Jan 24 2009
Photo Credit: Andrew Buckley
Hellmen, Ross Clarke-Jones and Tom Carroll, take on insane waves in storm conditions at Shipsterns Bluff, Tasmania. Check the fullframe slideshow at Surfermag.com along with a full sequence of what has to be the wipe-out of the year (Ross Clarke-Jones). Shot of sequence below:
Jan 22 2009
Surf Photographer – Tim McKenna – narrates a selection of photos of Teahupoo courtesy of Surfer Magazine. Tim has shot Teahupoo for close to a decade and has some incredible images.
Jan 20 2009
Photos via Surf Nation Blog. Ryan Hipwood at Shipsterns Bluff, Tasmania getting shacked. The photos are entries into the Oakley Surfing Life Big Wave Awards. Photo credit: Rodd Owen.
Jan 14 2009
A high pressure sitting over California and a big West-Northwest Swell driving toward California could set up ideal conditions for the Mavericks contest this Friday. The Swell is expected to be in the 15-20 ft. range, which is on the smaller side for Mavericks, but ideal conditions with warm weather and off-shores could have the contest going for Friday. Forecast courtesy of Stormsurf.com. Check the Mavericks Surf Contest home page for updates.
Jan 03 2009
Transworld Surf reports on an Oregon State Study of wave heights that measures Pacific wave heights from buoy data and finds that waves are increasing by an average of 7 cm per year. Surfers are likely to the only people rejoicing over this information as larger wave also result in more coastal erosion among other problems.
“Unlike sea level, the current data suggests that wave heights are not increasing uniformly across the globe. However, many regions lack the right data to do proper analysis. Bigger wave heights off the coast of Oregon were first discovered just a few years ago by other OSU scientists. They had the advantage of working with the unique dataset created by the Pacific coast’s longest-floating buoy; it’s been gathering data on wave heights for over 30 years.
“This is high quality data and you didn’t have enough data to do this kind of analysis until very recently,” Ruggiero said.
Despite the clear wave-height increase in the data, particularly of the largest waves, Ruggiero and his colleagues still can’t explain it.”
Dec 30 2008
Yeti, a new slab was discovered in Oregon and surfed by Mark Healey, Greg Long, and crew. Check out the photos and story in Surfer Mag. Story via Surfing Stoke Blog. Photos by Jason Murray.
Dec 22 2008
The future of the big-wave Mavericks Surf Competition (Half Moon Bay, CA) was in doubt when previous sponsors pulled out this year (article SFGate). Jim Beam bourbon and benefactors Moose Guen and Jane Sutherland of the private equity firm MVision couldn’t pass on the opportunity to support the chance of the best big wave surfers in the world hucking themselves over 50 ft. ledges at the famed Northern California big wave surf spot. The total purse is $75,000 with $30,000 going to the winner. More at the official website Maverickssurf.com, including the list of invitees.
Nov 25 2008
The Quicksilver in Memory of Eddie Aikau Contest waiting period begins on December 1 and extends through February 28, 2009. Already, the North Pacific is active with a huge Northwest Swell due to hit Hawaii this weekend, a few days before the start of the Eddie.
The Contest is held in memory of revered North Shore lifeguard Eddie Aikau, who disappeared in 1978 in a daring rescue attempt.
Waves must measure at least 20 feet from the backs — that’s 40-foot faces — before “The Eddie” is given a green light, and surfers must be able to arrive within a 24-hour call.
Nov 18 2008
Some high def video of Teahupoo from Vimeo.
Teahupoo Tahiti Surf – HD from Jon Rawlinson on Vimeo.
Nov 18 2008
Ghost Trees, one of the biggest waves in the world and situated in Pebble Beach in the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary, is now off limits to personal watercraft (PWC). The ruling by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA) was expected as the protected sanctuary has become increasingly crowded with personal watercraft over the past few years. In an effort to protect the environment and the surrounding marine life, the decision was made to close off the entire sanctuary to personal watercraft, meaning there will be no more tow-in surfing at Ghost Trees or Moss Landing (Story DailyStoke). Ghost Trees, a relative new comer in the big wave world, put on a display of big wave might as well as a couple of XXL contenders last year on January 4th (Video surfline).