The biggest Billabong XXL ever?
There is no doubt this has been one of the best surf seasons in decades, but in the short history of the Billabong XXL I would have to say this is THE best season for judging big waves. I can’t wait to see some of the finalists!
Every year the Billbong XXL has a panel of surf industry folk, including sickshots, review the final shots and pick the winners. I am stoked for the opportunity and always invite you, the sickshots audience to help me. I will be receiving the ballots soon, so stay tuned and I will ask for your opinions. While I know many of the contestants, I keep it as unbiased as possible and ask you to do the same.
This is one amazing shot of Grant ‘Twiggy’ Baker at Mavericks last month and it was shot by Frank Quirarte who always seems to be scoring unbelievable Mavericks images. Congrats guys. Epic moment!
Paddle power is back!
I got a call from a friend of mine today from the North Shore of Oahu. He was standing on a 3-story beach house where he was doing construction. There were a few guys surfing a well known tow-in spot in front of him and he was giving me the play by play. ”One of them just took off he’s higher than I am on this house! Whoa, they are all paddling! There’s no skis!” Whoa is right. How cool is that. Paddle power is coming back into vogue with all this swell around. Seems the old school hellman were just waiting to come out of the wood work. A big gun and your own power. There’s something to be said for the whole waterman process of getting out into the ocean, stroking into a monster and making it back in on your own.
I received this press release from the Billabong XXL today (see below). It describes what is being claimed as one of the biggest paddle-in waves ever at Waimea. Unfortunately it doesn’t look like anyone got another angle than this side view. I sure hope one turns up because a front view of this would really put it in perspective. Anyway, It is a monster and worth big congrats to Shane and Mark for an impressive display of bravado!
The photo here is of Kohl Christensen earlier that day (front view). Kohl is one of the paddle guys. He can usually be found in the gnarliest places when the surf is big. I’ve seen him as a little spec on the horizon out at Himilayas as I drove by Lanis on many a large swell. Sometimes he is by himself. I was stoked to see him in the Eddie. Now that I think about it, it was probably Kohl that was out paddling that tow-in spot my buddy was telling me about. Cool.
NEWPORT BEACH, CA — (January 8, 2010) — The promise of the El Nino winter appears to have delivered for big wave surfers, as many long-standing records are ready to fall in this year’s Billabong XXL Global Big Wave Awards presented by Monster Energy. And more than ever before, the Monster Paddle category (just for surfers who catch their waves without any jet ski assistance) has taken center stage as the elite of the sport refocus on this elemental man-against-the-sea tradition. Visual evidence of these landmark performances can be viewed at the event website at www.BillabongXXL.com.
While huge swells have blasted nearly every coastline of the planet in recent months, it has been the Hawaiian Islands which have had the most mind-bending proof of the power of the current El Nino weather phenomenon. December 7-8, 2009 saw one of the biggest swells in modern history batter the northern shores of the entire Hawaiian Chain, followed by another extraordinary day of outer reef waves on Christmas. From these historic moments of oceanic grandeur have come images which show several top big wave surfers paddling into what may well be the biggest waves ever caught by human power in the long history of the sport.
Among these superlative rides is a massive dark wall caught by Shane Dorian and Mark Healey which closed out the legendary Waimea Bay on Oahu on December 7. Also up for consideration is another mammoth peak at Waimea ridden by Chile’s Ramon Navarro which earned the South American hero a perfect score in the Quiksilver in Memory of Eddie Aikau event on December 8. And more recently, grainy, documentary photos have arrived depicting Garrett McNamara paddling into a distant peak at Outer Log Cabins, a rarely-seen outer reef far off the North Shore shoreline, previously only the domain of tow-in surfers with jet-powered watercraft.
All are likely to figure prominently as finalists for the Monster Paddle Award to be given out at the tenth annual Billabong XXL Big Wave Awards to be held in California in late April. A panel of big wave surfing and photography experts will analyze the available images and by interpreting the known sizes of the surfers and their surfboards, calculate reliable height estimates for the face of each wave. One will emerge as the Monster Paddle winner and will receive $15,000 out of the total event purse of $130,000.
The current world record for a paddle-in wave belongs to Taylor Knox of San Diego, California who rode a wave measured at 52 feet at Todos Santos Island off of Ensenada, Mexico during the last major El Nino episode in 1998. Many experts are expecting an update to the Guinness Book of World Records once this winter’s measurements are complete.
