Ground Swell: The Other Side of Fear (2023) - full transcript

The logical thing,

the sane thing,

is to stay on shore.

But they paddle out.

Now,

it's easy to understand

the fun side of surfing.

Grown men and women frolicking

in the gentle waves of summer.

But then,

there are the others.

What are we to make of it?

In the face of an unfeeling,

unthinking, uncaring force,

they choose to put

themselves in harm's way.

It's easy

to dismiss them as crazy,

mindless daredevils

without a cause.

But yet we are transfixed.

Why are we drawn to it,

when we can't see the meaning

amid the maelstrom?

Why are we thrilled to

a dance surrounded

by violence?

Everyone has dreams.

Everyone is

afraid of the dreams

and a lot of people

are not able

to achieve their dreams

because of fear

gets in the middle of it.

Facing fear in the eyes,

and really

overcoming that fear...

The big challenges

are always scary.

But the bigger the challenge,

the more

it's going to help you to

grow.

Whatever walk of life

you are from,

you have your challenges

and your big waves to surf.

Everyone has that fear

that that's holding them

back,

and you have to

face that fear.

If fear

held us back,

would there be

a landing on the moon?

Would there be miraculous

life-saving vaccines?

Would we have tamed fire?

And would we discover

the unimaginable

but inevitable next?

The answer is...

They don't stay on land.

They paddle out.

Maybe the way to understand,

to make paddling out part of

all our lives,

is to follow as a half dozen

of the best big wave surfers

in the world

live their lives

through a big wave winter

around the globe.

It's the season

when the North Pacific

and the North Atlantic

pump out massive waves

generated by massive storms.

Perhaps the answer,

the inspiration

and maybe even the meaning

will reveal itself.

We start off our journey

in Nazare, Portugal,

an ancient fishing village

that has emerged

as the epicenter of

big wave surfing

in the last 10 years.

It's rooted in an age old

seafaring country

where exploration

and leaving the shore

are part of the national DNA.

That sailing,

that ocean culture

of the early explorations

of Portugal

is really reflecting back,

here in Nazare,

you know, like a man at sea.

You know, a more evolved,

more technological...

We're exploring the world

through the waves,

and we are raising

the flag of Portugal

through our wave surfing,

you know.

For Nic Von Rupp,

he discovered

his passion for big waves

while competing

in small ones.

Winning contests

wasn't enough of a reward

as he battled

on the pro circuit.

He thirsted

for a bigger challenge.

Literally.

Like, I was being successful,

my sponsors were backing me,

like, financially was the best

year of my life and...

But it was really like,

I was like,

"Yeah, I want to be happy,"

you know, like,

I want to do what

I want to do.

And that was it.

I told my sponsors. I'm like,

"Guys, I'm gonna focus

on big wave surfing."

Despite success

in competition,

knowing better big waves

were breaking elsewhere,

was too much for him.

He gave up one possible

career, but found another

one,

in life threatening,

but uniquely

rewarding big surf.

Carrying on

the Portuguese tradition

of taking on the sea.

Nazare embodies,

the essence of this history.

Where legend has it,

a hunter was saved

on a cliff's edge by a saint,

infusing the seaside town,

with a deep religious

overlay,

including a church,

originally founded

in the 14th century.

In more recent times,

the fishing village was known

for tragic widows

and special dresses

telling the story of

lost husbands at sea.

But the same wave that

caused tragedy

for the fisherman,

is the siren

for today's pilgrims.

The surfing story of Nazare,

starts with one man,

a struggling

Hawaiian big wave surfer,

Garrett McNamara,

who stumbled on Nazare

back in 2012.

We really needed

someone experienced.

Uh, like Garrett, you know,

at the time,

he must have been 40 already,

like, had tons of experience

coming from Hawaii.

Hawaii, was, and is

the epicenter

when it comes down

to technologies

of big wave surfing

and knowledge,

and safety,

and so on.

So bringing all that

knowledge to Portugal,

has really revolutionized

this place, you know.

This town here,

this used to be a...

Sorry to say, and I don't

mean to offend

anyone here in Nazare,

but this used to be like...

Ten years ago, used to be a

shitty town.

Everyone was broke.

Middle of a crisis.

Restaurants were closed.

In the interim decade,

things have changed.

If you walk

through the town,

restaurants are full,

people are drinking beers

on the streets,

you know,

like, everyone's happy,

everyone is making a living.

Big wave,

Nazare.

There's people

flying from

all over the world

to come see this place.

And the truth is,

the best place

to see big waves

is, is here.

What draws surfers

from nations around the world

is not just the size,

but the incredible,

unmatched consistency

of the giant surf in Nazare.

Making it perhaps

the best stage on the planet

for facing fears

and pushing boundaries.

It's still a

matter of patience

waiting for

the truly epic days.

And while Nazare

waits for these

mega swells to arrive,

this winter, the other side

of the big wave world

stirs to life.

The swell is

forecasted to hit Peahi,

otherwise known as Jaws

on the north shore of Maui.

For tourists,

it's delicious idyll.

But to others,

it's the ultimate test

for a big wave surfer.

Among them, drawn to

the paddling in style at Jaws,

over the jet ski assisted

towing approach at Nazare,

is South African,

Matt Bromley.

Hawaii looked like

it was going

into a really good pattern.

And it looked like

there was some big storms

heading to Jaws.

I kind of gave myself,

like,

I am going to stay in Hawaii

for a month,

away from my family.

This is my period to get

big waves at Jaws.

In La Nina years,

the motto is,

if there is anything, you

better go and you rearrange

your life

to chase those swells

when they are there.

'Cause there might not be

another one behind it.

As Matt travels

across the planet,

he reflects back

on his previous year's trip,

where the wave of a lifetime,

almost came true.

This huge wall of water

kind of just

grew out of the deep.

And everyone is paddling

up the face,

and I was sitting further out

and I was

in the perfect place for it.

And I swung my buoy

and I just thought,

"If I make this wave,

this is gonna be my ride,

"that I've been

dreaming about."

I popped to my feet

and this wind chop,

uh, hit me and caused me

to go into the air.

As I landed, my foot slipped,

and I landed

on the side of the board,

which sent my board

into a bit of a cutback.

And I just remember

thinking, like,

"Oh my gosh,

this is as bad as it can get."

'Cause I could, kind of, see

out of the corner of my eye,

30, 40 foot above me

that lip starting to fall.

And the lip landed

on the tail of my board.

Exploded me so hard.

And it just pushed me

so deep down under the water.

Everyone gets scared.

And big wave surfing

is so scary and terrifying.

But the thing is, I know

all of the big wave guys,

and everyone gets scared,

and that everyone finds a way

to deal with that fear

and that challenge, because

I really believe

that challenges that are...

