The Power of Mavericks - video

Craig Brokensha picture
Craig Brokensha (Craig)
Swellnet Dispatch

Drone footage of the crowds and chaos at Mavericks on the recent large December swell.

Comments

Craig's picture
Craig's picture
Craig Tuesday, 23 Dec 2014 at 3:38pm

Wave at 1:42-50 is deadly!! Envelops the surfer!

jimbrown's picture
jimbrown's picture
jimbrown Friday, 26 Dec 2014 at 8:09am

This could be the same wave - Jamie Mitchell

Craig's picture
Craig's picture
Craig Friday, 26 Dec 2014 at 9:28am

Yeah that's it, what an easy entry for such a bomb wave. Here's it from another angle with other footage.. https://www.swellnet.com/news/swellnet-dispatch/2014/12/26/mavericks-beat-downs-and-empty-barrels-video

zsurfnut's picture
zsurfnut's picture
zsurfnut Tuesday, 23 Dec 2014 at 3:44pm

That wave must be better than it looks !!

crustt's picture
crustt's picture
crustt Tuesday, 23 Dec 2014 at 5:43pm

Yeah the guy on the green board , great angle, he would have gotten a caning. Looks like it has turned into a bit of a circus though.

Blowin's picture
Blowin's picture
Blowin Tuesday, 23 Dec 2014 at 8:09pm

How satisfying was it when the shoulder-hopping ,drop-ins got steamrolled ?

If a freezing cold, viscious monster wave is getting crowded it's a sign of the times.
Just got to be grateful for every uncrowded session you can wrangle I guess.

rooftop's picture
rooftop's picture
rooftop Tuesday, 23 Dec 2014 at 10:37pm

Why aren't more people going left?

I rarely see a good shot of it, but the barrel seems to hold up a bit better than the right which always collapses.

Craig's picture
Craig's picture
Craig Tuesday, 23 Dec 2014 at 10:44pm

I was thinking the same, especially with those crowds, maybe once inside you're more likely to get absolutely smoked and it's too dangerous?

gillos's picture
gillos's picture
gillos Wednesday, 24 Dec 2014 at 6:25am

Is there no etiquette in big wave surfing? Doesn't anyone care about the guy inside or is it different in the big stuff?

shaun's picture
shaun's picture
shaun Wednesday, 24 Dec 2014 at 6:56am

Yeah Gillo there is, but my theory would be that a lot of the guys out there although proficient surfers at some level as to shoulder hop there you would have to have some skill level, but they are way out of there depth and so excited that they don't even see anyone else.

Zoooming's picture
Zoooming's picture
Zoooming Wednesday, 24 Dec 2014 at 7:00am

It's becoming a bit of a circus - the main thrill of it all now is not drowning. Nice over the falls at the 4.38 mark of the guy who had just wiped out.

udo's picture
udo's picture
udo Wednesday, 24 Dec 2014 at 8:41am

Jamie Mitchell caught 4 waves that day and Shane Dorian caught 2
Dorian said the crowd stayed between 60-80 all day....wondering on the crowd numbers next swell.

rrobb's picture
rrobb's picture
rrobb Wednesday, 24 Dec 2014 at 8:25am

I don't think those who "drop in" are necessarily bad people. Those of us old enough remember Greg Noll and friends stacked one on top of the other at Waimea. When it's big and you commit you have to go. And, often, the inside surfer on this vid was too far inside and was often seen to be steamrollered.

But the numbers tell the story. I stopped the vid and counted over 50. Udo says 60-80. Way too many for joy or safety. Hello the future.

happyppl's picture
happyppl's picture
happyppl Wednesday, 24 Dec 2014 at 9:04am

i'd much rather hear live sounds of nature on vids, and keep camera rolling on huge wipeouts . great watching someone pop up after ahold down or even better sucked back over for arepeat and then ragdolled across the bottom for a two wave holddown. hahaha hillarious to watch. all been there, done that?
instead all we get is same old takeoff then cut!....boreing.

thermalben's picture
thermalben's picture
thermalben Wednesday, 24 Dec 2014 at 10:31am
happyppl wrote:

i'd much rather hear live sounds of nature on vids

I'll have a chat to the guys and make sure they tee up chirping crickets, squawking magpies, roaring lions and galloping horses for the next video.

