Last night I had a hard time sleeping. I was thinking about surfing Backdoor, I was thinking about the brand new board is was going to ride, and I was thinking about the risks involved. I waxed up my new board last night, woke up at 3am, and headed out to the North Shore. It was pitch dark and nobody was there yet.
I sat in the dark trying to figure out how big the waves were. I thought it would be 4-6′ but it was bigger than that. It was also very powerful and a very low tide. Was my board big enough? Was I ready? No and Yes. I paddled out in the dark anyway. There was no turning back. 
A big set came, I paddled into it my hardest, then right when I stood up, a bodyboarder right in front of me panicked and I ended up hitting his fins as he tried to get out of my way. It changed the direction of my takeoff and I had the worst wipeout in 20 years. The wave slammed me to the bottom and my leg got stuck in one of the caves. Luckily I pried it off before it broke and got free. I forgot how dangerous Backdoor was. Especially being a very low tide this morning. 
After my long and dangerous session, I went to play with the kids at the natural tide pool at Ehukai Beach Park. 
This is where it all starts. The next generation Moniz groms bodyboarding in front of Pipeline…
Guys out surfing Backdoor this morning: John John and Nathan Florence, Isaiah and Joshua Moniz, and many other pros. I was the oldest guy out again. Haha.
