“I spent a week at House of Somos shaping 20 surfboards. At first the task seemed daunting, but it’s easy to get into a rhythm when you line everything up beforehand. Fabio has such a good program down there and it was fun working with Korna and the crew. I’d wake up, surf, and then hop in the shaping bay for the rest of the day. Working within the parameters of the blanks that were available and with talented people, it gave me some new perspectives I was grateful to take back home with me.

I didn’t have many expectations for surf, but there’s so many setups in the area as far as waves are concerned. I brought a 5’ 8” Asymmetrical 80s Twin I built for the trip that had a combination of tail and belly channels. It became one of my favourite boards and I’ve been building all different iterations since. For only getting small windows to surf, I was lucky to get my fair share of waves. I even got a morning of fishing in catching a bunch of Yellowtail, Ahi, Amberjack, and Snapper. I plan on going back this year and there’s one wave in particular I’m motivated to get on a good day. Looking to plan my next shaping trip there centred around a decent swell for that spot.” - Ashton