A Young Gun’s Guide to Hood River
With AWSI lighting up Hood River, visiting riders share their go-to spots, downwind runs and local tips—confirming that great conditions and an unbeatable community make the Gorge legendary.
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Rider & Words: Cash Berzolla
Photos: Matt Cibulka
Location: Ho’okipa, Maui
Date: Wednesday, February 19, 2025
Although Cash Berzolla took somewhat of a thrashing on this solid day on the North Shore of Maui, unbeknownst to him photographer Matt Cibulka had managed to capture plenty of the moments that made it all worth it. And despite plenty of gear being sacrificed to the great gear gods in the sky, Cash freely admits he walked away with some valuable learning (and this issue's cover)…
Ho’okipa definitely has a few faces, but this day was something special. This was one of the biggest days I got to ride this year and – lucky me – Matt Cibulka was in the spot to capture these shots. Some of the best moments always seem to be captured when you least expect them…
The day started off pretty normal with breakfast and a quick call to Slater Neborsky to see if he was available to film some potentially psycho north swell that was destroying the North Shore of Maui. He needed little convincing, and before I knew it I was down at the beach watching some of the best and biggest lines I’d seen all winter marching into Ho’okipa Bay. A lot of times when the swell gets big at Ho’okipa it likes to close out, but on this day it had more than a few diamonds in the rough. Sure, there were a few closeouts here and there, but for the most part everything was lining up, ending right into the channel.
The session ended up being one of the highlights of my winter, mainly because of the quality of the waves as well as the quantity – with the wing, if you didn’t fall, you could lap the 5-6ft waves for hours on end – but I fell a lot. This day was a big eye-opener for me in terms of what could be done in sizey surf on the wing. I’m not sure what I ate the night before, but during this session some of the logistical signals that usually go off in my brain had definitely been switched off. I found myself hitting a lot of bigger sections that I would normally not go for. While I ended up making a few, I got absolutely obliterated by more than I’d like to admit.
💎 Premium Content Ahead! 💎 *You will receive our weekly Friday Pump newsletter, plus the latest features, gear tests and giveaway announcements. I know for a fact that if I wasn’t riding the gear I had that day, none of these pictures would have existed and I wouldn’t have learned what I did. The gear I chose for the day was actually no different from what I usually ride when it’s shoulder-high or smaller. My setup was an Armstrong Foils 40L Wing FG Board, a 795 Performance Mast combined with a 60 fuselage, a MA625 front foil, and a Speed 180 tail for quick maneuverability and stability. Looking back, I definitely could have used a bigger mast – maybe something like the 865 – but since I’m so used to the 795 there’s a real advantage to knowing every centimeter of what you’re riding, right up until breaching. Coming from a surfing background, especially with a grom mentality, I never really understood the significance of having good gear. I always thought that different setups were all too similar – if you could ride one, you could ride them all. That’s true to a point. But this day was probably that point. Without the strength, stiffness, and handling capabilities of the gear I was on, a day like this would have ended very differently. While I did break some gear, it was the gear that was expected to break – and even better, it wasn’t my body. Being able to ride something you can trust is super important, and whether it’s in flat lakes or overhead surf, you’re going to want that trust. Since I was shooting video with Slater and the season was coming to a close, that was probably part of the reason for my sendyness. I ended up breaking three wings and decided to call it on my third. It turns out that when foil, wing, body and a six-foot wave all come together, the wave tends to win – with the foil in a close second. Nonetheless, we came out smiling, and later that night got a surprise when Matt Cibulka sent through these photos. In the end, it was a good session filled with adrenaline and plenty of water up the nose to show for my dumb/calculated decisions. The unplanned photos from Matt came out even better than I could have dreamt. Days like this at home are what I look forward to. There’s no place like the north-facing shores of Hawaii during winter – plenty of action and plenty of power to give even the innermost parts of your body a shiver. Looking forward to what this winter brings…
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