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The biggest swell in 5 years was on its way to Peru and it was just still in the time window to run the Invitational PICO ALTO Big wave contest. The only issue with the swell was that there was a lot of wind with it which made it a tricky call for the organisers to know whether it would be big surfable waves or just huge, windy & surfable. The contest organisers had a team call with all of the competitors and it came down to a vote whether or not to run the contest. The majority voted Yes so we were on. The tricky thing with running big wave contests is you can’t predict the swell so you need to have a contest window over multiple months then call the event on when the swell arrives. It can be very tricky with work & commitments but when these events are called on you need to basically stop what you are doing and go. With the event being called on 4 days before I booked a flight from Newcastle - Paris - Lima, Peru for the next day and started packing up my equipment as quickly as possible. I jumped on a plane with not much idea of how it would play out but that what makes a good adventure.
When I arrived in Peru unfortunately my boards didn’t arrive and was told they would not make it until the next day which was annoying but it often happens when travelling with boards- Especially big wave boards. The next day my board arrived and I collected it from the airport. Phew!
The swell was due to arrive on the Saturday and build through to the Sunday where it would be at its peak. The night before the contest we had a dinner / meeting with all of the organisers and competitors which was great to meet lots of new friendly crew. The plan for the following day was to start with the opening ceremony in which they had a local shaman from Cusco near Macchu Picchu to bless the ceremony. It was a very special ceremony. I felt honoured to be there. The main vibe was to thank Pachamama for the waves and to make sure that everyone came home safely having caught some epic waves, no matter who won or lost in the contest. That’s what I like about big wave events, they have more of a community feel about them. After the ceremony we waited for the waves but the swell arrived too late that day so the organisers decided to run the whole event on the Sunday starting early Sunday morning.
The swell was due to arrive on the Saturday and build through to the Sunday where it would be at its peak. The night before the contest we had a dinner / meeting with all of the organisers and competitors which was great to meet lots of new friendly crew. The plan for the following day was to start with the opening ceremony in which they had a local shaman from Cusco near Macchu Picchu to bless the ceremony. It was a very special ceremony. I felt honoured to be there. The main vibe was to thank Pachamama for the waves and to make sure that everyone came home safely having caught some epic waves, no matter who won or lost in the contest. That’s what I like about big wave events, they have more of a community feel about them. After the ceremony we waited for the waves but the swell arrived too late that day so the organisers decided to run the whole event on the Sunday starting early Sunday morning.
I arrived at the comp site early on Sunday morning and the swell was huge but with lots of wind, chop & bumps. Pico Alto is also 1km out to sea which adds to the excitement… or fear haha. However it was surfable and the contest was called on. When heading down to the beach to collect my rash vest I was chatting to guys from the heat before telling me how crazy it was out there. Lots of these guys were professional big wave surfers which made me nervous. When getting out there I remember thinking Jesus Christ it’s crazy out here. There were 30/40 foot clean up sets rolling through taking out the whole line up, people getting smashed left right and centre but the odd good ride in-between. I haven’t done that much big wave paddle surfing for a while so it wasn’t exactly a gentle ease in haha. Anyhow the heat started and to be honest It felt a little more like survival than a big wave contest. My first wave wasn’t too good but it helped me warm up. We were around half way through the heat and I knew before I went out that I would be disappointed if I didn’t go on a set wave. A big set came through, I let the first one pass and turned and went on the second one and got a pretty nice wave. They were just 40 minute heats so it flew by but I was happy two wave, one of which was a good one. I was working on getting another but couldn’t quite find the wave and took a few waves on the head in the carnage.
The heat finished and the jet skis brought us back to the beach. It was a nice feeling to touch the sand and be back on land. It most scenarios I love surfing big waves but in those conditions it just felt a little gnarly but it was a good challenge and I would never not give it a crack in a contest. Unfortunately my good wave (on the header above) got missed by the judges. With the break being so far out and the conditions being so challenging it was difficult for the guys in the tower. They were very helpful and tried checking through the live stream to see if they had it but they didn’t get it so there wasn’t too much they could do. These things happen and for me the contest was more about the experience and mission rather than the result of the contest itself. To be honest I was quite happy not to have to surf again In those conditions. I love surfing big waves but in good conditions. Everybody in Peru from the locals, contest organisers and competitors were very helpful and friendly which made the trip much more enjoyable.
The next day the waves were slightly smaller and I had a great surf with some of the guys from the contest. We all got some fun waves and ended the swell on a high. I had one more day of the trip left so we went to check out Pachacamac which is an archaelogical site from pre Inca and Inca civilisations which back to BC which was cool. I guess you’re probably wondering why we surf big waves with all of the consequences, effort and costs!? For me it’s the adventure, the adrenaline, the unknown & the cool people you meet along the way. Anyway I’m writing this from the airport and my flight leaves soon so have to go.
