The south swell that lit up Teahupo’o just before the Tahiti Pro was also still quite the event by the time that same energy reached Hawaii. South-facing beaches throughout the Aloha State were put on high surf advisories, making that old “when in doubt, don’t go out” the punctuation on every other news update for several days. It was the largest swell to hit Honolulu in a while, which is exactly why guys like Zeke Lau made a point to stay away from Bowls altogether.
“It’s definitely not small. There’s definitely size. I haven’t seen Town this big in a long time, so I’m stoked,” Lau said in the morning when he started checking the waves. “The key to surfing Town is finding somewhere with the least amount of people.”
Easier said than done around Honolulu. Especially when the whole island’s been put on alert that they’re about to see some of the biggest waves during summer in a long time. Sure enough, Bowls was both big and packed. Not long after stopping by Bowls, Lau watched a passenger boat charging through the lineup near Kewalo Basin Harbor.
“Hooo, this boat is charging through the channel right now! Brah, that thing’s gonna flip,” he yelled in disbelief. “It’s official. Town cannot handle a large swell,” he added later.
Once all the drama of the morning surf check died out, Lau did eventually find a spot to surf with a manageable crowd. His key may be no mystery no matter where you are looking for waves in the world, but he makes it work.
