:38:01
Along with the birth
of my sons and my daughter...
:38:04
...it was probably the most
significant day of my life.
:38:07
Even though it wasn't photographed
and people have argued since then:
:38:12
"How big was it?"
It doesn't matter.
:38:13
In our imaginations,
it just was huge.
:38:16
Because on that classic day
of the biggest swell ever seen...
:38:20
...he essentially rode alone
and faced it when it came to him.
:38:23
That's what every surfer does in their
own life. Everyone can relate to that.
:38:38
As Greg Noll's giant wave
broke and vanished...
:38:40
... so too did the popularity
of traditional big-wave surfing...
:38:44
... at Waimea Bay.
:38:45
As it was broadsided by
the late '60s shortboard revolution...
:38:49
... where the longer,
heavier big guns...
:38:52
... were phased out in favor of shorter
and more maneuverable surfboards.
:38:57
By the early '70s...
:38:59
... the great Waimea had been
usurped by two spectacular...
:39:02
... more performance-oriented
North Shore breaks:
:39:04
The Bonzai Pipeline,
led by surfers like Gerry Lopez...
:39:08
... and at Sunset Beach...
:39:10
... by surfers like Jeff Hackman
and Barry Kanaiaupuni.
:39:15
All this changed in the mid-'80s...
:39:17
... first with the emergence
of Ken Bradshaw...
:39:20
... and then Mark Foo.
:39:21
Two professional big-wave riders...
:39:23
... determined to reintroduce
personality and showmanship...
:39:26
... to the challenge
of riding giant Waimea.
:39:29
Then came The Eddie...
:39:31
... Quiksilver's big-wave
riding contest at Waimea Bay...
:39:34
... held in memory of the late,
great big-wave rider Eddie Aikau.
:39:39
Together, Ken Bradshaw,
Mark Foo and The Eddie...
:39:43
... wrenched the surfing world's
attention back to Waimea Bay...
:39:47
... then still considered the
Mount Everest of big-wave surfing.