I ask because I just saw a video (which I stumbled up via a rival surf forecast website) that is insane. I haven't been watching big wave surfing for a while. When I was a kid it was all about Waimea which is kind of boring to watch on repeat. I mean, don't get me wrong those guys are hellmen but it's a drop and race for the shoulder as far as I could tell. Tow surfing changed all that.
Laird and everyone were getting barreled at 60 foot Jaws instead of just making the drop at measly old 20+ foot Waimea. Then Parsons rode 70 thousand foot Cortes and McNamara 90 million foot Portugal Island somewhere. And we all argued about size etc remembering that 20 foot Waimea is on a different scale from 60 foot Billabong XXL awards. Anyway rambling here sorry.
These guys are fricken extraordinary to me. Some of them are getting barreled (or some might say only head dipped) paddling into what...I dunno macking jaws anyway. And for me at least, well tow surfing looks kind of lame in comparison (code red chopes aside of course. And shipsterns, Kirra(?) etc). But maybe I'm rushing to judgement a bit.
jeff-schmuckerMonday, 30 Apr 2012 at 8:21am
Last century?? you are trippn brother it was off its head yesty!
Or at least, is the coolness of it dead?
I ask because I just saw a video (which I stumbled up via a rival surf forecast website) that is insane. I haven't been watching big wave surfing for a while. When I was a kid it was all about Waimea which is kind of boring to watch on repeat. I mean, don't get me wrong those guys are hellmen but it's a drop and race for the shoulder as far as I could tell. Tow surfing changed all that.
Laird and everyone were getting barreled at 60 foot Jaws instead of just making the drop at measly old 20+ foot Waimea. Then Parsons rode 70 thousand foot Cortes and McNamara 90 million foot Portugal Island somewhere. And we all argued about size etc remembering that 20 foot Waimea is on a different scale from 60 foot Billabong XXL awards. Anyway rambling here sorry.
These guys are fricken extraordinary to me. Some of them are getting barreled (or some might say only head dipped) paddling into what...I dunno macking jaws anyway. And for me at least, well tow surfing looks kind of lame in comparison (code red chopes aside of course. And shipsterns, Kirra(?) etc). But maybe I'm rushing to judgement a bit.