Mid-size Sunset doesn't translate to video very well - looks slow and shifty, it's the sort of wave you need to feel the power. The webcast therefore can be a bit of a dull affair as we're used to death-or-glory heroics or small wave acrobatics.

Capture it in still photos, however, and the viewer gets a better appreciation of what the surfer is doing and feeling. Long driving arcs with plenty of wet rail, deep barrels and gnarly end section reos are best viewed in frozen moments when the gravity of the situation can be adequately surmised.

Here are a few of those moments from todays competition at Sunset, and a press release for those so inclined.