Blowin's picture
Blowin's picture
Blowin Wednesday, 24 Dec 2014 at 10:42am

Could you see about some whale song as well please ?

Rabbits68's picture
Rabbits68's picture
Rabbits68 Wednesday, 24 Dec 2014 at 10:47am

Happy I agree totally with you on the point about watching the whole wave, including the wipe-out, the hold down and subsequent thrashing etc. After all that is whole surfing experience when in the water. It's another part of what makes big wave surfing so amazing, watching these guys survive the horrendous aftermath of a wipe-out IMO.

Chopes is a classic for missing out on that action. Howz the major turbulence and boiling water after a huge Chopes explosion, the surfer in there somewhere, but then they always cut back to the next wave...........

caml's picture
caml's picture
caml Wednesday, 24 Dec 2014 at 10:01am

never seen that angle before its interesting to see how the surfboards turn & the party crowds & rocks inside .

DIN's picture
DIN's picture
DIN Wednesday, 24 Dec 2014 at 12:26pm

at what point do we think high performance inspired surfing will come into the big wave paddle craze?? looking form the outside, you could watch footage of people surfing mavericks, todas etc in 1994 and its pretty much the exact some surfing (without the crowd) when will boards / surfers start trying to push the limits with performance in these sessions??

There seems to be a tight knot group of specialists, but beside albee layer and dorian on some of the insiders at jaws, no-one is trying to "rip" these sections apart, like they do when they get towed on shorter boards...

which brings me to my point about the 10'6 thread, is it the magic number?? what about 8'0 with weights, pulled in tail , concave, thickness etc so the guys can whip it under the lip, curve out of the top, take off later and deeper...

its never gonna be me, and dont wanna sound disrespectful, just throwing it out there...

uplift's picture
uplift's picture
uplift Saturday, 27 Dec 2014 at 11:44am

'There seems to be a tight knot group of specialists, but beside albee layer and dorian on some of the insiders at jaws, no-one is trying to "rip" these sections apart, like they do when they get towed on shorter boards...

which brings me to my point about the 10'6 thread, is it the magic number?? what about 8'0 with weights, pulled in tail , concave, thickness etc so the guys can whip it under the lip, curve out of the top, take off later and deeper...'

Good grief, oh no, what have I started!!! Yipes!!! Far, far too much 'Truth'.

No, no, no, NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!! PAAALLLEEEEAAASSSEEEE!!!!!!! Big waving surfing, design... and the 'elite, worlds greatest super athletes' have advanced in world shattering and moving leaps and bounds!!!

So they say.

But, the reality is this, to do what you ask DIN, is going to take, on top of much improved surfboard design... dare I say it... (the 'family')... the hallowed halls... l... le ... le... legs!!! Yes, some actual, genuine, world class athletes, with world class legs, ala alpine down hill ski racers. Who are demonstrably and measurable world class athletes who thus turn, carve, accelerate, jump and deliberately generate power and momentum at much, much, much, much, much, much (did I say much) higher speeds, and deal with much, much, much, much, much, much (did I say much)higher g forces than big wave surfers. And they are demonstrably and measurably much, much, much, much, much, much (did I say much) stronger, more powerful, flexible, athletic and bigger than any 'worlds greatest elite athlete' big waving surfer.

HOUSTON WE HAVE A PROBLEM!!!

THANK GOD FOR BOARDIES!!!

How can 'The Truth' be disrespectful?

Are chrissie 'fibs' more respectful?

Deck the halls with boughs of holly, tra la la la la la, la la la la

Tis the season to be jolly...

Sheepdog's picture
Sheepdog's picture
Sheepdog Saturday, 27 Dec 2014 at 12:50pm

Well..... That was 5.18 of my life I didn't really need........

davetherave's picture
davetherave's picture
davetherave Saturday, 27 Dec 2014 at 1:13pm

why arent they using gloves, my mate youngy makes his own, he rides the longboard at snapper and rows into so many cause he can get in early with the extra paddle power. i dont know why Ryan hippy etc has caught on, shit those gloves will let me catch waves easier and let me get to my feet quicker- duh, duh, duh
just like uppys comments on board design, turn your hands into webs and gee whiz