VIA – IRISH TIMES
Hawaiian surfs world record wave
irishtimes.com – Last Updated: Wednesday, November 9, 2011, 14:54
Hawaiian Garrett McNamara surfs a 90-foot wave off the coast of Portugal. Photograph: ZON North Canyon Show
KILIAN DOYLE
Hawaiian hellman Garrett McNamara has cheated death to ride what is being billed as the largest wave ever surfed.
The big wave rider caught the huge 30m (90 feet) monster earlier this month off the coast of Portugal at Nazaré.
McNamara was tow-in surfing at Praia do Norte with Northern Irish man Al Mennie and English surfer Andrew Cotton when he caught the giant wave.
“Everything was perfect, the weather, the waves. Cotty and I surfed two big waves of about 60 feet and then, when Garrett was ready, came a canyon wave of over 90 feet,” said Mennie.
“The jet ski was the best place to see him riding the biggest wave I’ve ever seen. It was amazing. Most people would be scared, but Garrett was controlling everything in the critical part of the wave. It was an inspiring ride by an inspiring surfer.”
Praia do Norte is home to one of the only deep water canyons runs all the way to shore in Europe. It funnels large swells from the Atlantic Ocean and, under the right conditions, can create massive waves that dwarf those along the rest of the Portuguese coast.
McNamara has been working with the Portuguese Hydrographic Institute as part of the ZON North Canyon Project to understand how the waves reach such record-breaking heights at this particular point.
“As I rode this wave…”
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