THE CHALLENGE
I saw epic waves breaking around me, I also saw epic waves break on my head but to catch one was the real challenge. I would wait in the line-up at one spot and see two 20-foot sets break 30 feet down-wind of me. I would head down to that spot then the next two sets would break where I was just before. Very frustrating knowing if I had of stayed where I was I could have had one of the best rides of my life. The few big sets I did manage to get were also met with challenges I had not faced in a while. Pumping like crazy to catch one of these waves was no surprise to me, but trying to jump into the straps with numb feet right at the apex of the wave was a new challenge. This problem, coupled with the sheer speed of the wave and the chop coming up the face, made it super difficult to just get down the wave. The back half of the board would start to get out of control and I would have to hold on extra tight to make sure I would not blow up half way down the face. I never experienced this in Jaws or any other big wave locations, but Nazaré is just another monster entirely. After building my confidence a little I had one wave where the peak had shifted downwind and started to peak and break towards me. I really didn’t know what to do, so I thought to try a small aerial out the back of the wave. The wave does such weird stuff you really have to be prepared at all times to make adjustments. This particular wave broke at the top but the bottom was still fat, making it super difficult to try anything with success. The adrenaline was pumping through me so much, it does at times make you do things you normally would never do, so I tried to harness my emotions and be as safe as I could.