Starting with Justine Dupont's incredible barrel and ending with Kai Lenny's virtuoso performance, here's eight minutes of the best footage from Jaws last Saturday.
...plus one wild wipeout cum car wreck as a windsurfer gets flattened and a bodyboarder (?) pitched on top of him.
"That board felt like the starting point for a new life."
The inner mechanics of Russell's mind.
Sniffing out the bounty on land and at sea.
From a day with a low wave count yet high consequence.
Like a hundred social media clips joined together but not on social media.
Seeking darkness on a sunny day.
And Matahi lifts the bar yet again.
Bite size humans in king size waves.
Comments
Great footage, the Kai Lenny flick kick on the take off takes balls.
Anyone who can fade and actually stall for a (what 8-10x overhead) wave is just mind blowing. These big wave surfers have sharpened their skills....and yet their gear has also been refined amazingly. Thank the universe for surfboard shaping and materials technology (and saftey tech too) ....which seems to have kept up with the surfing skills. We should be in awe...
Best Barrel
Justine Dupoint at Jaws or Peter Mel at Mavericks ?
Completely different in every way, one is a barrel that someone who has been surfing for two years could pull off, the other takes decades of experience
Define “surfing for two years”
I reckon 2 years cumulative - 17,520 hours. Or 16 years of surfing 3 hours a day, every day.
104 weeks
My point being bone, is that I reckon I could get towed into a 20 ft wave, even with my minimal skill level and pull in and have a good chance of coming out. IF I had the balls, which I don’t!
But! There is no way I would have the skill required to paddle into Mel’s wave, negotiate a technical drop with steps on a 9’8” board, get tubed and come out. Get it??
Yet she gets the best barrel of the day by far.
So which ride is better then IB?
Agree wholeheartedly that Pete Mel's wave was far superior.
I was, however, very impressed with Justine's barrel, especially after watching all the top guys not get barrelled that day.
Agree. Undoubtedly an incredible barrel from Dupont, be high for weeks afterwards, but it was a whip in and lineup positioning played zero part in the ride.
On the other hand, Mel's barrel was a result of lineup positioning and so built upon years - hell, decades - of experience. I hope he's feeling deep satisfaction from what he's done because it's straight up legendary - and I don't use that word lightly.
Also, as Healey once said of paddle vs tow, it's like operating behind enemy lines compared to firing a mortar from kilometres away. Mel sat fifty foot deeper on a XXXL day which left him incredibly exposed, and it's hard to understate the danger involved.
Yeah no doubt Mel's wave was really, really special, but there's still a pretty high level of skill in Dupont's... Mel's in a different league, but saying joe blow who's only surfed two years could pull that (Dupont's) off seems a little disrepectful.
No disrespect meant for Justine, but my view still stands
To each their own :)
Goofyfoot, Gold medal for arm chair analysis :)
There is Buckley's that someone with 2 years under the belt would be able to handle the sheer speed and negotiate the 2ft chops and ribs up the face, then have the courage to look right after the drop and pick the right and high enough line to get in a position for Justine's barrell. On top of all that have the awareness to keep everything engaged and balanced whilst negotiating their way thru it, blind. Plenty of crew out there on any point/beachy on the Goldy who have been surfing for probably more than 2 years still struggle to get to their feet consistently on 2 to 3ft days...it's a lottery and painful if you're sitting on the outside. Now if you had of said 5-7 years of very consistent surfing year round, I would have maybe agreed with you to a minimal degree. Didn't see any of the top fellas with all the experience in the world get anything like her wave. Minimising the skill required with words doesn't change the fact that wave was fucking psycho.
I said this before, Billy and Nate, looked levels below say Kai, Ian, Tyler's one Barrel and Justines. All getting whipped in. I don't see how your point stands at all?
Hahah yes 2 years was a bit cheeky wasn’t it.
