all I can do is pray that Hu'y sends us something for Christmas.
So, the biggest, the best and the worst. I think every surfer, wannabe or not, would have their list. This is mine.
The Biggest
I surfed at Three Bears on the Cape (Yallingup / Dunsborough) in May this year. Three Bears is three reef breaks - Papa's, Mama's and Babies. It is an amazing spot that takes around 40 minutes by 4WD to access. A classic, south west landscape - heartbreakingly desolate and beautiful. I only took off on two waves this session and both were the kind where I just held my breath and prayed. I copped a flogging by a few more!
The waves would have been consistently 6 foot with a few bigger sets coming through. There are clear channels at Three Bears which makes avoiding the big sets easier. These channels only ever break when it gets big. They broke four times while I was out there. I stayed out for an hour before the adrenalin took over, the stress set in and I just couldn't concentrate anymore. But I was proud that I went out, prouder still that I stayed out and stoked that I managed a few waves (even though they weren't pretty).
The Best
Thinking about taking and making these waves still makes me smile. I surf as much as I can because of them.
There is a surf spot in Playgrounds, Mentawais called Spankers or Four Bob (depending which resort or boat you stay on). The name Spankers is much more appropriate because despite being a relatively easy take off, the wave breaks along a really shallow, sharp coral reef. There is also two large coral heads that pop out of the water just as the wave breaks. I landed on them so many times and they really hurt - hence the name......but this one wave..........this one wave where it all came together. I headed down the line, tucked up against the wall, thinking ho-ly I'm surfing, properly. I swear it got a little dark as the wave stood up and started throwing a little water over my head. I managed to lock eyes and smile at one of the guys paddling back out to the line up. I don't think I wiped that smile off my face for the rest of the week.
The Left
I took my best left at a break called Inner Ekas on Lombok last year. I went there after my trip to the Mentawais, so I was feeling more comfortable with the bigger waves. Ekas is on the inside of a sandy, windy peninsula to the east of the island. It is a really fun A frame wave with a very playable, fun wall.
Why I remember this wave in particular is that it stood up nicely and ran for so long. I was easily moving up and down the face playing with little bottom and top turns. I had been surfing the wave for three days and was feeling more and more confident, moving further out the back taking off on bigger and bigger waves. I had just started really looking down the wave (not at my feet) and was enjoying the fact that I could start to respond to different sections of the wave because I knew they were faster or slower or broke early. Good times and a great wave!
The Worst
I can still recall every detail of my worst hold down ever, that blind panic the moment I realised I really needed to breath and that I had no idea which direction the surface was. The white fear as the stress set in and I started fighting instead of trying to relax. The release when I found the surface and gulped as much oxygen as I could. I remember dragging my feet up the beach and sitting on the sand, looking out to sea, trying to recover.
Gunnamatta, Mornington Peninsula. A beautiful wave at 3 - 4 foot, downright nasty at 6 foot plus. It is one of the most schizophrenic waves I have ever surfed - I love it and hate it in equal measure. I had surfed it the week before and had an amazing session - beautiful, glassy conditions on a gorgeous summer day when my friend, Ivan and I had skived off work early.
I remember looking at the waves just before paddling out thinking hmmm, its a little bit bigger then last time. As soon as I got out the back I realised I was so far out of my depth - it was big, fast and powerful. I just kept paddling further and further out to sea trying to avoid getting dragged in, I managed to duck dive under a couple but I could feel the power in the water and I knew that getting in was not going to be pretty.
In hindsight, I should have just caught a wave but I was too scared too move. I remember looking out to the horizon and seeing a set coming in and thinking, oh dear. I made it under the first one but the second was even bigger and I was right in the impact zone. I took it straight on the head and got dragged under, so far under and down, down, down. I'm sure I was only under for a few seconds but the water was so cold and dark it felt like a lifetime.
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