The Meister, thankful for all that surfing has given him. Photo: WSL
Torrey Meister is a man of many things. Big waves, the Qualifying Series grind, coming back from major injuries, a man of God. Point blank, he is the man. I sat down with the man from the Big Island to get a glimpse into his surfing life.
Where is your home break and how did it shape you as a surfer?
Banyans. It’s a super fun peak with a left and right on the Big Island. Banyans definitely shaped me into the surfer I am. I owe so much to that wave and community that surfs out there! The wave is very shallow (just like most waves on the Big Island) and it has tons of sea urchins all over the reef. So you learn respect and ocean awareness at a young age quick because when you hit the reef in Kona it mangles you. It’s so sharp and alive.
Most of our slabs are right in front of volcanic rocks so growing up with that dynamic also gives you a sense of wanting to send it .When you go to a place like Pipeline, where the reef is much flatter and there’s sand on the beach (not taking anything away from Pipeline, it’s the gnarliest wave ever), even though the waves are bigger you feel a little safer because you’re not gonna get so cut up if you touch the bottom or will get washed up onto lava rocks. Banyans is also one of the most rippable waves on the planet. You can kind learn to do anything on that wave because it provides almost every type of section. Barrels, turns, air sections, lefts and rights. It kind of has everything. Only thing is it doesn’t get big very often but that is honestly the best thing ever as a grom.
It’s the same wave Shane Dorian grew up surfing and he would have a grom contest every year. He would bring guys like Kelly Slater, Rob Machado, the Malloys, that whole Momentum Generation, and pretty much all your favorite surfers. They would have an expression session and we would watch them tear Banyans to pieces. I think it really helped level up the talent pool at our home break and showed you where you had to be if you were gonna make it as a pro surfer. There was no social media back then and most of us were not able to spend much time on the North Shore of Oahu so this was a huge deal for us.
I heard you got your start as a pro at the Santa Cruz Cold Water Classic. What did winning the event do for you career.
I’d been competing professionally without a clothing sponsor for three years when I got the invite for the Cold Water Classic. I had some smaller sponsors that were keeping me afloat but at that point in my career, I was having a rough go on the QS. I told myself if I didn’t qualify that year that it would be time to hang it up and find another job. I’d racked up some credit card debt and as bad as things were going, I didn’t want to stop but I felt super irresponsible to keep going on like that.
Towards the end of that year, 2013, O’Neill came up with a new concept for the Cold Water Classic event. They invited 16 surfers who didn’t have a main clothing sponsor and had them duke it out at Steamer Lane for a one-year deal and a $50-grand contract with O’Neill to do the QS, winner take all! Honestly when I got the invite and read the email I didn’t believe it was real. I thought it was spam or something but I responded right away, “IM IN!” When they decided to call the Cold Water Classic on, I was in Hawaii at the time competing in another event at Sunset Beach. My mom booked me a ticket on her miles, I believe, and next thing you know, I’m on my way to Santa Cruz.
The day they ran the event it was so fun! Perfect Steamer Lane, very rippable and I just remember waking up that day feeling like something really good was gonna happen. I haven’t had it happen a lot in my career but some events you can just do no wrong and that’s how that event ended up going for me. It really was just a blessing from the Lord. I can’t explain it any other way. Full God thing! I ended up winning and to this day it was one of the greatest moments of my life! I’ve been with O’Neill ever since. Going on 13 years now and the way they supported me throughout my career has been a dream come true! They created avenues that would have never happened for me if it wasn’t for them. They supported me throughout my QS campaign, countless surf trips, supported my freesurfing/video parts, and now support me in my big wave career. Everyone at O’Neill has been like family to me and I’m beyond grateful to have been flying their flag around the world for so long now. It really has been a dream scenario for me, honestly I don’t know if I would have been a pro surfer if it wasn’t for O’Neill!
You’re known as a big wave guy, but you started on the QS. Did you want to be on the Dream Tour?
