A Query-Biggest Wave Ridden on the EC

Kek

 

The biggest day I ever witnessed was Black Friday 2012 swell at Lighthouse. The whole week the waves were huge. Surfed Frisco Pier one day that week absolutely bombing and flawless while Brett Barley and Fisher Heaverly did tow ins around us. Witnessed Fisher get the best tube ride I've ever seen in person that day. After 5 days of bombing surf on the south side the low tracked north a bit and the winds clocked around enough that Lighthouse cleaned up. That was the first time in my life, at age 43, that I felt that I was getting too old and slow for the waves around me. I've surfed a lot of big waves but nothing like this day. It was as square as it gets and breaking in very shallow water on the bar. Having it be all backside for me didn't help either. After a brief paddle out I rode a small wave in and kissed the sand thankful to have not gotten hurt. Shortly after a local came in with a badly broken leg which told me I made the right call going in. Before heading back to the south side for some more manageable waves I grabbed my point and shoot and grabbed this one picture. This picture does not begin to show how big and heavy it was that day. This was a small in between manageable wave that the guys paddling were catching. The bombs (way bigger than this) were being ridden by guys being whipped in by Brett's ski and by just a couple of pros who were paddling.

Matt Lusk got a couple of pictures published on Surfline and elsewhere from that day that did a better job of showing the size. One picture in particular I remember from that day compared favorably with a big day at Cloudbreak in Fiji except for the water color and wetsuits.

 

A channel view from the day I mentioned above:

 

Dear PK

Are you by chance friends with a certain young lady, I believe her name is Debbie Downer?

Just curious

Your pal
Me Belmar

 

May not be the biggest, but the size and perfection is the best I've seen in FL.

 

CJ I am loving that photo you took. The gauzy colors are wonderful. Looks like a dream.

 

Hey Kyle- awesome pic! Thanks for sharing!

 

Is that your mom's name? You wanna have a bench off?

 

Halloween Swell '92 Reef Road was 30 foot faces by noon, we all got out of the water before then when it was TOH plus, no one paddled in once it got over 24 foot faces (only 12 foot Hawaiian, boyz - No one had a 10' Brewer). It was before tow ins. No one dared try Pumphouse. I watched wave after perfect wave break unridden off the end of the south jetty, going right into the inlet, never seen that before or since, boulders along the jetty were being displaced, rats scurrying for shelter, guys were surfing inside the inlet on 8- 10 foot randoms.

 

Mr. B can bench you and your momma twenty times before you could do three pushups.

 

Untrue. I don't have a mom.

 

I surfed sandy at the gun mounts at lookout. Might have been 12-15 footers. Surfed one wave and left. Was way too big fer me. Didnt get any pictures though. The little skiff we took was struggling against the current.

 

Just came across this old picture of Scotty Duerr at Manesquan inlet in 1985. Hurricane Gloria. Somewhere I have the magazine this picture ran in.

 

Wow CJ that's awesome.... you sure it isn't in Belmar (home of the biggest waves on the EC)??

Seriously nice shot

 

Raven Lundy in OCMD during Sandy was solid.

Photo: Phil Hudson

 

Whoa...that IS a biggy!!!

 

It was the biggest I have ever seen anyone surf around here. It was sketchy enough with just the waves, but there were pieces of decks, pilings, etc all in the inside section & floating around. Like 10' sections of peoples decks.

 

Watch around 0:45
Hurricane Bill up in Maine
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SVs--h90agM

 

I almost stated in my prior post that the water looks "dirty", i.e., all stirred up, but I never even considered the debris would be there. That is a big wave for a beachbreak.