Slightly related, but in having a bit of a read of wikipedia on this subject, today I learnt about waka hurdling, jumping waka over wooden beams set in the water.
View of Maori waka (canoes) in a hurdle race on the Waikato River at the Ngaruawahia Regatta. A group of people line the river banks to watch. A bridge crosses the river in the right background. Taken by Albert Percy Godber circa 1910.