The big challenges

are always scary.

But the bigger the challenge,

the more it's gonna help you

to grow if you can...

If you can lean

into that challenge

and go surf that wave.

For me, I will travel

across the whole world

for a swell to get

one life-changing wave.

That's always the goal

when I go to places.

It's not about getting

lots of fun, good waves.

It's about getting

that one wave

that's gonna change my life.

Matt is relentlessly

chasing the wave of his life,

a journey

that began 20 years ago

at his home

at the bottom of the world.

There, boy.

Go big or go home.

Okay. See

what you can do.

I'll come...

I'm right after you.

So I am from

Cape Town, South Africa,

and I grew up about half an

hour away from the beach

and at about the age of six,

my dad would

take me down to the beach,

like, every second weekend

to surf the lot.

Learned

to surf waves at Muizenberg.

And then it wasn't

until the age of 12,

when we moved to a house

on the beach in Kommetjie.

And it's just surrounded by

big surf all around.

And right in front of my house

was a wave called Sunset Reef,

which is one of the best

big waves in the world.

And I'll come

back from school,

I'll look out, and

I see the guys

towing these

huge waves out there,

and I knew, like, one day,

I wanted to be involved with

that stuff, that, that action.

And the big winter swells

on the other side

of the bay,

you can see the plumes

of the explosions of water

going up the cliff,

off the Sentinel,

which is where Dungeons is.

And Dungeons is one of the

most feared waves in the

world.

He would have to go

through the progression

that all big wave surfers

go through.

Lessons learned the hard way.

My first experience

of proper big waves

was absolutely terrifying.

I was sitting out there

in the lineup

and then the whole horizon

just went dark

and started to break.

I just started to feel

this fear coming over me.

So I just followed the crowd

and I was greeted

by my worst nightmare.

It's like 25 ft wall of water

breaking on my head.

I just find myself

overwhelmed with panic

and fear taking over me,

my adrenaline

going through the roof.

I couldn't breathe properly.

And I had to swim through

five of these,

like 25, 30-foot

walls of water.

And by the time

the ocean settled,

I was overwhelmed

with fear and panic,

and I was like,

I'm out of here.

And I actually started

paddling back towards the

channel

to the boats,

to get out the water.

Shaken, demoralized,

wrapped up in fear

and about to call it quits,

the ocean offered up

a life changing gift.

That's when

something amazing happened.

I was a little bit wider

because I was paddling

on my way.

Another big set

broke over the crowd,

and I was

in the perfect spot

for this

big bomb of wave.

And something last minute

just told me to spin

and go and...

I remember turning my nose

towards the beach,

and being lifted up by this

what felt like a mountain.

And I looked over the edge,

and I took, like, two paddles

and dropped in and...

Just that feeling,

picking up, like, speed

I've never felt before,

and riding this

huge blue wall of water.

And I rode all the way

to the channel and pulled

out.

That was like

the biggest thrill of my life.

And I was like,

I want to do this thing.

I need to start

training for this,

I need to start

thinking about this,

and I think this is the

new course that I wanna take,

to be a big wave surfer.

Chasing the wave of his life,

Matt connects

with Torrey Meister,

a laid back North Shore local.

I've known Matt

for a really long time,

and he's, he's always

one of my favorite guys

to chase swells with.

The son of a Texas transplant,

Torrey is known for charging

Big Backdoor Pipeline

and following

in his father's footsteps.

There are opposites

who attract,

but are bound together

by the same passion.

My dad

was the biggest influence,

as far as surfing goes.

I wanted to have

a surf partner,

with Torrey.

So it was very, very

important to me

to have my son be

that sort of partner.

And it's for this reason

I showed him the ropes.

When he taught me

how to surf, I just became

completely hooked right away.

I mean, I have brief memories

of telling him

when I was five

or six years old,

like, "I want to be

a pro surfer,"

And he's always supported me,

like, since day one, you know.

He's like,

"You can do it."

"Just, you know,

enjoy and have fun."

"Do anything you want."

The Cold Water Classic

was the, you know,

the most pivotal moment

in my surfing career for sure.

Event was really cool.

It's for uh,

unsponsored surfers.

So they invite 16 guys

from around the world.

And they pretty much

let them duke it out

for a sponsorship

with O'Neill.

And I ended up winning.

And it was a... It was

a really special moment for

me,

and it totally changed

my whole career.

Despite opening the door

to a traditional pro career,

Torrey found it unfulfilling,

and turned his eyes and

efforts

to being

a free surfing big wave

rider.

As the first swell

of the season shows up,

the vagaries of chasing waves

split up the duo.

Matt goes to Maui, desperate

to catch Jaws no matter what.

Torrey decides to stay

on the north shore of Oahu,

where he thinks conditions

will be more favorable.

At dawn,

Matt is greeted by

a disappointing sight

upon his arrival.

And looks to have

made the wrong call,

and won't be scoring.

But the misfire on Maui

is contrasted

with some magic on Oahu.

This particular swell,

while not massive,

hits the sweet spot,

and is perfect

for a challenging location.

A legitimately heavy wave,

if not a giant one,

called Haleiwa.

And Torrey scores,

along with an all-star cast

of some of the best surfers

on the planet.

It's one of

the heaviest waves,

I think, in the world,

and I don't think

people really realize that

it will pound you

like a big wave.

So, it's a heavy wave.

And that day was

especially heavy and big

and...

The power

and ferocity of the wave

allow for high

performance surfing

in a high risk environment,

at least for a select handful

of premier surfers.

Some of the best

were out there tearing it up.

It's great surfing, you know,

with that kind of level

out there in Haleiwa.

Those guys are like

all your friends and

they are obviously pushing.

Everyone's trying to get

the best wave out there.

I think that's

super healthy for the sport,

'cause it pushes

you as a surfer

and as an individual.

Also out that day,

was Kai Lenny,

arguably the best all around

big wave waterman in the

world.

Having grown up on Maui,

just down the street from

Jaws,

he left an indelible mark

on the big wave world

with a single turn,

an incredible airdrop,

at his backyard break.

In a normal season,

he relentlessly

travels the globe

in search of the biggest

waves he can find.

Pushing past fear,

and redefining what's

possible at places like

Nazare.

But this season,

he's tethered closer to home

'cause his wife is pregnant,

and the birth of his twins

is imminent,

he makes the most

of the Haleiwa session.

Matt is burned on Maui

and Torrey

is scoring on the North

Shore.

But for this winter season,

they've enlisted the help

of a liaison

to their surf forecaster,

Curtis Beck,

a surfer himself,

to be in the right place

at the right time.

He injects himself

into what needs to happen

next.

I got a

call from Curtis,

and he just gets you psyched

to go chase big waves.

