NAWILIWILI — Grandma was not run over by a reindeer; she was trampled by several hundred pairs of feet. Jeff Haigh, a sand artist from Auburn, Calif., said Friday afternoon “the scene of attack” described in the popular Christmas tune
NAWILIWILI — Grandma was not run over by a reindeer; she was trampled by several hundred pairs of feet.
Jeff Haigh, a sand artist from Auburn, Calif., said Friday afternoon “the scene of attack” described in the popular Christmas tune was at Kalapaki Beach where he was working on a sculpture. Santa Claus arrived aboard a double-hulled canoe accompanied by a variety of other water craft.
The sound of the pu and the sight of the flotilla attracted several hundred people who were enjoying the afternoon sun at the popular beach fronting the Kaua‘i Marriott Resort and Beach Club.
As the canoe bearing a shaka-flashing Santa cruised the shoreline, it attracted a horde of people to the landing site where Haigh was creating his “Dogpile” mound and Jeff Peterson of Kalaheo was sand-sculpting a giant Christmas present.
Both artists worked as the surge swarmed the canoe bearing the man of the season whom Chris Kauwe said was taking a short break before having to return to the North Pole to start his Christmas Eve work.
“This is a lot more people than last year,” said Roy Yamagata, a longtime lifeguard at the Po‘ipu Beach tower and a paddler with the regatta. “Santa used to arrive at Po‘ipu Beach, but we moved it to Kalapaki, and I guess it’s better because there are a lot more people.”
Santa — getting help from Honihoni Honey, the Niumalu Canoe Club, Hoku Water Sports, and the Po‘ipu Beach Canoe Surfing Club — had enough time to greet all of his many fans, several hailing from different countries, and take time to have a photo done before distributing holiday goodies.
All the while, Peterson and Haigh worked silently in the sand, stopping to answer questions from curious passers-by who were waiting to visit Santa.
Haigh, who has been visiting for the past five or six years, said he was surprised when his picture creating a monster whale was used to promote a sand event over the summer.
Peterson, a sand artist for three years, said he was one of the organizers of the summer event in Hanalei after someone saw a piece he was working on and approached him.
“I’ve heard that Hanalei has even better sand,” said Haigh, who describes his art as loose pack. “It’s supposed to carve very well.”
Haigh said the difference between the loose-pack style he works with and the hard-pack style utilized by Peterson in creating the big present, is that Haigh simply mounds the sand and compresses it as best he can before starting to sculpt.
“In hard pack, you start with loose sand in a form. Once the form is filled, you add water and sand and it packs really hard,” Haigh said. “I’m kind of like a purist. I don’t really use any tools to create. Peterson has a variety of tools to carve his work. You might say mine is an organic type of sand sculpting.”
Haigh said he’ll be on the beach daily through New Year’s before he and his wife get a car and begin exploring the island.
“Grandma might have gotten run over by more than reindeer today,” Haigh said. “But tomorrow, she’ll be part of the ‘Dogpile,’ and who knows what else might appear.”