You say 5-7, how bout I meet you half way and go 3-4???
haha, got me there, upper end 4 and we are getting somewhere ;)
Gee, that is a huge call. Safe to say lineup positioning played a huge part in Justine's wave. Where were all the other waves similar? She was in the spot and picked the right line. Kai, Ian, Tyler and Justine managed to have a proper dig and surf their whip ins whilst renown paddlers, Nate and Billy were pretty much going straight and in survival stance on theirs. Big call, but that's what I saw.
Bit of perspective and context:
https://www.outsideonline.com/1898141/big-wave-paddle-battle
Healeys quote within an article about surfing Jaws, not Mavs, is far more nuanced than the throw away line you referenced if you take in Dorian and Longs acknowledgements.
Both Mel and Justines waves were psycho that required decades of skills and experience, and a shit load of courage. Why throw shade when none is needed?
So Nate and Billy were too scared to pull in to the tube and Justine wasn’t?
The guy who has won every Peahi comp by paddling in and pulling in to the biggest barrels ever ridden was too scared to pull in when he’s getting whipped in? !
Nahhhhhh come on Benny
Also I’m tipping the driver who towed Justine in was the one who got the line up position perfect, not her. And again, this is not a go at her. It’s a fucking amazing wave that 99% of surfers will never experience. It’s just someone asked the question earlier about which one was better. It could of been anyone riding her wave and my response would of been the same.
I didnt say or mean to imply that either of those two were scared, not at all. I was just highlighting the difference between their performance over the ones i mentioned...I agree Mels was better, but my issue was the 2 year thing or any average joe pulling that off.
Anyway, we are both goofys, I cant see you or I pulling anything like that off on 20 or 60ft Right anytime soon. ill be there to cheer you on when youre ready though!
Who's was better aside, has anyone actually gotten a better barrel at Jaws than Justine? I'm struggling to think of seeing a deeper one on such a big day. RCJ...McNamara...Layer, but nothing like that. And that being said, where does that place her amongst the greater history of surfing and sport, specifically as the whole swell was being vlogged by hawaii's finest male grom's, who didn't manage, nor have yet managed to snare such a barrel of those proportions?? (to my knowledge...could be very wrong). Could it be true that the ocean smiled favourably on our little French heroine and handed her something because she is out there for the love? I personally think that ride is one that will cement it's place firmly in history.
This ones pretty good..
I have to wonder how fast those guys are going on those waves. The water police should get a speed camera out there.
windsurfer and bodyboarder, heavy situation. Down in a blaze of glory?
Hats off to the windsurfers - that's incredible.
What were you surfing at 12????
Geez .... Epic.
Anyone wanna surmise what was happening with old mate going OTF on top of the windsurfer?
At first I thought it was a lidder, his craft looks short, but now I suspect it may be a surfer with busted board and has perhaps inflated his or her vest so can't dive.
I just can't gather why anyone, even a photographer, or rubberneck punter, would leave themselves in that situation and not dive when a wave like that approaches - it would seem the most natural thing to do - unless they simply cant dive cos of expanded CO2.
Definitely a pointy front of the board, but looks like they're kicking instead of paddling...maybe a kneelo?
Either way, it does lead to the question. Maybe they were just rubbernecking?
It's amazing to watch in slow mo on a big screen.
He or she gets a clean entry into the lip, no attempt to dive or avoid it whatsoever, and then an eyes-wide-open trip over Niagara Falls.
They can count themselves fortunate as it's an experience very, very few surfers will ever have felt.
Back in the early noughties, AI bailed on takeoff in a Pipe Masters heat and went over the falls. Made two magazine covers and ignited his reputation as a madman, yet he was ensconsed in the lip, couldn't see anything, but old mate here gets an unobstructed view of the rolling green Haiku countryside as he gets launched out and down on a wave three times bigger than AI's.
My guess is an inflated vest... Maybe kicking because he's too over-inflated to move his shoulders? (maybe both canisters went off instead of just one???) Sketchy, sketchy situation.
Either that or he's the reincarnated Jose Angel.
Stu - 'fortunate'??? I'll count myself fortunate if I never go OTF on a wave 10% as big as that one. hahah
I have to wonder if I was watching it live I might have started screaming also...
