You’re on the hunt for the biggest,
raddest wave imaginable.
You know that the world record
for the largest wave ever surfed
was set by Rodrigo Koxa in 2017
when he successfully rode a
24 m (80 ft) wave at Nazaré.
And you want to go even bigger.
But water is heavy.
A 10 m (33 ft) wave with a
20 m (66 ft) wide lip
weighs 410,000 kilograms (410 tons).
If you wipeout,
the equivalent weight of four blue whales
would come crashing down on you.
Can you survive if you wipeout?
While surfing sure looks death-defying,
the sport has only claimed the lives
of four big wave surfers since 2010.
But it’s still far from safe.
Take Greg Long,
a world-renowned big wave surfer.
In 2014,
he almost walked away from the sport
forever after a near death experience
off the coast of southern California.
This experienced surfer fell off while
paddling out to a 15 m (50 ft) wave that
was 160 km (100 miles) away from shore.
Greg Long tried to pull himself
up to the surface but was hit hard
by two more waves.
When he finally reached the surface,
he had no energy and no oxygen left.
He was found floating face down
in the Pacific Ocean
by a three-person rescue team.
The best way to survive a
big wave is to know your limits.
The biggest wave for you might look
a lot different than the biggest wave
for someone like Greg Long.
Surfing is a complex sport of physics.
Gravity and buoyancy work as
opposing forces that build speed
and allow surfers to balance on their boards.
Surfers manipulate the forces of gravity
and buoyancy through torque.
This readjustment of weight
allows them to control the
direction of the board.
If you want to ride a big wave safely,
you need to be a master of using
these principles.
Which means you need years
and years of training
in both surfing and swimming.
Don’t get too cocky,
and please, no thrill seekers.
Professionals and amateurs alike
use technology to track waves
for optimal conditions.
Waves get their energy from
ocean currents and wind.
Each wave maintains the
same amount of water.
So as a wave moves from the deep open
ocean into shallow water,
it has to get smaller.
And as the land forces the water
into a narrower shape,
the wave grows in height until it breaks.
Hopefully you’ve already done step one
and know what big wave is
appropriate for your skill level.
Now, you just have to track conditions
to find that wave.
Safety technology is extremely
important for surfers.
The leading cause of fatal injury
in surfing is when a surfer drowns
after a blow to the head.
So making sure you have a
quality inflatable vest whenever
you go out can keep you alive.
Except if you’re Greg Long.
He was wearing a state of the art
safety vest in 2014.
But Long’s vest malfunctioned
and did not inflate
after he pulled the rip cord.
Thankfully, Long survived because
he had a safety team.
While he still suffered severe
blunt force trauma to his head,
he is alive because his
three-person safety team was able to
find and reach him via jet skis.
The calmer you are,
the slower you use up oxygen.
Many surfers train to hold their breath
for as long as possible.
Having a large lung capacity
and the ability to hold your breath
can afford you precious,
lifesaving seconds.
Surfing the biggest wave
comes with a big reward
and even bigger risks.
But as long as you know your limits,
track the waves,
have the proper gear,
a safety team,
and stay calm if you wipeout,
then you’ll be fine.
And while shark attacks are rare for surfers,
they do happen.
So just in case you see
the fin of a great white coming for you,
we’ve got you covered.
Check out another How To Survive
to conquer that too.