this past Sunday’s mega swell was not only the biggest swell of the year, but probably the deadliest too. we watched it build and build by the hour. and when we pulled up to a secret spot in Sumatra, it was solid 10′ and still building.
as all we surfer know, one risk of big wave surfing is death. unfortunately, Australian surfer Jae Haydon was out surfing that day at Uluwatu. his broken board was found and later his body at Padang Padang. three others are still missing.
down the coast in Sumarata, we were surfing the exact same swell. i paddled out to the secret lineup with only a couple famous big wave riders out. this unridden wave broke as i watched in awe. i couldn’t believe my eyes!
i filmed beautiful 10′ waves barrel from start to finish. this was my dream, this was my place, this was my day, and this is my “stoked” face. no bullshit, just excitement…
i came out of the water where Matsu was waiting for me. this is why i surf, this is why i travel, and this is why i live. i couldn’t have been a happier man.
while i was out there, one of the boys looked at me and said “hey, you look familiar, what’s your name?” come to find out, i was on a boat trip in the Philippines with this little kid named Brenno Dorrington 20 years ago. now, we’re still living our dreams by chasing the biggest barrels of our life. and guess what? we found it! good to see you after all these years Brenno! it’s crazy how we were surfing secret huge barrels in the Philippines 20 years ago, and now secret barrels in Indonesia 20 years later.
so many people have been asking me how that day was? well, just watch Brenno Dorrington get the barrel of his life that same morning session. i still can’t believe how good the waves were…