How does a windsurfer recover from a wipeout like that - does the sail detach or clean snap off ? or do you "just" bail and get rescued ?
No idea, but just to add to the intrigue, the fella is only 19-years old and comes from Poland.
No, that's not a suburb of Maui.
Central Europe, Poland.
Almost landlocked but for one small coast open to the Baltic that sure as fuck doesn't get waves like that.
Super impressive.
the gear gets trashed and you get rescued, there's no leash or any fixed connection so by the time you come up, and what is left of the gear comes up chances are you are too far from it anyway
Kai Lenny is on another level I reckon the guy is a definite freak of nature he seemed to be treating like a 5' beachie. You have to wonder about the sanity of someone taking a wind surfer out there makes you think sups are next or probably already out there. Anyone for a goat boat? Canoe? Inflatable swan?
I agree, he's playing with 20ft'ers like they're nothing. Those spins and flips and also the aggressive lines he's taking. His approach is incredible to watch.
Earlier in the session there were probably as many wind surfers as tow crews, half a dozen or so. First waves surfed at Jaws were wind surfers, and they look to be back for the gusty days.
Fair enough I suppose the moral for this fella is to not get too deep? Wasn't there some lunatic who tried it at Teahupo'o some years ago? Was not a good look watching it get mangled and him with it.
I had to google "rubbernecking"
My first thought was it could be a new fad whereby one over inflates a vest to the point one has a 'rubberneck', and then swims over the falls of the biggest piece of water possible..
How good is the human body. Old Man Emu would kill to be able to invent a suspension system like the human knee!!
They are all ballsy as hell but IMO tow in footage is pretty boring these days. I switched off after a couple of minutes.
When most people would be questioning their life choices Kai Lenny throws a chop hop reverse 360 for shits and giggles......what an ANIMAL!!!!!!
Albee Layer still having a tow or two with a facial injury.
The 2019 Men's World Championship Tour Jeep Leader Board says that the best surfers in the world were then Italo Ferreira, Gabriel Medina and Jordy Smith.
I think the 2021 Jeep Leader Board would show John John Florence on top of the ratings, followed by Peter Mel and Kai Lenny.
Maybe the 2021 version is a better reflection of the state of the art.
i think that is jason polakow the windsurfer and he is always out there on the biggest swells with wind on it and has had a 3 wave hold down out there,he was for under for 1.06 minutes, the nut is his nickname
So is this the 'Justine Swell'? Possibly first named after a lady?
Shits on Mavs. Sorry but thats that
Mate, Kai Lenny is head and shoulders above the pack. He, together with his team have take surfing to another level not seen before. That video says it all. He’s like Captain Good vibes but for REAL! No one else rips waves that size like he does...not yet!
Kai Lenny, just next level, that guy is a freak of nature.
Meanwhile, 2 or 3 women and a 12 year old go. And just the other day I was intimidated by clean 4 to 5’ beach break. Mind you, it was hitting the bank pretty hard.
I am so lame!
Incredible footage and efforts all round. They are going so fast its hard to comprehend!
Let's be clear I'll never get towed in to something that size - but - for the sake of discussion, did anyone else seem to feel quite a few guys chose self preservation over getting an historic barrel?
Or maybe is was just a misread in the moment and the fact that many were clamping on the end section. It just seemed on at least a few there was a better and makeable line so why not try it?
Yeah, yeah, yeah I hear it now - "you go out there and drop in deeper" - but these guys are cream of the crop glory hunters
One Kemper's waves really stood out where I thought he'd be disappointed watching it back.
Maybe the footage just shows the makes and if I saw the entire day I'd see what I'm describing more.
Would love to see Robbie Maddison on his motorbike at Jaws - could start a new trend.
I too expected to get bored quickly but not that. I'm calling that the best big wave surfing I've seen. Aside from Kai Lenny, does anyone agree that the whole level has taken a step up? Dunno if its the boards or the "hours" or both, maybe cause they're flying blind it got more instinctive.