Words and photos: Peter ‘Joli’ Wilson
Nathan Hedge, aka Hedgey aka Hog, is part of Namotu Island folklore. The story of his efforts to score an early solo surf at Cloudbreak is the stuff of legend. Needless to say the idea was hatched after a late night session around the bar during what was, at the time, the Quiksilver Pro. Instead of staggering off to bed like the rest of the crew on the island, Hedgy got it into his head that he wanted to be the first person in the line up at Cloudbreak the next morning. Attaching his board to the back of a hard plastic kayak, Hedgey proceeded to paddle off into the night toward Cloudbreak.
The next morning Occy and Luke Egan thought they’d be the first crew in the line up after leaving the island just before dawn. To their surprise they found Hedgey out there already and got the whole story. It took him hours to make the 10-kilometre paddle, and he had trashed the kayak climbing up onto the judging tower where he’d slept till dawn. Nathan’s exploits were kept under wraps during the rest of the comp, but it is now told and re-told whenever the boys are having a few beers around the Namotu bar.
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