You know, he's like,

"You won't believe it."

"The waves are..."

"are like 10 ft bigger."

You gotta get

to the airport now.

And I was like...

It's like sprinting up

the Jaws part.

I am a hype machine.

Where I'm a hype machine,

is trying to factor in

the odds

of where and when to be.

There's an old

saying in the surf world.

"Never leave good waves."

With the help of

surf forecaster, Mark

Sponsler,

Curtis makes the high risk

call for Matt and Torrey,

to head to Mavericks

in Northern California.

It's against

conventional wisdom.

And with no other pro surfer

even thinking about

making the same call.

The call was made on

24 hours' notice.

Mavericks is

particularly fickle,

in the wind area,

in local winds.

and the local wind models

are not the best.

But when you get in like a 20,

36-24 hour window,

boom!

All of a sudden

for this one swell,

it just...

It just... The wind

was forecasted to disappear.

You had to be willing

to turn on the dime.

It's late

in the afternoon

as Bromley heads

to the airport.

Torrey is just getting

out of the water.

If Sponsler's correct,

they need to get on a flight

that evening.

You know,

I probably surf for,

two and a half,

three hours or so.

I remember coming in and

I had like, I don't know,

20 missed calls and

40 text messages,

from Curtis, like,

"We're going to Mavericks."

And I was like,

"What, we are?"

"Do you wanna go?"

I was like,

"Is it gonna be good?"

And he's like,

"Yeah, Mark, you know,"

says it's gonna be good.

"It looks like

it's gonna be."

So, I was like,

"Yeah, let's do this."

So I literally...

I think I booked my ticket,

hour and a half

before the flight.

I barely made the flight.

Luckily, I had boards and

everything there.

I just shoved everything

into my board bags

and,

and got on the plane.

They expected to see

other surfers

on the red eye flight

to San Francisco,

just north of Mavericks.

No one else is.

But anyway,

everybody made it,

and we got to sleep

at like 02:00 in the morning.

At first, it seemed

the naysayers were correct

and no swell is to be had.

And the mad dash and red eye

were a failed mission.

No one else from Hawaii

took Sponsler seriously.

And perhaps

the master forecaster,

got it wrong.

We got down

to Mavs in the morning

and they were

still really small,

and I was like, "Oh my gosh,

there's no sign of the swell."

Like, "Is it coming?"

Man, it looks

flat out there.

In the back of my mind,

I was like,

I need a swell so bad.

It sucked in Jaws.

It's gonna suck here.

It wasn't that big.

Even though there's no surf,

Torrey gets prepared

by picking up his board.

Helping on

the board transfer is

Curt Meyers from

Power Lines Productions.

Along with

his partner, Eric Nelson,

they are not

a typical production company.

But they embody

the passion and commitment

of the wave

and surf lifestyle

in Half Moon Bay.

So, long story short,

back in the day,

I started a tv show

a community access channel

called Powerlines, Surf

Spots.

Curt had been

a lifelong fan,

and he saw that the show

was getting stale.

So, I challenged him

to do his own show on

surfing.

Hey, are you gonna

takeover or what?

He wants

to be the Terminator.

We have the Curt Myer's Show.

-Wrong.

-Gotta be on Powerlines.

-Curt...

-You can put yourself on,

you can put

all his buddies on,

you can put

all his little girlfriends on.

He'll be killing it, bro.

So we joined forces.

Power Lines Productions

essentially

was born on that...

Back in the day.

With world class

production values,

with Eric shooting

from the cliff

and Curt from the water,

they never miss

a swell or a key ride.

And represent

the devotion to the spot,

which is the hallmark

of the devotees of Mavericks.

The fact is that

riding waves at Mavericks

can be traced to one man,

and an extraordinary story.

Growing up,

here in Half Moon Bay,

every morning

I sat and ate breakfast

looking at the ocean.

And you could literally see

Mavericks off in the right,

and all the restructure

out in the whole bay.

Discovering Mavericks

was literally

from surfing as big a waves

that I could

around all the other reefs

until depths would pop

in the distance.

At just 17 years old,

Jeff's natural desire to push

his limits as a surfer,

led him to paddle out

at Mavericks,

by himself.

Not only did he successfully

surf that day, and many

after,

but no one else

would even attempt to surf it

for years.

I went out there,

10 years

completely by myself.

After flying

under the radar for years,

Mavericks would finally

introduce itself

to the world stage

in a cover story

in Surfer magazine

in the 1980s,

and would quickly gain

worldwide recognition.

Most famous surf spots

around the world,

are shall we say,

less than welcoming

to any

outside visiting surfers.

Despite its fame,

the community of Half Moon Bay

has managed

to keep Mavericks

a special place

for all surfers.

One of the up and coming

kids in our community,

his approach to people was,

is "show up and be kind."

Get along with everybody

and be as welcoming

as you know?

And he was that guy.

But uh,

he was out surfing

and he kicked out

of a wave

and sat down

and the board collapsed,

and the lifeguards couldn't

get to him before he drowned.

That was his tag line.

So, community

basically kept it

and uh, try to live it.

Is that you?

-Yeah.

-You're a star, dog.

- Wow.

- Thanks.

When you arrive at Mavs,

everyone on the jet skis

is greeting you

and they are like, "Go for

it." They encouraging.

You get into the lineup and,

and everyone is like cheering

each other on out there.

It's like this...

I guess

there's this, like,

big wave brotherhood

out there, and all that.

It's such a rad

vibe, out there.

I love surfing Mavericks.

Despite

the unique history

and welcoming vibe,

Mavericks has a dark side.

Having taken the lives

of two professional

big wave surfers,

Mark Foo, in 1994,

and Sion Milosky in 2011.

And almost

the legendary,

Shane Dorian,

couple of years later,

after a vicious wipeout

and a two wave

hold down.

But for Matt and Torrey,

there are no such concerns,

as the swell they chased

is nowhere to be seen.

Suddenly the

ocean is stirring,

and it looks like they may

have made the right call,

after all.

Suddenly we saw this

big explosion, like,

"Oh, we gotta get out there."

While Matt and

Torrey have surfed here

before,

neither really has

the lay of the land.

Yeah. I mean, Torrey,

I don't even know

how many times he's surfed.

I think he surfed

Mavericks like twice.

So, I've surfed there twice.

So I was following him,

but he didn't really know

what he was doing.

I haven't done

in, like, three years,

and I've only done it once.

So...

And it was from the left.

But...

we'll find a way out.

This guy's from South Africa,

dude, he'll find a way out.

Then we paddle out

around the left, out at Mavs,

which is

quite a spectacular view,

because when you're

on the left,

you're looking directly

into the slab

and the left barrel's

coming towards you.

Just massive.

