What's your biggest?

Wow, you guys ride some big waves.

I've barely seen a legitimate 10 foot wave on the east coast. Rideable 10 foot, not victory at sea craziness. But I don't think I use the same scale as the new generations do. No, I'm not on the Hawaiian scale. Just the old way.

According to some I may have ridden 15 foot+ I don't know. I'm so confused aboot surfing these days. People calling 3 foot days, 6 foot because when they dropped in on a sloped face the lip was parallel to their head, "Well, I'm six foot tall"

A 6 foot wave is not 72 inches. When you call something 1-2 foot, it's not actually 12-24 inches. Get a ruler, nobody rides waves 12 inches tall. That's flat. Well, guys in Florida do, I guess. Hey Now !!

And kudos to the guy claiming Gloria. That swell was nuts. Biggest, most groomed waves I've seen in New Jersey besides the winter of 1986-87. I was too green then to surf Gloria. But I was young and dumb enough to hit 86-87. Though, I missed the biggest day, which was good because I would have gone out. I'm no big wave hero. I can't breath.

And now a days, I'm just over paddling out in crazy New Jersey beach break. I've been there, paid my dues and realized it's usually not worth it. Most big swells - and I'm talking solid, not the groomed head high day everybody is calling OH - in New Jersey is nothing but duck dives, drifting and chasing corners around. Oh to have a reef and a channel, but then again, that place would be mobbed, so you can't win. Geez, sometimes I wish I was a New Englander, but they talk funny.

 

Don't have anything surfing-wise to report.
Biggest waves experienced was back in late fall 1982, north of San Francisco while transiting from San Diego to the shipyard in Bremerton, WA, on USS Constellation. This vid is not of that transit nor the ship, but the conditions were very similar. In calm conditions, a aircraft carrier's flight deck is about 75 feet above the waterline. Sea sickness on a carrier is a rarity. Not on this day.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WnyFjCJPwtk

 

32 foot folly beach nor'easter of 69.

 

Been to many places in my entire life and still the biggest wave I ever surfed was in NJ. I surfed 15 foot steamer lane and La Selva beach. Been out in Laniakea when it was 12 foot(NJ scale) but still to this day the scariest and largest top to bottom wave I ever caught was the night when Bill was passing and the charts had the swell 17 feet and building that night and for some reason I went out. I pretty much got stuck out there and I couldn't get in and the sun was going down. Its dark, murky water, only 1 other guy out with me who was insane. Out of fear of being out there in the dark I was forced to catch a wave and I legit think the face could of been around 18 to 20. It wasn't a good wave by any means it actually closed out and I had to straighten out and I got destroyed. This was actually a life threatening situation for myself. it was scary as hell and I never want to put my self in that situation again. I kissed the beach an prayed when I made it on the beach

 

All my bests point to El Salvador for me. Biggest wave that was ripable was there, well over head to close to double over by my standards. It was big but not intense and I actually surfed it without that run for life feeling. Biggest was in NJ in the eighties might have been Gloria, pretty much got smooshed.

 

haven't surfed in anything super big because, well, it takes the right equipment and experience...both of which I don't have.

Biggest I've surfed is probably DOH+ during the el nino winter of 98 on Maui's Ho'okipa beach.

Another contender is a trip to Cabo during which there was a hurricane stalled offshore...and all I had was my 6'6".

 

I sponged a 52 footer at mavericks. And no ***** jet ski. Paddled in.

 

u couldn't sponge up a spill on the floor kid.

id really like to surf ob san fran one day.it is beyond epic and huge.a frames with 25 ft faces breaking a quarter mile out in 45 degree water and 18 ft whites.oh wait that's belmar

 

1 hour paddle outs are the norm. Sometimes guys who got the break wired down can't even make it out.
That place isn't fun. If you like taking a near death beating/drowning then give it a go. You'll spend your entire time paddling for your life and with your lack of experience in those type of conditions you're asking for trouble. If in doubt, don't go out.

Head high at that break will test your limits. Currents are brutal. Give me a a break trying to go out there in 4 times overhead surf when you've never even been there and are just a tourist. White sharks are the least of your concern at that break,

 

I love all the b.s. macho nonsense on here. Amazing how many people have ridden TRUE big waves over 20 feet when there are only a handful of people in the world that have ridden waves that size. Wow! They must all hang out on SI! Belmar must really go off

NJSHRED BABY!

 

Tropical Storm Ernesto at IRI NS in '06. Wasn't too bad getting out, the rips next to the rocks pretty much pulls you out...caught a couple that day...it was all of 15' faces, but I think the ones i caught were around 12'-14'.
Sick day, the way the wind disappeared and left us with the most beautiful, perfect lines I've ever seen here on the East Coast.

 

Hard to tell over the years but a rippable big wave that stands out...

Posted a story of this spot awhile back of getting bumped by a shark on my 30th birthday here. Locals generally didn't surf it because of access and for the reason above. However it was always empty and right down the street from my house so I surfed it semi-regularly. Not the best point break but on an island know for short waves over super shallow reef it was one of the longer ones that could hold DOH. On a Typhoon swell that wrapped around the point (photo day looks pretty direct) it made for a heavy take off along the outer edge of the apex of the reef (going from 200 ft deep to just deep enough that you could duckdive) with fast makeable barrel sections or long carveable walls. The wave significantly bent in towards you extending beyond the rock formation in the water (maybe like a reefy/heavy take off Mizata but in reverse).

From best I can tell this day was DOH shot from a quarter mile away and from 100 ft up on the cliff.

 

10-12ft Willow Creek, Big sur.

 

1.834 Ft at Myrtle Beach.

 

I think there's vid of you pier shotting 23-footers, and only 23-footers, at Belmar back in the day.

 

We'll I've shot about every Pier on the east coast either with a gun or surfboard, I mean my footage is grade a stuff. My next goal is to find bridges to shoot. #gettingpittedaroundpiers

 

serious injury would have been bad news there as there was nothing around back then. Maybe a mile or so paddle to a beach that had road access. Popular weekend beaches but would have likely been empty on a week day afternoon like the day of the photo. The only other option would be re-climbing the 30 meter cliff which was tricky enough healthy with shoes and a board bag.

(photo sucks but that's the rope to climb down)

Every time I surfed there in the evening I had to plan for time to get lost in the jungle (which happened about every time) to make sure I had enough time find the trail head out before dark.