07/20/2016
Riding High
Leland Dao is top Osteopath doc to the surf pros.
By Gwen Hulleman
It's 9 o'clock on a Tuesday morning and Dr. Leland Dao isn't in any rush.
While most doctors are readying for a full day of patient appointments, Dao, an Osteopath, sits relaxed in his Hale'iwa office, comfortable in an aloha shirt, baggy trousers and open-toe sandals. Work can wait while he chats about an enviable lifestyle built around his life's passion.
"I live just off Chun's Reef, kind of near Waimea Bay, about five minutes away. So on a good day, I can go surfing three times and still have a full day of work," says Dao, 37. Next to his desk is a surfboard -- the newest of about 10 he owns. Surfing photos take up almost every wall at his practice, the Kaena Kai Clinic, which specializes in sports medicine and family health care. As an Osteopath, he treats neck, back, leg and other musculoskeletal injuries with an approach that relies more on hands-on methods than medication.
Most days Dao sees about 10 to 20 patients. But when November rolls around, he's on the beach all day, practically every day through December, serving as head doctor to contestants in the North Shore professional surfing tour known as the Vans Triple Crown of Surfing. This year will mark his sixth on the tour, and another opportunity to care for world surfing greats such as Sunny Garcia, Mark Occhilupo, Kelly Slater and Layne Beachley. If past competitions are an indication, this year Dao and his assistants will again treat as many as 40 surfers a day for minor neck and back injuries. The work can get hectic, but Dao isn't complaining. "It's like having 50-yard tickets right at the front row," he says.
Dao's beach duty isn't a problem with his office patients, who don't mind accommodating a modified schedule. "They know that if the contest is on, usually I'll be there [on the beach] in the day, and I can see them after-hours. Or, if it's something minor, I may even be able to see them right on the beach."