Ho‘okipa

Hookipa ( Hawaiian for " hospitality ") is a surf spot for windsurfers and surfers. As Hookipa Beach Park is the designated corresponding to beach on the island of Maui on Highway 36 two miles east of Paia.

History

The Hookipa Beach Park is known since the early 1930s as the starting point of modern surfing in Hawaii. 1935 founded the then-known brothers Donald and Uchimura Teruo first Hookipa Surf Club. A donation enabled the construction of a small club house by Harold Rice, which was used for storing the boards.

In the later 1930s, Ho'okipa Beach Park became the basis of the youth organization Hui Makani for children from Paia and Kuau. It was founded by policemen Curtis Sylva, who taught there regularly children to swim and surf. During the Second World War the park was a popular destination of the soldiers of the Fourth Marine Division, stationed in Kokomo.

On April 1, 1946, a tsunami destroyed large parts of the sandy beach and the park. To protect the river banks was renewed and built a high seawall. In the 1960s, a second Surf Club was founded by Barbara and William Meheula, originally Maui Surf Club was called. Since the park was used by the members as a starting point for their surf sessions, the club finally renamed in Hookipa Surf Club. Over the years, this club has developed into a large and influential youth organization. The association initiated many charitable projects and led through the first Lanai - Lahaina contest. The members discovered and named several spots like Hot Sands, Lone Palm, or Pine Tree.

Around 1970 came the windsurfing, which had hitherto been disseminated only in Hawaii on Oahu, Maui. In the 1980s, the discharge of windsurfing competitions began in Hookipa. To date, Hookipa is considered amongst windsurfers and surfers as a spot with over the years predictable surfing conditions.

Spot Description

The Hookipa Beach Park is located in a 1 km wide bay on the north coast of Maui. The very consistent north-east trade winds blow from the right over the running from northeast to southwest coast, ie parallel to the shore. During the day, it is amplified by convection and the venturi effect of the 3055 -meter-high Haleakala up to 4-8 Beaufort.

The coral reef Spartan Reef on the north coast of Maui, which extends over 14 miles, passing close to Hookipa on the shore and is - depending on the tide - 50-100 cm below the water surface. Thus, the rolling waves of the Pacific break into a running wave to right. A 100 -meter-wide gap in the reef allows the entry and exit of the shaft between Hookipa and the west adjoining lanes. The proximity of the reef to the beach makes the spot for observers and photographers especially popular.

The beach of Hookipa Beach Park is reserved in the eastern part of surfers and in the western part of windsurfers. Getting started is equally dangerous in both places, since the high waves produce a strong current of up to 3 m / s and the reef is sharp right under the surface.

In Hookipa regularly hosts competitions held in windsurfing and surfing. As Windsurf Wave Classic is considered the Aloha Classic which was held from 1984 to 2006 for men and women. After a six-year break, the Aloha Classic 2013 is performed as part of the PWA World Tour in cooperation with the American Windsurfing Tour ( AWT).