Epic day on the North Shore!

Lani's was firing early in the morning and Rockpiles was going off all day, copping the full force of the swell. And with the likes of Tom Carroll throwing himself off its ledges it was quite a spectacle - just like everyone was hoping Pipe would be for round 1 & 2.

Yesterday crowds gathered early in anticipation of the solid North Swell charging the North Shore. And with 6-12 ft rising surf predicted we were on.

Alas, the locals and old seadogs of Hawaii could be heard down the beaches ‘Pipe just ain't Pipe today'. Most of the crew that have been coming here for the last 20 years are still gobsmacked with summer like conditions. Normally the sand on Banzai's beach would be half of what's its width was today with the water usually lapping close to the walls of all the oceanfront houses at this time of year.

Nonetheless, the show must go on. And it went. Full steam ahead. Heavy with meaning and emotion from the ever present force of Andy's spirit that sat out in the water with the surfers and the uncanny birth of his son, Andy Axel Irons, on the first day of the Pipeline being held in the memory of his late dad.

"I was at the hospital at eight o'clock, the baby came out, some guy gave us a private jet, picked us up at the airport, flew by the (Pipeline) lineup and parked at Mokuleia, and we drove right here," said Bruce Irons

Bit of a magic day for Andy fans, friends and family.

With overlapping heats we saw Rob Machado put his heart, soul and his hair into it as he knocked Granger Larson in heat 10. Parko's still on track to take out The Triple Crown, easily accounting for Brazilian wildcard Heitor Alves in his 40 minute, Round 2 encounter, locking in two Backdoor barrels. Julian Wilson fans will be happy to know that although he didn't compete, today's results confirmed his spot on the 2011 ASP world tour. Yeeeew.

But with heinous weather rolling in today the comps been called off. So we wait.

Clare Plueckhahn and Fran Derham are ‘CosWeCan' an editorial team and filmmakers. Check out their website here: www.coswecan.com.au