Sunday, January 31, 2021

Big January: The craziest month of Big Wave surfing ever?


Pe'ahi.  Jaws.  Whatever you call it, January 2021 had some of the biggest swells ever.  Here's great edit of the tow-in surfing there from a couple weeks ago.

As most of the country, and much of the world, was focusing on the lunatics and utter insanity happening in Washington D.C., on the East Coast of the U.S. in January 2021, something else was happening on the West Coast.  In many ways it's just as dramatic.  It's a month that will be long remembered... for some of the best big wave surfing ever. 

Moments happen.  They aren't orchestrated or coerced.  The best moments, the things that we remember decades later, just happen.  Surfers (and all action sports people and good artists), know this.  

So while people found reasons to hate each other on the East Coast, a series of historic swells were bringing people together on the West Coast of the U.S., Hawaii, and Mexico.  I'm not a surfer, but I spent 21 years of my life living with and around surfers, immersed in surf culture.  Watching surfing is super inspiring to me.  Here are some of the best edits of the massive swells of January 2021. There are many more videos on YouTube to be found of surfing from January 2021.

Maverick's January 10th, 2021 (Near Half Moon Bay, a short drive from San Francisco, CA) 

Maverick's January 18th, 2021

Todos Santos, January 11th, 2021 (Southern part of Baja California in Mexico, near Cabo San Lucas)

 Jaws/ Pe'ahi January 17th, 2021- Paddle in session (Maui, Hawaii)

Big Wednesday trailer- the first Hollywood movie hardcore surfers actually liked (1978)

Not huge, but still great swells-

San Diego, January 9th, 2021

Black's Beach, January 11th, 2021  Near La Jolla, CA

Lower Trestles, January 4th 2021 (Kelly Slater, John John Florence, Joel Parkinson- San Clemente, CA

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