We got out there

at, like, one o'clock

and was just bombing.

Pristine glass,

like, no wind at all.

Perfect conditions.

This swell was

a lot bigger

than I thought

it was gonna be.

When I surfed

Mavericks of that size,

my main focus is,

is that left

because I think there's just

so much potential there.

Now, you see, you know, no

human beings like us,

going out there

and pushing our hardest to,

you know, overcome our fears.

When you see someone

really just super passionate

and not letting fear

take over,

and just going at it,

you know, head down.

I think It's, uh,

it's a very motivating thing.

Despite going out with dreams

of a big left slab barrel,

the ocean has its way of

determining how things go

and Torrey ends up front side.

I remember just

doubling up super hard,

like, right on the peak.

I just whipped it

really fast and went.

And I remember

just kind of airdropping,

like, "Oh, man,"

"this...this is uh..."

"This isn't good.

I better stick this time."

That was probably my best

wave, I ended up being right,

which is kind of funny, it's

like a nice airdrop

and ended up sticking it

and getting mowed down.

And getting

pretty dang close to the

rocks

and on Mushroom Rock

on the inside

and all that area.

For Matt, in the past,

Mavericks has been

the best of times,

and the worst of times.

The last time

I was at Mavericks,

I had one of the best waves

I've ever had,

and I had

all this confidence.

And then,

I paddled into this wave

thinking, like, I've got this,

and the whole bottom

of the ocean

just seemed to fall away.

And I was just

pushed into the depths,

one of the worst

beatings of my life.

And that was the last wave

I had out at Mavericks.

And now going

back out there,

in the back of my mind,

I'm like,

"Hey, the waves are beautiful

and they look friendly."

But there's a chance that

you could have

the worst wipeout of your

life.

My approach is always

to sit a little bit outside

and try to get

the biggest wave of the day.

That's what

I'm out here to do.

This beautiful, big

peak came in

and it just looked incredible.

When I was paddling into it,

I was looking down,

and it looked like it was

too critical,

and getting too steep.

But I just thought, like,

this is what I'm here for.

Just gotta send it.

I really believe that,

challenges that are...

The big challenges

are always scary.

But the bigger the challenge,

the more it's gonna

help you to grow.

Everyone has that fear

that's holding them back.

And you have to

face that fear.

All the feelings

of vulnerability,

the anxieties,

it's all part of it.

And unless you face that,

and move through it,

you're going to remain

in the smaller world.

But if you face it

and move through it,

then you're gonna experience

some of the best things,

and you're gonna grow

as a human being,

and you're going to be able

to surf that big wave.

That is your destiny.

It's so often,

I think on the other side

of that fear

is where we experience

our best moments.

A year later,

Matt has pushed past

the memory

of his heavy wipeout,

and for a few minutes

he watches Torrey,

who is looking

for his dream wave.

Although Mavericks

is famous for its right,

the left represents

the next frontier of the wave.

And Torrey sets the standard

with a deep one.

I got a few lefts

and then one left

in particular.

That was like I

got a barrel on.

It felt really, really fun.

After an amazing first ride,

Matt is feeling invincible

and ready for another bomb.

This wave came

and moved under the pack

'cause it was a big double up.

I just thought, like,

"I could do this"

and I put my head down.

And as I stood up at the top,

the bottom of the wave

just dropped too quickly,

and my board was,

was too long

and I nosedive and just,

like, flung, catapulted me

over the front of the board.

It's this

weird silence before,

like the chaos

is about to start

because you're just getting

pulled up and over in the

lip,

and then it took so long.

And then it was just the

impact was so gnarly, and so

strong

and just rattled

and pulled in all directions.

I ended up having to

pull my vest

because I was getting pushed

super deep under the water.

Came up

and my board was in two

pieces,

I was like, "No."

At most big wave spots,

the other surfers would smile

quietly to themselves

that a force in the lineup

has been sidelined.

But luckily for Matt,

Mavericks'

special spirit reveals itself

as local big wave legend,

Peter Mel,

who has ridden the biggest

and best barrel

in the spot's history,

offers to share

one of his backup boards.

The waves

are pumping still

and I've got a broken board.

So I went up to Pete

and he was on the jet ski,

watching his son

John, charging.

I'm like, "Pete, please,

I really need

this backup board."

Like, "Where is it?"

He's like, "Yeah, it's cool."

"It's in the...

It's in my van."

Like, "Here,

this is where the key is."

And so he raced in.

And thank you, Pete,

for bringing down the board.

Got the board, went back out

and got a few more waves.

Such a nice day,

you know.

We had, like, probably

three or four hour window,

and then the wind

started whipping

and went straight on shore,

and it was done.

Definitely the best

big wave session

that I've had

this whole year by far.

Yeah, we called Curtis

right after and like,

"Dude, thank you

so much, man."

It may not

have been the biggest day

in Mavs' history,

but it was one of

the cleanest days

in a long time,

making the red-eye trip,

the right call.

72 hours,

after arriving in California,

the boys find themselves

heading straight

back to Hawaii.

And with Matt's time in Hawaii

starting to grow short,

he's heartened by the news

of a possible fresh swell,

but one surrounded by

question marks.

Such is the life

of a big wave surfer.

I've got like

a week left before

I have got to get

home to my family.

And this good looking

pulse of swell

is coming

for the weekend.

Everyone's saying it's gonna

be too small for Jaws.

It's gonna be too windy.

I knew that

if there was a chance

that Jaws would be going,

then I needed to be out there.

I needed to spend as much

time out at Jaws as possible.

And if there's

anything happening,

I've gotta be out there.

Matt was just frothing to go.

He's like, "I just... I'm

going to go, no matter what."

And I was like, "I don't know

if I'm going to go, man."

I think it's going to be bad.

I think it will be

windy and small.

And I was like, "Torrey,

I'm going to Jaws, bro.

"Just come with me.

Let's do it."

And I was like,

"Well, all right,

"well, let's just do it."

I don't know. Who knows?

Maybe there'll be

a couple at Jaws.

Yeah, this looks...

It doesn't look like

there's any action, really.

When we arrived,

it looked like it was dead

flat.

And I was like,

"Oh my gosh, we have blown

it."

I was ready in my

inflation suit, ready to go.

There were no waves.

Somebody was on the cliff.

Had been there for a while.

He said

he hasn't seen any waves.

The swell

hasn't arrived.

Things don't look good.

But in a replay of Mavericks,

things suddenly

start to shift.

One of the really

cool things about Jaws is

when the...

When the sets approaches,

the lines stack up

from the horizon.

You just see,

looks like corduroy lines.

They like, stack up big

These lines just started,

like marching,

and they just unloaded

and, like

barreled across the reef.

