie tee-shirts came in, I needed a model or two to wear them for the website. I asked Kelsey, a 17 year-old waitress at the Natural Cafe' here in Newbury Park, and Lei, a girl who works in the bookstore at Moorpark College, where I also work as a carpenter.

   When the time came to shoot the photos, I picked Lei up from the school after work, and while we were driving to the location we were talking about this & that, just making small talk, and she mentioned that she had a cousin who was pretty famous in the windsurfing world, and a while ago had won a world championship. "Really?" I ask, "What's his name?". "Dave Kalama" she replies, "But in the family we just call him Kawaika".

   After picking my lower jaw up off the floor of the car and getting back in my own lane, I say "Dave Kalama? One of the guys who invented tow-in surfing with Laird Hamilton?" "Yeah, that's Kawaika" she replies, "He's really cool".



   Lei is pretty cool herself. She's 22, half Hawaiian (her full name is Leialoha), & just moved here from Hawaii a couple of years ago to start pursuing her degree in Marine Biology. I think it's pretty obvious why I asked her to model for us, and no, you can't have her phone number!

--Spennie