Yes that was definitely my goal! I did the QS for a long time and got close a couple times but didn’t quite get on the Dream Tour. Growing up, all I wanted to do was compete on the Championship Tour and travel the world. That was my goal for so long and I did the QS for a solid 8-10 years off and on. I even moved to California for 10 years so I could surf beachbreaks, travel easier for events, and also be closer to my sponsors. Making the initiative to do that was super important and I was all in on trying to get on tour.
How’d you get into big wave surfing?
Honestly, I had no interest in big wave surfing until my late 20’s. I’d surfed Waimea a couple times, towed and paddled Jaws once and had a blast when I did it, but my main goal was competing since a young age. Then I started watching what Shane, Albee, Billy and that crew were doing at Jaws. It blew my mind! Getting barreled on 30-foot waves looked so crazy, I just couldn’t believe it. I just wanted to paddle out and see what it was like one time when it was doing that.
The year I decided to do that was the El Nino year, 2015-16, and the swell was the day Aaron Gold paddled the biggest wave ever recorded to this day. I remember being out there thinking, “Dang I am in way over my head here!” I had never seen waves do that in my entire life and I couldn’t get myself to catch a wave for like two hours. Then I got caught by a set, went over the falls with my board, somehow survived and was like, “Ok I felt it. Let’s get one now!’ Ended up catching a few waves after that and honestly that session just hooked me and that’s all I wanted to do! I always joke that Jaws caught me first before I ever caught a wave out there. I was so terrified but loved it at the same time. Traveling half way around the world to compete in one-foot waves just didn’t really fulfill me anymore and that’s where it all really started. So Jaws kind of ruined my QS career…..In a good way!
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Do you prefer competition or freesurfing?
That’s a tough one! There are so many things I appreciate about both. I love the feeling of competing and accomplishing personal goals that you have set for yourself. The feeling of accomplishing a goal that you have dreamed of since you were a kid has got to be one of the best feelings in life. Also getting a score in the last few seconds of a heat, having special waves in the jersey, and wins. That kind of stuff doesn’t get old and stays with you for life. Also love how much you have to push yourself to be the very best you can all the time. The level is so high these days, you have to be giving it your all and that brings out the best in yourself. On the other hand, freesurfing is so amazing and fulfilling! Getting the wave of your life or having sessions with nobody but a couple close friends out, getting perfect waves.Those are the kind of moments I live for and stay with you for life. But if I had to pick between the two I would chose freesurfing. That’s where my greatest moments have happened in my life and at the end of the day I would love surfing just as much without a jersey on. Competition is just an icing on the cake of how great surfing really is and Ive been blessed enough to experience both.
What was your gnarliest wipeout experience? (Was it the nominee in 2020 at Jaws?)
Is big wave surfing all balls? Is commitment the real uphill battle? What skills do you need when riding monsters versus smaller, high-performance waves?
No, I don’t think big wave surfing is all balls. It obviously takes a lot of commitment but it takes even more skill and reading waves properly. Surfing changes in that way, when your life is on the line compared to high-performance waves. Positioning yourself correctly is key. Then you have to turn off everything in your mind that’s telling you not to catch that wave and commit. Lastly, you have to read the wave right and have the skills to ride the wave properly. I feel like the best big wave paddle surfers rip in high-performance waves as well. Being well rounded in all surf carries over to big wave surfing. The best guys can do it all.
What do injuries and time away from the water teach you about yourself?
Injuries are the worst and the best thing ever! Depending on your attitude and obviously the severity of the injury. My injuries have taught me so much about myself and the gratitude you have when you get to surf again is indescribable. When surfing becomes a career, it’s just like anything, it also becomes a job, even though you love it. It’s impossible not to get caught up in the losses, the wins, the traveling, all the time spent away from home and your loved ones. It’s absolutely the best job in the entire world but you can get burnt out sometimes and that makes you lose gratitude. Especially when you try your absolute hardest and things are not going your way.
This is where sustaining injuries really brings you back to the love of the sport and appreciating everything about it, good or bad. It also motivates you like crazy to get stronger in any way you can while you’re out of the water. Mentally, psychically, and they help you really get to know yourself. I think in the long run injuries only make you stronger as a human being and I’m thankful for all the ones I’ve had. As much as they sucked when they first happened, they have helped mold me into the person I am today.