Oh my gosh, it's on.

I was ready in my suit.

I just started

running down the cliff,

Torrey started

getting ready.

One of the most

terrifying things about Jaws

is the rock jump.

Uh, it's these boulders

down there, that are

getting rolled

by these surging waves.

There's a massive shore break

that's exploding on the rocks,

and you've got to

try to time it.

When there's no sets,

you've got to punch through

this shore break

and get into the deep water,

into the channel.

But if you time it wrong,

you're getting slammed

back on the rocks.

Got through the shore break

and I got out

into the lineup.

My strategy was, kind of,

to just wait

for one really good one.

Try not to sit too close in

because it felt like

there might be

a few bigger ones

breaking further out.

I looked over the edge,

and it was steep,

and I pulled back,

and I had about

four or five, I was like,

"Damn, should have gone

in that wave."

Like, "That was a good one."

Just kept pulling back.

And then I saw this wave.

I was like, "I'm going

on this thing, no matter

what."

As the wave picks me up,

I'm still with the thought...

I'm still trying to claw my

way down the wave face,

even though it's getting

more and more vertical.

I jumped up and went down.

And as I was going down,

I was just suddenly like,

"Wow, This wave is so windy,

and so choppy."

And I was like,

trying to balance

going over

these big wind chops.

At the same time, I was trying

to get my line going,

because the wave

is going down the line.

If the wave is running,

there's this big wall

ahead of me.

As I was bottom-turning,

I could see the lip

already starting to fall.

The only way I'm gonna make

this wave is to get under

the core.

And I just pumped up enough

under the roof of it,

and, then, I was, like,

in the bowl of this,

like, beautiful, big wave.

And then I came through

and down and made it

into the channel.

I was, like, "Phew."

Stoked.

Every now and then,

the sets would come in

from the west,

and I could see, like,

way down the line

up these big walls

wrapping into it,

where Torrey was,

and I could just see him

spinning and going.

When Jaws is big

and windy, it's literally

almost impossible

to paddle into

a really big wave.

Got a couple of good waves,

and it was actually better

than I thought

it was going to be.

So that was really nice.

The fabled Maui

winds start blowing even

harder,

and the wiser course of action

is to exit.

But Matt decides

he wants one more.

We had a few great

windy waves

out of, uh, Jaws.

I kind of... I felt like I

was really getting in the

zone.

And, then, I tried to send it

on a pretty big one

out the back.

And, as I was going down

the wave face,

the chops were just so

intense.

Just bucked me off my board

and I had, like,

a pretty gnarly beatdown.

I got up again

over the fall, sent deep,

I pulled my vest.

The water safety guy

we had organized,

he came in and got me.

The wind-whipped

wipeout puts a period

on the Jaws session

for Matt and Torrey.

But, for Kai Lenny,

homebound on Maui

with his newborn twins,

it gives him a moment

to reflect on big wave riding

and, then, head out

and grab the tow rope

for a solo expression session.

I have so much

that I wanted to accomplish

in big waves,

and what better place

but in my backyard?

Really, the scariest thing

about riding a big wave,

and just as, as life is,

you know, it's fear

of the unknown.

In order to overcome fear,

you have to be able to face

it,

and there's just, really,

no other way to get around it.

But facing it is, oftentimes,

less scary

than just thinking about it,

or leading up to it.

Fear is, I think,

the emotion that gets

the worst rap.

But, at the same time,

it's the most powerful

emotion.

It's actually what helps you

survive and overcome.

'Cause it's not conscious,

in a way.

It's almost

a subconscious thing,

and it's about honing in

that fear

and channeling it

in the right direction.

You can let it eat you up,

or you can let it take you

to the highest of places.

When you're on the wave,

everything goes quiet.

You're at, probably,

in that moment,

the loudest place on earth.

Waves are exploding.

People are screaming

on the cliff.

All of sudden,

it's just pure quiet,

and it's this blissfulness.

While Kai slips in

sessions between diaper duty

for Matt and Torrey,

it's another flight.

This time, back to Oahu,

where a new swell

promises to bring

what might be

the most dangerous wave

on Earth to life,

Pipeline.

One thing is for sure,

the vibe will not be

the welcoming community

at Mavericks,

or the nearly empty,

windblown lineup at Jaws.

Torrey enjoys

heavy local status

to help him get waves

in this cutthroat

competitive arena,

but Matt is gonna

have to play politics

to get his.

If you take

the wrong wave out there,

if you drop in

on the wrong person,

even looking at the wrong

wave, you can get beaten up.

You can get sent in.

Pipeline may not

break the biggest,

but if you measure waves

in increments of fear,

it's at the top of the chain,

having claimed many lives

on the shallow lava reef.

I feel like in a wave like

Jaws, you can prepare

for the hold-down.

You're in deep water.

When that wave crashes

over you, it's pushing you

down into the depths,

which is most people's

worst nightmare.

But, if you're prepared

for that hold-down,

you're gonna survive it,

whereas, if you go to a wave

like Pipeline,

sure, it's, like,

a lot smaller,

but it's breaking

in extremely shallow,

uh, over shallow lava rock.

And you can do everything

in your control to be safe

and to try to catch

the right wave,

but that wave is slamming you

into the reef, if you're in

the wrong place.

There's so much energy

that's converging

into a very small area.

The reef is very uneven,

making the wave walk,

and refract,

and change

in different directions.

It's extremely unpredictable.

And, if you fall

in the wrong place,

that wave is driving you

so hard into the reef.

So no amount of preparation

can really help you to

be safer out there.

If you go on the wrong wave,

and it pushes you

into the reef,

you're gonna be

in serious trouble.

If you're going head first,

you can get knocked out

unconscious,

like, very, very easily.

Pipeline is definitely

the most dangerous wave

in the world.

And I feel just as much fear

out of Pipeline that I do

surfing a wave like Jaws.

For Matt,

this is a uniquely

challenging spot,

dealing with a combination

of danger, and hunting

for a wave amongst the

locals.

It was a little bit

of an uphill battle,

again, in the crowd.

The waves were really good,

but it was a struggle

to get waves.

When you surf a wave

that's that intense,

time slows down.

All your senses come alive.

Everything is intensified

from when you're paddling

into the wave,

you're looking over the edge

and it's past vertical,

and you can see the water

sucking off the reef,

the bottom of the wave

drops away, and the,

and the top just curls over,

making this huge room

that you're inside of.

Only have, like,

two or three seconds

inside that chamber,

but it feels...

It's one of the best feelings

you can have

in the whole world.

Looking for

a classic Pipe left,

battling the crowd,

and knowing the hungry reef

is waiting underneath,

Matt finds himself

dealing with some unusual

crosstown traffic.

