Keahi's Story
Keahi truly has a lifetime of experience. Cruising the Channel Islands of California as an infant, the family sailed to Hawaii at the age of 5. Soon after coming to Hawaii his father began a career as charter boat captain, this introducing Keahi to the business side of sailing. Keahi spent countless days going on snorkel cruises to Molokai and Lanai, whale watches and sunset and dinner cruises.
When Keahi Ho was in high school his father bought him a small boat that he began to race. His passion for racing followed him to college where he began sailing for the University of Hawaii Sailing Team. This afforded Keahi a great opportunity to learn from and sail with the best sailors. At the time the UH Sailing Team was ranked in the top five in the country. Hawaii had a very active offshore racing scene while Keahi was in college on Oahu. Keahi sailed dinghies during the week and larger boats on the weekends. It was during this time that Keahi acquired his 100 Gross Ton USCG Captain’s License.
After four and a half years of college sailing that included a trip to the Olympic trials in 1996, Keahi began work as a charter boat captain on Maui. First he operated the Macgregor 65 First Class. First Class provided whale watches, “performance sailing,” snorkel cruises, and sunset sails.
Keahi took over the 65 foot, 37 ton, vessel America II. America II was a twelve-meter class sailboat that was raced in the 1987 Americas Cup in Australia. America II offered whale watches, “performance sailing,” and sunset sails. After eight years of being a charter captain Keahi became an electrician. Keahi spent five years as an electrician, during which time Keahi managed to stay active in the local racing fleet both on Maui and Oahu. He also managed to participate in the Pacific Cup, and the Transpac, which are two of the premier ocean races from California to Hawaii.
Keahi Ho bought GungHo in December of 2008. Since that time Keahi has completely refitted the boat, removing as much hardware from the deck as possible to prevent trip hazards and make the boat operate more efficiently. He has added cockpit coamings, which keep the passengers more secure and comfortable. He has installed a new rudder that is stronger and more efficient. The entire boat has been rewired and a refrigerator was installed. Since purchasing the boat in 2008 Keahi has raced and cruised the boat with his family throughout the Hawaiian Islands, and sailed to Tahiti and back in 2015.
In addition to running GungHo Sailing, Keahi is a Fire Fighter for Maui County. He is a certified First Responder and has real experience performing First Aid, CPR, ocean rescues, car accidents, brush fires and structure fires. He is also a Junior Sailing Coach with the Lahaina Yacht Club. Keahi has been coaching kids from 8-18 years old over the past five years. He is a US Sailing Level I Instructor.
Keahi has a lifetime of sailing and looking forward to sharing his knowledge with others.