ROSS WILLIAMS
As I remember it was the week before our photoshoot on Maui in mid-April that there were some potential signs of a large enough swell for Jaws to break. The last time we saw an April swell big enough was in 2016 and I had to watch from the cliffs due to an ankle injury. The 2017-2018 season really hadn’t been that consistent with large Jaws size swells, but there had been lots of good heavy days at Ho’okipa before Christmas, and I was determined that if Jaws would be breaking at any point I would do my best to blag a ride up the coast by any means necessary.
I had actually purchased one of the Quiksilver inflation vests as I felt that in my past experiences I had been somewhat ill-equipped and Jaws now being a bit of a zoo I didn’t feel like being the only guy taking unnecessary risks and putting myself or others in harm’s way.
Five days out I was pretty certain that the wave would break and I began to call everyone I could think of to get a ride in case the swell maintained its predicted size and direction. In the end it was Marcilio Browne, who was equally in need of someone to team up with, that kindly agreed to take me up if the conditions were on. I am not sure what most regular Jaws riders do the night before, but I don’t think I did anything out of the usual, I just told the GA/Tabou team riders that I would check the conditions and make a call in the morning.
The day of the swell, both myself and Brawzinho where the first to get into action and have the jet ski in the water with our gear strapped down tightly for the bumpy ride upwind. I knew Marcilio would have his Jaws board ready to go, as for me I only had one of the photoshoot boards and sails as my option. I didn’t want to miss the chance to snag a huge wave and not be on the latest gear. The board was 88 litres, which was enough to bog and catch waves with a 5.0m wave sail. I had only ridden the sail and board for a couple of hours during the photoshoot, so it was still not set up and tuned to the max, but I was pretty confident I could sail in a straight line and not skip out.
As we pulled up we could tell it wasn’t going to be a super clean swell and not even that big, but we were both keen to give it a go and see. There were some decent sets and though a lot of the waves lacked any real wall, there were moments that looked amazing in the photos.
In the end I think we all scored a few decent rides! I had no real insane pits, but just being out there with pretty much only a couple of other riders and the power of the ocean moving around you was intense. I still had butterflies in my stomach and that sense of achievement to make it home in one piece. I really took it easy, I didn’t feel the risk versus reward was worth it to push my sailing and try and hit the lips! I weighed up the cost of all the new equipment that I would destroy versus the potential to injure myself on a small messy Jaws day. It was also just before the start of a couple of months of competing and travel and in the end I could not justify any risks. Maybe I was a bit of a wimp, but when I was back on solid ground I knew that it was the right decision for that session. So I guess I will have to wait till the next swell to man up some more!
The power of the ocean moving around you was intense.