As I was paddling,

I was shouting

all the crew off down the

line.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa!

I'm going! I'm going!"

And it's really steep,

so you, kind of,

have to be focused

on, like, on your take off.

But, out the corner

of my eye, I could see

this bodyboarder.

He was looking very interested

in my wave.

As I'm dropping in,

I see out the corner

of my eye, he's going.

And I was, like, "Whoa!"

I shouted, "Whoa, whoa!"

I pulled up into this

big barrel behind him.

He, like, almost aired over

me, and I, I rode through

his foam trail

and, then,

was in this beautiful,

big barrel.

And he was riding

in front of it,

just in front of me.

I shot out of the barrel

and he was trying

to turn off the wave.

I don't think

he'd even seen me.

I was, like, "Oh, at least

we both made the wave.

We were safe."

And, then,

some of the photographers,

they were, like,

"Hey, dude,

that was so dangerous, man."

And, then, they sent him in.

So, on my behalf,

he got sent in.

While localism

has its downsides,

sometimes, harsh crowd control

also provides safety

in life-threatening

situations.

Pipeline's the left,

Backdoor's the right.

And, my whole life,

I've always been obsessed

with Backdoor.

It depends on who you ask.

A lot of people will tell you

it's sketchier than Pipe.

Maybe not as perfect.

For me, I would say,

it's more of a challenge.

I don't know if I'd call

myself a heavy local.

I think I just...

I'm super passionate

about the wave that I want.

I think the wave that I want

is this really big,

doubled-up thing

that doesn't look like

the best wave,

and, as soon as

you second-guess it,

it's, kind of, gone.

Consistently being good,

day after day,

I would say, this is

one of the best years

I've seen in the Pipeline.

It was really nice

to travel with Bromley.

That was definitely one

of my highlights of the year,

was going on some surf trips

with him,

and just have some good times

with him, and get him hooked

on country music, you know?

I appreciate that.

All we listened to, all day,

everyday in his car

was Western music,

and I don't really like

Western music.

Torrey is one of the most

polite and humble surfers that

I know.

He's such a nice guy.

And one of the reasons

why I just love cruising

with him, we get on super

well.

Chasing the swell together

was the first time we, like,

properly connected,

and got to hang out, like,

day after day.

And he's such a legend

and he's an incredible

surfer.

For Matt, it was

time to head back home

to his family in South Africa.

I can't wait

to get home to my baby

and to my wife, and

yeah, reset and get ready

for the next swell.

At Pipeline,

one of the locals

who usually gets the waves

he wants, is Makua Rothman,

who grew up on

the North Shore.

But where he really made

his mark is back at Jaws

on Maui,

having launched his career

in 2003 as a 17-year-old,

winning the XXL Big Wave

awards with a 66-foot ride.

And then, last year,

topping that

by getting towed into

one of the largest waves

ever ridden.

Some say the face

approached 100 feet,

though he's not claiming it,

and only says,

"Let the ride and wave

speak for themselves."

This season,

while certainly not

hanging up his trunks,

Makua decided to run

for City Council

and put his focus on

politics.

But he's also about

keeping the spirit of Aloha

alive globally,

which led him

to an extraordinary

surf session

about as far away

as you can get from big waves.

A wave pool in Austin, Texas,

sharing the stoke

with two champions

of other sports.

Honestly,

when I surf here

and I catch a wave,

I don't think

that I am in a pool

in the middle of Waco, Texas.

I'm on a wave surfing,

regardless of what it is.

And, you know, technology

has, you know, given all of us

the ability to surf, you know,

anywhere on Planet Earth now.

Once you get on that wave,

you're not thinking

you're in a pool, right?

You're on a wave

getting barreled.

It's like you're at Uluwatu

or whatever.

- I think, it's also the people

you're around as well.

Yes.

Yeah, the camaraderie,

like, the, the group

you bring to the pool, as

well.

-Yes.

-You know,

people you've come with.

The, the, the,

you know, you've always

gotta surround yourself

with good people.

Makua threw down

a super fun session

at BSR's wave pool

with none other

than Formula One

seven-time world champion,

Lewis Hamilton,

and four-time Supercross

motocross title holder,

Dylan Ferrandis,

a fun break from politics

and the even harsher realities

of big waves.

Oh, Lewis

was charging today.

He was, uh, stepping it up

to the next level.

They both were.

It doesn't matter what I did

in this pool.

Like, I could have done

a move I've never done before,

and it wouldn't make me

as happy as watching

you two guys

come out of the barrel

with your hands up,

"Yeah!"

Like, that's what makes me

feel good.

That's the kind of stuff

that I really enjoy

about surfing,

because I know that surfing

can bring the world together.

While

the North Shore pumps,

Bianca Valenti charges

an outer reef.

She is among the elite

of the growing number

of women worldwide

taking on big waves,

joining the ranks of the

likes of Keala Kennelly,

who has never found a drop

she won't attempt,

and Justine Dupont,

who made history

at Jaws last winter

with an epic barrel.

But her home break

is the fabled

and feared Mavericks.

An extension of the embracing

nature of Mavericks

is how women have become

accepted in the lineup.

It wasn't always this way,

going back to the pioneering

female surfer, Sarah

Gerhardt,

the first female

to charge the wave.

I was born in LA

and, then, grew up

in Dana Point.

Learned how to surf

at Doheny Beach there

when I was seven.

Then, I got into big waves

at UC Santa Barbara.

I decided I wanted to live

in San Francisco

after I graduated.

Started surfing Mavericks.

The first time I surfed,

it was in 2012.

Every single time,

there's a really special day

out there.

I want to be out there.

I want to be fully present,

fully ready,

because every single second,

every single wave,

every single session out

there,

it's so amazing, and

different, and special.

You know, you have

these experiences

where you see your life

flash before your eyes.

It's an amazing place

where you can learn

a lot about yourself.

Mavericks Surf Awards

was a super fun event.

I think, like, 300 or 400

people showed up at Old

Princeton Landing the other

night.

There was just a lot of love,

and it's so nice

to come together

with community,

in celebration of the wave,

because it is

such a special place.

There were

three men's categories,

three women's categories,

equal prize money.

Winning three awards,

actually, yeah, that was

pretty cool to get, you know,

acknowledgement for all that

hard work.

Today,

Bianca finds herself

in the lineup,

having earned the ultimate

compliment, respect.

And she gets her waves

and has built a life and

career

as a pioneering female

big wave surfer.

So awesome,

this season, seeing more women

in the water,

especially in Hawaii,

and here, too,

and to have the guys

cheering us on so much.

It's been fun

to be a part of this,

this movement that really has

so much momentum right now.

With his surf buddy,

Matt Bromley, gone,

and the waves looking flat,

Torrey has another way

to get his required dose

of adrenaline

outside of the ocean.

