Derek Rabelo surfs Nazare
As a blind surfer Derek Rabelo is inspirational most months of the year. However if we thought his movie Beyond Sight, which captures his quest to get barreled was the endpoint to his ambition, think again. This week Derek tow surfed Nazare, catching four waves the last of which was at least a solid 15-footer. That a surfer with no sight would take on one of the world’s most powerful beachbreaks puts most of our life’s obstacles into perspective. Derek is asking to crowdfund a new film of his adventures. We advise you throw a few coins down.
The Girls of Pe’ahi
Last year when the girls paddled out of the inaugural Pe’ahi Challenge they were, rightly, applauded for their bravery. However their performance didn’t quite match their attitude. Most were caught underprepared and with little lineup knowledge, the main goal was to avoid catastrophe. This year it was different. The six invitees had obviously spent the interim working on their fitness and their equipment. They placed themselves on the peak, and didn’t hesitate when the sets came their way. The performance jump from the previous year was huge and their efforts will no doubt inspire many more girls to start to make their way into the big wave realm.
The Aussie Adaptive Team
The Aussie Adaptive Team crushed the 1st Annual US Open Adaptive Surf Championships run by the Stoked For Life foundation, with Barney Miller, Mark “Mono” Stewart (also the best, and most-Aussie nickname in surfing) and Matt Formston all winning their divisions. Held in conditions that ranged from wild and woolly to perfect, the surfer and their support staff backed each other to the hilt. No one works harder and surfs with more passion than these guys and their success is a tiny reward for the efforts they have all made to keep charging, no matter what obstacles have been in their path.
Ryan Hipwood
The only Aussie in the entire field of the Pe’ahi Challenge didn’t let his country, himself or his fans down after knifing ten-point ride on the way to making the Final appearance. Such was his commitment at one stage he dropped out of the sky of a 45-footer and tried to tackle Kai Lenny’s head. Never one to excessively blow his own trumpet, Hippo simply waited patiently for his opportunity and when the time came charged as hard as he’s always done. Hopefully this is just the start of his wider recognition as one of the best big-wave surfers on the planet.
Resurface
Resurface is a new documentary on Netflix that show how military members suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) have been treated positively with surf therapy. Now the term “surfing changed my life” may get tossed around a little to easily, but as one vet says in this doc, “surfing didn’t change my life, it saved it.” Resurface shows that for the veterans surfing provides many parallels with what psychologists call “flow”, where a person becomes fully and completely involved in an activity to the exclusion of everything else. The results are startling and life affirming.
