Reading Time: 6 minutes

As a born and bred Coogee Beach surfer, I’m ashamed that I didn’t wake up early to watch Monday’s big-wave session, let alone take part. I was a bit late to the Wedding Cake spectacle, with Saturday night’s drinking festivities still leaving cobwebs by early Monday morning. But in defence of my hungover self, the ETA of the XL swell forecast was understandably questionable. When I checked the surf on Sunday arvo all the eastern suburbs beaches were only showing a dribble of swell.  

As I underestimated the expected time of the incoming swell, a low-pressure system with violent intentions was making its way up the east coast of Oz from the Tasman Sea. In the early hours of Monday Morning, the storm, accompanied by a south swell, was terrorising the New South Wales coastline. One buoy overnight apparently recorded a fourteen-metre swell. While most of Sydney’s breaks were washed and blown out, Wedding Cake was the place to be once the sun came up. The surf spot rarely breaks, maybe once or twice a year. Those daring enough would take on the 15-20 foot waves that marched towards the rocky outcrop off Coogee made famous by Midnight Oil. Many were calling it the biggest it’s ever been surfed with waves capping on previously unseen outer reefs. 

Despite missing out on the live action, there was an overload of footage on the internet. The big-wave session went viral on social media, played on prime-time news, and even made the front page of Tuesday’s Sydney Morning Herald.

There was a lot to dissect in a session that featured a brave group of surfers, two fearless foilers and a rogue, boardie-wearing bodysurfer. To get all the details, we spoke to Lachy ‘Lemo’ Lemarseny, who was in the surf, and videographer Tim Bonython, who gave us the perspective from the land.

My first call was to Lemo, a renowned big-wave surfer from Coogee who was in the belly of the beast on Monday.

Hey mate so when did you know the waves were going to be pretty large?

Well we saw it like a week out, and then you know you keep watching it, looking at all the charts and even up until late Sunday night you check the cameras. Even until midnight, I think I checked it and it was still dead flat. I then checked the Maroubra camera at like one or two in the morning and I could just see white wash. I was like here we go. 

So you weren’t sleeping the night before hey?

Not much sleeping going on.

Then I went to check it at about quarter to six, and you could just see how massive it was. It was clean and breaking so far out. And then maybe about 7: 30 a couple of boys had already paddled out. I think it was Richie Vas’ (Vaculik) and Max McGuigan. Yeah, they got out there first and man the sets were so big, like the biggest I’ve seen it easy.

 How big?

I reckon there were 20-footers for sure. And everyone was kind of saying the same thing. The jump off was so scary, it was like 10-footers breaking on dry rock. When we got out there, it was like cat and mouse paddling. I know Richie (Vas) got a crazy big one and got hammered. Max (McGuigan) made one, he got a bomb, and then yeah it was just cat and mouse. Like, I’ve never seen it that big. I’ve never been out there that big.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by II O III V (@max_mcguigan)

Who was the crew?

The OG Matt Howie was getting towed by Alex Nikov. Howie, Tony Seddon, and Jamie Reid have been doing it forever and have set the bar. Unfortunately, Tony and Jamie were injured yesterday. Max McGuigan, Richie Vas , Joel Pilgrim , Eddie Hudson, Paddy Power, Wayne Cleveland, Chase Hardaker and Taco were paddling, while Josh Ku and Jeremy Willmotte were on the foils.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Dan Wilkinson (@hotndelicious)

So there were enough skis out there ? 

Yeah man there was, which was unreal you know, they always help you out safety-wise. I’m lifeguarding now at Maroubra, so they actually brought two skis for running safety. Which you know it was just so good having those guys there. It was still so hectic, you’re still getting hammered. 

How long were you out there for?

I reckon two hours, I seriously didn’t get a wave. I got blown off the back of one, and copped the worst clean-up set I’ve ever seen out there. Like we were deadset 100 metres further out than the Island I reckon and still got cleaned up.

Was that a new outer reef revealed at the spot? 

I don’t know man; there was an outer bommie breaking like legit a km out to sea, and it was capping so then, you know, the boys on the ski would be like sets are coming and we’d just be like ‘oh fuck’ here we go.

How old’s Matt Howie, it seems like he’s been a stand-out for decades?

Howie is 50. Honestly those three guys pretty much kicked it all off. It’s Howie, Jamie Reed, and Tony Seddon. Tony and Jamie were injured, which we were spewing about because they started the tow and paddling stuff out there.

Gnarliest moment in the session?

Man, one set came through that just broke so much further out. And a few of us got caught on the inside, and we just got obliterated, like steamrolled. I think Lozza Pics got that photo which was just a few of us. 

It was just so different, it was ugly and consistently like, 15 to 20 foot sets. 

***

Big-Wave videographer Tim Bonython, who captured all the action from the land, was the next to call.

Hey Tim, how was it on Monday? 

Tim: Hey Sam. Living in Sydney, if a swell that big is coming, you want to make sure that you are at the right place, you know, so we all scan the charts. I rang a couple of the honchos who surf at Deadman’s, and they said don’t waste any money going out there if you wanted to get a ski. So I thought, well, the next best option, with the way the winds were going to be, there’s nothing more cinematic than Wedding Cake. So Wedding Cake was my selection.

You’re mates with the boardie-wearing bodysurfer (Kalani Lattanzi aka one of the world’s best bodysurfers’)? 

Yeah, I got a message from Kalani, he said mate, I’m in Sydney, what are you doing? Let’s catch up? I actually filmed him for nearly two years when we made the Kalani movie- a body surfing film. And he said he’s staying in a hotel at you wouldn’t believe, Coogee Beach? Unbelievable you’re in a place where there will be the biggest waves ridden tomorrow. I don’t know how big it’s gonna be. It’s gonna be really big. So maybe we could meet first light in the morning. And sure enough, there he was. I rang him on the way and I also spoke to Cory Sains who is one of the best body surfers from Australia. So we all met down on the rocks. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. It was fucking huge. Kalani has no problems going on that kind of stuff.

Kalani’s not scared of anything and he’s the fittest motherfucker I’ve ever met.

How about the foilers? 

Well, Josh and Jeremy maximised it because they could come in from the shoulder and just flow into the deepest section of the wave. They really maximised it there were a few big drops and collisions, you know where the wave would drop out a bit. It comes with consequences and you know, you could see Josh Ku actually wipe out a couple of times and the friggin foil would go ripping over the top of him or just stopped behind, you know, and you can see why it’s dangerous, you know, but they definitely made good use of the wave.

More from our chat with Tim and his highlights from the Wedding Cake Session are coming soon.