Something that I do

on the side to, kind of,

get the adrenaline rush

is pit bull riding.

My whole family's

from Texas, so,

I don't know, I kind of grew

up watching the PBR

and been super in love with,

you know, country music

and the western way of life.

Surfing

and big wave riding

may be part of the fabric

of Hawaii,

but it also has 150 years

of history of Hawaiian

cowboys.

They call them paniolos.

They have, like,

a really cool rodeo scene

over here in Hawaii.

For me, I think, it's kind of

the coolest,

the best of both worlds,

'cause you got, you know,

some of the best surf

in the world,

and, then, you can go get on

some horses and bulls, too.

So it's really special

that we have that in Hawaii.

You get that full, like,

Aloha Hawaiian spirit as

well,

with, like, the cowboy spirit,

too, you know, kind of mixed

in with these guys.

Getting on a bull

is completely out of

my element, you know.

It's, it's the scariest thing

ever to me.

It's a little bit different

than big wave surfing,

you know?

When you're out in the water,

then you can

kind of choose

to go on the wave or not.

When you're on the bull,

you know, you're committed.

Obviously, I know a lot more

about riding a wave than I do

about riding a bull.

So, yeah, I'm pretty quiet

when I,

when I'm, you know,

getting in the chute.

On a rainy night

on the North Shore,

Torrey tests himself

against 1,500-pound

angry bulls.

Stay. Hold on.

Stay with him.

Drop your legs.

Drop your legs.

- You okay?

- Yeah.

You know, feeling

the power of that bull

when you're getting on it.

And, like,

you're in the chute, and...

When you nod your head to go,

and you don't really know

what's gonna happen,

it's kind of the greatest

feeling ever for me.

And, um,

I became super attracted

to that feeling.

Yeah, don't do that.

Yeah, drop your legs.

Throughout

the evening,

Torrey chooses to nod his head

five times.

He may not have ridden

the fabled eight seconds,

but faced another

side of fear, then,

ended the night unscathed,

and with as big a smile

on his face as a killer

big wave surf session.

The winter is winding down,

but forecaster Mark Sponsler

sees something very

interesting pop up.

Not for Hawaii, but over

on the North Atlantic

and aimed at Nazare, Portugal.

It's good news

for big wave-hungry

Nic Von Rupp,

but also nerve-wracking

as he's still recovering

from an early season injury.

It's the end of the season.

I bruised my ribs really hard.

And I was supposed to be

out of the water for a while,

you know?

Like, I was... I thought

that was it. But, then,

this swell popped up.

That swell at Nazare,

a lot of it was the north

angle and the

intensity of the storm,

and the duration of it.

All that just radiating

and focusing

right on Nazare.

The swell

is particularly ominous,

and Sponsler is calling

for something

that could be historic.

Going against

his doctor's advice,

Nic goes into

full-preparation mode

the day before the swell.

Surfing big waves

is an emotional roller

coaster, you know?

Like, obviously,

like, when the swell pops up,

there's excitement, you know?

Like, "Oh, my God,

it's gonna happen."

Then, the media

start hyping it up, like,

"It's the biggest swell ever!"

And, then,

fear starts kicking in.

And you're, like,

"Oh, my God,

the biggest swell ever?"

I mean, I've already seen it,

the biggest ever,

and it was scary, you know?

Like, how can I imagine

it bigger?

Like, everything

starts kicking in, you know?

And, then, obviously, you,

like, calm down.

You start focusing,

preparing, start calling up

your team.

The safety team

meeting takes place

in the harbor.

There is no margin for error.

On days like this, when it's,

when it's supposed to be

absolutely huge...

Like, we had a huge swell

on January 8th.

It was really big

and everything went wrong.

So, this swell, it was

supposed to be even bigger,

and we doubled up on safety.

So instead of everyone doing

their own kind of little,

uh...

tow teams, you know,

of three people,

we create a huge

10-people team, you know?

It's really a team effort.

Everyone needs

to be synchronized,

committed, focused.

There's no room for mistakes,

you know?

It's just, like, mistakes,

is ending up on the rocks.

The dangers

of Nazare are real.

From being smashed

in the rocks

to crushed in the pounding

shore break,

it's easy for things

to go very wrong

with real consequences.

The special thing

about Nazare is its canyon,

you know?

It's, it's unique.

It's like a world wonder.

It's one of the deepest

canyons in the world, and the

way you can compare it,

is to the Grand Canyon.

Basically, it just catches

the swell in the middle

of the ocean.

So the swell's coming in

from the Atlantic.

And what it does,

all that energy

just compresses

to the depth of that canyon,

and just shoots up

with all its strength

straight at the

beach, you know?

And, and, then, when it hits

that shallow part,

the wave just, like,

stands up, you know?

And that's how you get

that mountain of water,

you know?

We've been talking

since 6, 6:30 a.m.

with the team

and...

Lucas said it's huge.

Windy.

And clean.

Let's wait.

I don't know, we might see

that first 100 ft wave,

we might not.

There was definitely

a hiccup in the morning.

I mean, I figured out

my vest had a hole.

And you don't want your vest

that saves your life,

to have a hole, to be leaking,

you know?

You don't wanna be

thinking about that,

you know?

Like, you wanna to be

100% focused

and be trusting

your equipment.

My vest had a hole,

someone took my fins...

and, all of a sudden,

I'm just, like, "Yo, no."

I wasn't under control

of the whole situation,

you know?

And when you're putting

your life at risk like that,

you want to be 100% in

control.

A variety of big

wave surfers have arrived

from across the globe

to challenge the waves,

including Brazilian charger

Michaela Fregonese,

whose young son

waits nervously back home.

He's scared, you know?

He scared to lose me,

that's why.

Because do you know

how danger is, so...

Wait a second.

This is dangerous?

Oh, yeah!

Super dangerous. Yeah.

I don't rush because I know...

anyway, that God

is gonna be, like...

my best wave.

Like, the biggest wave

of my life, for sure, today.

I was praying not only for me,

but for all.

For all the people here.

Because, if nobody hurts,

you feeling more confident,

you know?

- If you were hurt...

- It's scary, you know?

If nobody hurt,

everybody happy,

everybody get the bomb,

everything's gonna be okay.

So I pray for everyone

here today.

One of the surfers

here is Vini Dos Santos,

32, from Brazil.

He's famed for catching

one of the biggest

paddle-in waves at Nazare.

But now he's determined

to make his mark

by picking up the rope

and hunting down a monster,

and making his mark

on the global stage.

You know, I had

some issues in the morning.

The vest, the fins.

But, you know, like,

we're cowboys

at the end of the day

and we just make it happen,

you know?