Dorian and Healey are veterans of decades of big wave hunting and both concur that their shared ride at Waimea was easily the biggest either had ever caught. “I’d been waiting 15 years for that wave,” said Dorian, of Kona, on the Big Island. “That wave, we could see it from when it was like two or three minutes away from breaking, we could see the wave coming in, everybody’s screaming on the beach and yelling and stuff… When the wave finally came in, it was SO big. The thing was a MONSTER. We both put our heads down and started paddling and somehow we both caught it.
“I was going no matter what,” Dorian added. “And I know Mark felt the same way. It was just fun. A party wave — a wave of that size, and it was for sure the biggest wave I’ve ever paddled into, and to do it with my real good friend, it was very….memorable.”
Mark Healey has lived down the road from Waimea all his life and has been one of its most dedicated practitioners. But he’d never seen waves like this.
“That was the biggest day I’ve ever had at Waimea,” said Healey. “And that wave in particular was definitely by far bigger than anything I’ve ever caught out there, for sure.”
The wave was so large it closed out all the way across the Bay, not allowing the surfers the opportunity to kick out over the top of the wave as usual, and forcing them to straighten out and take the endless tons of whitewater on their heads. But for Healey, a renowned freediver with the ability to hold his breath for over five minutes, it was a fun experience. The longtime friends surfaced unharmed right next to each other, hooting with excitement.
“We were pretty stoked,” said Healey. ”Big waves are different, there’s a lot of brotherhood involved, stuff like that. I’d rather have had Shane catch that wave than ride it alone. It was cool to share a wave like that with a friend, and someone I look up to.”
McNamara, another North Shore stalwart, likes his own chances in the Monster Paddle derby. A past winner of the XXL Paddle crown in 2007 for a huge wave at Northern California’s Maverick’s, “GMac” reckons his Outer Logs Christmas present was several notches larger. “I don’t know how big it was,” McNamara said. “But I do know it felt at least ten feet bigger than anything I’ve ever paddled into. The Mavs wave a few years back was small compared to it….”
Remarkably, there may be much, much more to come. This week the National Weather Service’s Climate Prediction Center issued an alert confirming that the current El Nino episode had intensified in the last 30 days from “moderate” to “strong,” adding that the condition would exert a “significant influence on the global weather and climate in the coming months.” And for surfers in the North Pacific basin, that means more enormous waves. According to Surfline.com, major new swell events are lining up in the coming days, impacting the Hawaiian Islands around Monday and the West Coast around Wednesday of next week.
Billabong XXL update
Looks like they have been getting some great waves down in Africa for the XXL. I see the usual suspects charging Dungeons including Grant Baker and Andrew Marr. I really like this image and want to compliment Kimi Stewart for capturing this moment. Check out how the shot is pulled back and includes the jet ski for scale and is taken at the crucial airdrop moment. Very nice!
Billabong XXL – my picks
So I sat down this beautiful Easter weekend and watched the videos/photos of the Billabong XXL. Although we didn’t get many XXL entries on this side of the planet (except for Mavericks), there were some whoppers to be had elsewhere- namely Tasmania and South Africa. So here are my picks with a brief explanation:
Ride of the Year: Ryan Hipwood – Tasmania
I was asked by Billabong to rank these 1-5. Ryan Hipwood wins this category hands down for me. He is a Tasmaniac! This freaking wave is the poster child for Ride of the Year. You got your late drop…your thick lip…your huge barrel…and then…then…dude jumps the speed bump and launches an air and lands! Are you kidding. Sick!- and I don’t say that much on SickShots. Never mind he is barely hanging on for life the whole time. He may even be a one hit wonder. Who knows? Who cares? Props to you Mr. Hipwood (cool ass name too) I have never even heard of you and that was incredible!
Rounding out this award was #2 Greg Long’s insane wave at Dungeons, #3 More Tasmania from James Holmer Cross #4 Brian Conley in Mexico who gets an A+ for presentation for taking a camera on board for the ride and finally, #5 Garrett McNamara for a very impressive Teahupoo layback tube. I could see good arguments (which some of you had) for all of these. I took your suggestions and considered them before choosing the above (as well as what follows).
