I remember years ago thinking that shredding in small waves had reached it's peak, while high performance in big surf was still virtually untapped. Since then I've been astonished by the amount of dynamic maneuvers that continue to evolve in small surf. It seems each new crop of grommets are pushing the barriers that much more. From acrobatic aerials and 360 carves off the white water, to just more speed overall on transitions and down the line floaters. During the same period, the standards for hot surfing in big waves seem to have inched forward. But my feeling is that performance in big wave surfing is going to reach dramatic new levels in the up and coming years.
Part of the reason performance in big surf hasn't evolved that much is simply due to the fact that you're more limited on where you can maneuver on the wave. In small surf, most high performance maneuvers center on the breaking lip of the wave. However, in big surf the lip is generally too powerful to mess with, so maneuvers are performed close to the lip as opposed to on it.
Another factor holding back maneuverability in big surf is the trend of being over gunned. These days it's hard to get a set wave at Sunset Beach and other big wave locations unless one has a lot of foam under them, especially when the other surfers in the line-up are on big guns. It's almost gotten to a point where, "if you can't beat them, join them." Of course, this means most people are out on oversized boards.
Just catching big waves and surviving them is a great rush in itself. However, once you start riding a board over 8' it can work against you if you're trying to maneuver close to the curl. Obviously, the bigger the wave, the more board one needs. But the better a surfer's timing and positioning, the smaller the board needed. In most cases, I find once I make the drop on a big wave the extra size becomes a hindrance.
Being undergunned has always offered more maneuverability and more speed. The smaller board also seems to fit better in tight situations. After witnessing and viewing footage of Laird Hamilton, Derrick Doerner and the tow-in crew, it's ever so obvious that one does not need a huge board once in on a big wave. If you need confirmation of this, check out the April 1996 issue of Surfing magazine, showing Derrick pulling into a giant barrel. He's riding a 7'4"!
Another example are the scenes of Laird Hamilton going warp speed at Jaws on gargantuan faces, and carving lines which would be impossible on a big gun. However, most surfers don't have the luxury of being sling-shot in to an unbroken swell. But it should open some eyes as to how big a board one really needs in big surf and, though some call tow-ins cheating, there is no denying it's opening some new lines of approach to big wave riding.
Surfers who choose to be undergunned in bigger surf will find that the extra speed and maneuverability will put them closer to that fine line of power than they could ever achieve with the bigger guns.
Recently, a lot of young hot surfers have been pushing their abilities into the bigger surf, such as; Ross Williams, Shane Dorian, Kelly Slater, Myles Padaca, Noah Johnson, Peter Mel , Josh Loya and others. With this new talent, the tow-in possibilities, and smaller boards in bigger surf, there's no telling what the future of big wave riding will behold.
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