Kana Lui Miami Outrigger Canoe Club is thrilled to invite you to the 20th Annual NISH Outrigger Challenge – Miami 2026 edition! This 2-day event will take place on Saturday, November 7th and Sunday, November 8th, 2026, at the beautiful and historic Parque de la playa de Virginia Key (4020 Virginia Beach Drive, Miami, FL 33149), right across the bay from downtown Miami.

Last year’s race was our greatest race yet—with 26 clubs from across the U.S. and Canada y 288 paddlers hitting the water on Saturday! The success of this event would not have been possible without the amazing support from clubs who traveled, towed, and rented out canoes to others—we are incredibly grateful.

Kana Lui's first sponsored race was established in 2006, named the Miami or Kana Lui Race. Today, the event is proudly known as Nish in honor of our late friend and fellow paddler, Mike Nishihara, who passed away in September 2007.

In the spring of 2008, we held the first Nish Memorial race and luau was attended by his mother Rose and sister Beth. Since then, Kana Lui has held an annual race in his honor. His Hawaiian heritage and spirit added a lot of Aloha and authenticity to our Miami club.

Mike was the head strength and conditioning coach in Player Development of the US Tennis Association and an avid paddler from Hawaii. He loved being a part of the club and getting to know everyone. He loved being on the water and the connection it gave him to his Hawaiian roots.