Johnny Puakea is a partner at Kamanu Composites bringing his designs, knowledge, and years of experience to the company. He contributes to every aspect of shop production and product development. John was born into a line of master Koa canoe builders on the windward side of O'ahu. John extended the legacy of building canoes in 1985 when he first began to learn the art of composite fabrication. As a paddler, he competed in several championship crews in the 80's, including two 2nd place finishes in the Moloka'i Hoe. Unfortunately his paddling career ended in 1989 after a massive shoulder injury. Shortly afterwards he began coaching for the U.S. Canoe and Kayak team as an Olympic Development Coach. In 1999 he took a hiatus from coaching to expand his canoe business and moved to California to build his first OC-1 which he named the Kaku. After moving back home in 2001 John became the coach of the women's team and later the men's coach for Outrigger Canoe Club. He is now the current coach of the highly successful Team Bradley.