Have you heard? She woke up for a winter preview. Pipe. She’s alive and well. And winter is here.
No other wave stirs up so much emotion in all of us. No other wave has so much history, so much draw, such undeniable magnetism that when it’s on, it’s the only wave in the world that really matters. You know this because before the North Shore was graced with its first solid northwest swell of the early, soon-to-be-winter, the surf world was already buzzing.
And oh boy did it deliver. All the usual sights came with the package: a lineup packed with some of the best in the world. Corduroy lines stacked all the way to the horizon. Videographer Derek Gomez was one of many on deck to document the day with drone footage, that ever-familiar front-row seat on the beach, and that glorious bird’s eye lineup shot from up the hill.
This is the place where our gazes will be focused for the next four months. This single barreling wave that breaks over razor-sharp reef, that’s made more legends than any other in the history of our sport and handed out more punishment than any other as well. Occasionally, places like Waimea will turn on and we’ll all get excited. The big wave elite will flock to Maui when the conditions align for a magic day at Pe’ahi. Mavs will go off. Hellmen and women will tow into skyscraper-sized bombs at Nazaré. But none of those moments will quite match the same collective excitement that comes with Pipe waking up for the winter.
Do we seem a bit excited? We’re a bit excited…just a little.