Biggest XXL WAVE award – Mark Matthews
It will always be hard for me to vote for that big wave face in Belharra, France. It just doesn’t seem to have the same consequences that some of the other outer reefs have. Notice I was careful not to call it soft or criticize the riders, but truthfully, it is a wave for XXL wannabes. A practice field for the Junior Varsity perhaps. You get it. So I didn’t consider any of those entries.
What was left were the two entries from Cow Bommie and Twiggy’s entry from Tafelberg Reff in SA. It is too bad for Grant ‘Twiggy’ Baker that the footage is shakier than a bigfoot sighting video. I mean I think the dude won. But wait, the frickin video gets tossed out of screen at the biggest moment! Bummer. I can’t tell…Did he win? Maybe? I will give the video man his props because he shot that while riding on the back of a ski whilst being chased down by the beast (which I can tell you from experience it is not easy)!
So that leaves the Cow Bommie footage. Mark Matthews wins. Not by much, but he gets my vote. The wave looks just a little bit bigger and scarier and steeper. Enough said.
Monster Paddle: Grant ‘Twiggy’ Baker
This is not a make up call! He really wins this one. I think. You already know Axi gets shafted for riding Belharra. Although I want to vote for James Taylor who may just sing a song on stage when he collects his 15G’s, I have trouble selecting him to win riding a closeout. Seems that one should be in the wipeout category.
So that leaves us with the Mavericks rides. With a broken femur on the mend Nathan Fletcher is the sentimental favorite (and that may make the difference). I want to vote for the guy because he is the real deal charger. But sorry to say Derek and Twiggy got slightly larger waves. It is a tough call between the two, but Twiggy wins and gets my vote.
Monster Tube: Mark Healey
Of all these entries, Kerby Browns wave is the most interesting and I think the ‘helicopter’ looking angle may hurt his chances (although I love the view). Ryan Hipwood’s wave has already been discussed and as great as it is should not be in this category. I want to see a deep tube and exit (why is Brian Conley’s wave not in here)! Dylan Longbottom is dealing with more of a Monster than a Monster ‘Tube’, so I nixed him.
That leaves Garrett at Chopes and Mark Healy at Yeti Oregon. No one will be with me on this one…Sorry Garrett, your wave is worthy and you may just win, but Mark Healy’s act is just a little more daring. Think about Mark Healy’s photo for a moment. It has got to be freezing cold and the wave looks so dangerous and they call it ‘Yeti’ that’s f’kin scary. You can’t even see what is really going on, but you know he is just shacked off his head in that cold water version of chopes, while the rest of the pacific impacts the reef. Incredible. I like it. Props to you Mark. You get my vote.
Wipeout Award: Dean Bowen
They gave this vote to you – the ’surfing public’- to decide. If you don’t agree with my take then go to Billabong XXL and vote for yourself!
Greg Long and Twiggy get buried under mountains of white water rubble and don’t even get my consideration for this award. Shame that. My Chilean friend Ramon Navarro skips down the face before total disaster and doesn’t get my vote. Sucks man. Ross Clark Jones (a.k.a the wrestler) has been putting in his time and gets the whole ocean dropped on his asss and gets passed by for this award. Hard life. Congrats Dean Bowen. The video guy that framed the rocks in the foreground of your wipeout won you this one. Split the prize money with him and go celebrate. Cheers.
Mens Performance: Grant ‘Twiggy’ Baker
Sorry boys Twiggy wins. Easy.
Women’s Performance: Maya Gabiera
This one is difficult. I know all these girls. They are all chargers. Mercedes was on every swell that broke at the Bay. Jamilah is my sentimental favorite because she is a Mom and how many Moms go out at Mavericks?
Maya did a Tow-in Session in November on a flukey day on Oahu’s North Shore and ended up catching a bomb that was featured all over the place by Red Bull. That wave sealed it for her. I would have liked to see more swell to give these ladies the chance to get more entries, but Maya gets my vote and she deserves it- again.
WAS I RIGHT?
You will have to check back on April 18, 2009 to see if I was right. Don’t like my picks? Give me your comments and make your predictions. It is easy to make the call after the awards ceremony. Don’t be a lightweight. Give me your take rookie!
I will review my picks in a future post…stay tuned.
