James “Kimo” Kinimaka "Kimo "

James “Kimo” Kinimaka was born on october 3rd 1962 and has lived on the island of maui since 1980. Coming from a long line of legendary hawaiian surfers, he first stepped foot on a surfboard at the age of 6, and has been a waterman ever since.

Blessed with the true “spirit of aloha”, kimo has been sharing his love for surfing with thousands of students since 1996. he surrounded himself with a fantastic and friendly team of instructors, who all share his passion for hawaii and the ocean, and progressively became his second o’hana over the years.

Smiles and customer service have always been part of kimo’s credo, as he himself was a flight attendant for hawaiian airlines for twenty years, prior to starting Royal Hawaiian Surf Academy.

Kimo also prides himself in being a family man; he is married to Juliet kKnimaka and father of 5 children. Surfing has truly been in the kinimaka blood for generations; kimo’s uncle, Titus “Nihi” Kinimaka is a world-reknowned big wave surfer who has been sponsored by quiksilver since 1981, and amongst other extraordinary achievements has placed 8th in the 2005 eddie aikau waimea surf event, at the age of 51!

On the younger end of the spectrum, Kimo’s own son, Kaimana Kinimaka, 14, who is now sponsored by the famous surf brand Analog, is well on his way to becoming a pro-surfer.