Like, so my buddy

lended me a vest,

my buddy lended me some fins.

-That one is gonna be

a buoy?

-That one's gonna be, uh...

-Okay, who's gonna go

on that one?

-The... the other guy...

For me, what really matters

is the team spirit

and, obviously, commitment.

You wanna be out

there all day.

You want to catch...

You want to surf big waves.

You want to make

the most of this.

Go prepare.

When I get on my jet ski,

it's... That's when I, like,

feel connected.

It's like an extension

of my body, you know?

I can... I just feel

that adrenaline.

It's like going to war,

you know? It's preparing,

like, going to war.

When the surf

comes into their sights,

Sponsler's forecast

is proven accurate.

It's big.

The only question is,

is it historically big?

Big wave surfing

really relates to the daily

activity of anyone.

Everyone has dreams.

Everyone is afraid

of the dreams.

And a lot of people

are not able to achieve

their dreams because of fear,

gets in the middle of it.

It's exactly the same way,

big wave surfing.

I have the dream.

I have the dream of surfing

the biggest wave of my life.

I'm afraid of it,

of what can happen.

My boyfriend,

Nick Von Rupp, he's a surfer,

a big wave surfer.

I just have to keep believing

that everything

will be fine, because...

...this is a matter

of life and death.

The first wave,

it was so choppy.

I was going so fast

and through those bumps,

and I felt like my board

was skidding out.

You know, having that feeling

of not being in control

and, all of a sudden,

you feel your fin

sliding sideways,

and you're holding on.

Like, it gives you

that snowboard feeling.

You know where you're, like,

trying to, like, use your

edges instead of your fins.

That's what it felt like.

I'm like, "Oh, my God!

I'm gonna eat shit right now."

I went flying down, like,

both arms, trying to penetrate

through the water,

thinking I'm gonna

pull through, you know,

and swim on the other side.

At one moment, I

think I got it.

And, then, the thing

just takes me down and

explodes.

Lucas comes up to pick me up.

The wipeout

was bad enough...

then, things get worse.

A second wave appears.

It takes duck-diving

a 900-pound Jet Ski

with Nic holding on

with one good arm

to escape the maelstrom.

Oh, my God, that's not

how I wanna start the day,

you know?

I felt something was wrong,

you know?

But, with the adrenaline,

you don't feel it, you know?

You know, it was...

You know, I had to take

a little break

and, then, all of a sudden,

my arm started hurting.

Like, I couldn't even hold on

to the Jet Ski.

But I was, like,

"This is my day.

"This is, like...

I can't give up right now,"

you know?

Undaunted

by Nic's injury

and the vibe change

in the water,

Michaela finds the

opportunity to get the ride

of her life.

With a solid one

under her belt,

Michaela heads back out

and catches what is, arguably,

one of the biggest waves

ever ridden by a woman.

That's the best

feeling ever.

When you do what you love,

no one get hurt, nothing,

it's so amazing.

As with any

big wave session,

there was sure to be carnage.

Also cashing in his chips

at the pain window

is Vini Dos Santos, where

things go wrong

on a big one,

things go wrong in a big way.

The ski tries to reach him

to get him to safety,

but another wave rolls in,

and he's left helpless

and beaten up

in the impact zone.

In unprecedented fashion,

the pressure of the wave

has popped his inflation vest

and the metal canister

gets ripped out

and starts hitting him

on the head.

Barely conscious,

the ski driver races him

to the beach.

After the intense hold-down,

Vini is administered oxygen

on the beach.

It is thanks

to the well-prepped

safety team

that Vini is okay

after a relentless wipeout.

While on the stretcher,

he talks about a giant wave

he caught earlier.

Later, looking at the

footage, it reveals

something extraordinary.

It appears he might have

ridden a record-setting wave,

perhaps the 100-foot wave.

The measuring of waves

is as much art as science.

One oceanographer later

pegged this wave at 97.5 feet.

Variables as to where the top

and bottom of the wave are,

the fact that the wave

flattened out as he surfed

to his right,

and the incalculable

distortion from the lens,

leave the measurement

in the eye of the beholder.

History might have been made

by Vini

but, out in the lineup,

Nic rallies to catch one more,

despite bruised ribs,

and literally having

only one arm with any

strength.

It's stupid.

Like, my body

is telling me to stop.

My... my ribs

are almost broken.

My arm is, like, I don't know

what I have in my arm,

but it's, like,

I can't move it.

My body is telling me to stop.

Like, you know,

life gives you signs.

Your body gives you signs

when it's enough and...

But I just thought, like,

whatever, you know?

Like, let's just go again.

And I'm getting, like,

a first peaker,

like, really intense,

where I, like, dropped down.

I ran in front of the cliff,

and the thing just stood up

really tall.

Just magic, you know?

Like, the wave was so clean,

so big.

I faded deep.

I had that feeling

that I wanted, you know?

Like, in 100% control.

You know, like, riding as deep

as I can, pushing my limits,

but in control, you know?

I was writing the waves

the way I wanted.

We made it!

Guys, thank you so much

for your approach,

for your confidence in my job.

For me, like,

it was a successful day

not because I rode

the biggest waves of my life.

For me, it was a successful

day because we are back

in one piece.

My ribs are hurting.

My shoulders are hurting.

Like, I can't even lift my arm

more than this, it feels like.

And I still caught,

like, three waves.

My best waves.

Like, I couldn't move my arm.

So, for me, it was, like, a...

a real effort of,

kind of like, pushing my

limits

and pushing my boundaries

and the commitment, you know?

Like, that's the most

important for me.

Oh, I got five waves. Five.

Four right, and one left.

Yeah, today was the biggest

wave I ever surf in my life,

for sure.

You always feel like

you could have done better,

you know?

I'm never satisfied.

Like, I'm very driven.

I always wanna do better.

I always wanna progress.

Not for others,

but for myself.

Like that's what I'm made of,

you know?

Like, that's what kept me

in the game. That's what

kept me progressing.

We're still scratching

the surface on what...

what's doable

and what's big out in Nazare.

So, I mean, let's see

what's gonna happen

the next five years.

Let's see what's gonna happen

the next 10 years.

Eventually it's gonna be,

you know, over 100-foot.

Let's see what's gonna happen,

you know?

And I hope

I'll still be here to...

to see it, you know?

At the end

of the day, they paddled out.

Some dreams are realized

and some are not.

For those watching,

for those riding,

the lesson remains the same...

pushing limits and facing

fears leads to progression,

leads to growth...

leads to what is next.

The Northern Hemisphere

will go dormant.

These men and women will wait.

The waves will return.

They will test

themselves again.

And we all will be inspired

by their example

to face our fears

and push into and past

the fear of the unknown

in our own lives...

to the other side of fear.