After one of the slowest starts to the Gold Coast surf season in recent memory, the first tropical cyclone for the year is expected to develop over the coming days in the Coral Sea.

The most striking footage of Pipeline this year came from Eric Sterman, a young videographer from Hawaii who perched cross-legged on the sand with a remote control in his hands as Kelly Slater paddled into a set during the Pipe Masters.

It was a day for the record books on Saturday when perfect surf, blue skies and radical surfing combined into what many were calling the best conditions for a Jim Beam Surftag event in its 13 year history.

"The shark is five metres long, he's stuffed and his name is Frankie. My father caught him in a 3.5 metre dinghy when I was about four years old."