2019-12-11 Pipeline Masters

If you live on Oahu, you owe it to yourself to get to the North Shore at least once every winter, because that’s when the big waves roll in. And if you like to watch some surfing, the best place to watch is at the famed Banzai Pipeline. The waves were supposed to be pumping at a perfect 10-15 feet today, so I loaded up my bike in the car and pulled out of the driveway a little after 0600, well before sunrise. It was day two of the Billabong Pipeline Masters, the third and final leg of the Triple Crown.

Vans Triple Crown of Surfing is a Hawaiian specialty series of professional surfing events that take place on the North Shore of Oahu – a coastline famous in the surfing world for its powerful winter swells that the can reach 40 feet or more in height. The three events comprising the Triple Crown are:

-The Hawaiian Pro at Haleiwa Ali’i Beach Park (Nov. 12 – Nov. 24)

– The World Cup of Surfing at Sunset Beach (Nov. 25 – Dec. 6)

– The Pipeline Masters at Ehukai Beach Park (home of the Banzai Pipeline) (Dec. 8 – Dec. 20)

The Pipeline Masters is the best. The waves break close to shore, so viewing is up close and personal. The waves break in barreling tubes which you can surf right through. When conditions are right, surfers paddle to the top of a wave, drop down the steep face and tuck in to find the groove as the breaking wave forms a rolling barrel. You lose sight of the surfer in the barrel, and if it all goes right, the surfer rides the length of the barrel and is spit out on the far side. It’s pure drama as you lose sight of the surfer, watch the break of the wave and wonder if he can hang on through the tube. Sometimes the wave won’t cooperate and leaves no room for escape. Sometimes the barrel is so big a surfer can stand tall almost the whole length. More often the surfer has to squat down low and lean hard, hanging on to a shrinking tube before bursting out the far side and then standing tall in triumph. No two waves are the same. Not two surfers are the same. You’re never quite sure how it’s going to play out. But I can tell you, when Kelly Slater scored a perfect ten on a back-door wave this day, he was lost in the barrel forever, driving unseen through a second and then a third section of the wave. When he finally found a hole to escape, and punched out into the sunlight, the crowd on the shore exploded with excitement. It was an electric moment.

web1_Medina_G_1DX21347_Pipe19_Sloane — Two-time world champion Gabriel Medina of Brazil cruising through a tube (no, I didn’t take this picture)

Here’s what it looked like at 0655 when I arrived at Pipeline. Competition starts at 0800, but plenty of surfing to watch now, as 30-40 recreational surfers vie for the famed waves.

Here’s what it looked like shortly after 0800, when competition started.

The beauty of Pipeline, for guys like me who don’t like hanging around in the sun too much, is you can sit comfortably in morning shade and watch the action. The sun rises at your back and lights up the breaking waves. Pretty sweet!

Past Winners (note that 47-year-old Kelly Slater, previously mentioned, is an 11-time World Surfing Champion, and a 7-time winner here at the Pipe)

Here’s what it looks like in the park above the beach

991 — I parked my car at Shark’s Cove, about a mile from Pipeline, and biked in from there. The parking is a little more secure there, and there is a cool bike path to cruise, which is fun.

Bike path. I took these pics on the ride back to the car, at around 10:00.

Here’s a pic of the beach next door to Pipeline. No, not a good day for casual swimming. Rip tides are killa, brah.

This bike path even offers an air pump and tools to fix a flat tire. Nice!

Sunrise cruise to the North Shore, short bike ride to the Bonzai Pipeline, watch the best surfers in the world surf the world’s most iconic break, then back home by 11:00 for a sandwich……and to watch the rest of the Pipeline competition on TV. Not a bad morning.

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Published by Waipahu Bob