FITNESS WARRIOR Ian Walsh 24 / DISCOVER LIFE / Summer 2019 Fitness Warrior.indd 24 5/22/2019 9:19:07 AM FEELING GOOD RidingRiding mountainsmountains OF movingmoving OF waterwater Discover the euphoria of big-wave surfing. BY CHRISTINE YU Bianca Valenti, paddling out in the early losing my sense of hearing because everything morning light in Puerto Escondido, Mexico, last is so switched on. You’re reacting and adapting year, hoped to score one really special wave. But to things so fast,” says Ian Walsh, 36, a pro surfer the California-based pro big-wave surfer was from Hawaii ( ian.walsh). not quite sure how giant the waves would be. Riding the big surf as a pro is not a laid- When a peak popped up, Valenti ( bianca back day at the beach. Not only do you need valenti), 31, was in the perfect spot. She spun to be a high-level athlete to paddle out into around, started paddling hard and slid into the the world’s biggest waves, it takes years of wave. Valenti wanted to be barreled—in which experience to stay poised and calm in the most a surfer rides under the curling lip of a wave critical conditions. inside a tunnel of water—and when she looked “I chase big waves around the planet. In order up, she realized that the wave was gigantic, esti- for those days to go well, a lot of preparation mated to be in the 40- to 50-foot range. “It was a happens beforehand in the gym, on the bike, in buttery smooth ride the whole time,” she says. the pool and surfing in a variety of conditions,” Surfing big waves is when Valenti feels most says Walsh. It takes mental conditioning, too. alive. She is among the elite surfers who chase the massive swells that make you feel like you Prepping for Big Swells are being powered by a Mack truck. “The first thing we focus on is confidence,” says Big wave surfing can feel euphoric. “In all Samantha Campbell, founder of Deep Relief // other aspects of my life, I have 50 different things Peak Performance (deep2peak.com), a training going on at once. Surfing those waves, my focus facility in Maui where athletes like Walsh and Photo by Zak Noyle is so narrowed and heightened that I end up another pro surfer, Paige Alms ( paigealms), Summer 2019 / DISCOVER LIFE / 25 Fitness Warrior.indd 25 5/23/2019 2:30:09 PM FITNESS WARRIOR 31, train. “Being mentally prepared is having confidence in your body and equipment, and allows you to be com- mitted [in the water]; that allows you to be safer. If you’re hesitant because you don’t feel ready, that can be detri- mental,” Alms says. For example, Walsh has an exten- sive training program to prep for the Bianca Valenti big-wave season in which each day is Photo by Katherine Zacarian programmed for a specific purpose. surfing and to reduce the risk of off his board. (Campbell loves Some of Walsh’s days are dedicated injury. Others are devoted to devel- moves such as a Hex-bar deadlift to activation and mobility—turning oping the strength, power, speed and and combining box jumps with on all his muscles to make sure they’re agility needed to paddle and drop into throwing a medicine ball laterally firing properly—in an effort to waves and stay low during the ride, against a wall.) Walsh also builds his build a nimble body that can absorb and to resist external forces, such as cardio engine with cycling, which the impact that comes with wind and chop, that try to force him he appreciates for its low impact and The 6 Best Big-Wave in the 90- to 100-foot range, which, if Breaks Worldwide certified, could take the title. Mavericks, California: Local Jeff Clark famously surfed Mavericks for 15 years before the spot was discovered by Teahupo’o, Tahiti: The swell marches everyone else; many people thought Waimea Bay, Hawaii: You can’t talk forward and detonates on the shallow that big waves didn’t exist in California, about big-wave surfing without men- reef, producing thick, picture-perfect, but this one proved them wrong. Heavy tioning Waimea Bay on the north shore heavy left-hand barrels. (The shallow and featuring a fast right hand, it breaks of Oahu. It has set the standard for the reef also means it doles out one of about a mile off-shore from Half Moon sport and is home to The Eddie Aikau the gnarliest wipe-outs, too.) It’s been Bay in Northern California’s chilly (and Big Wave Invitational (theeddieaikau. called the heaviest wave in the world sharky) waters. The steep drop (where com), one of the most prestigious and is on many surfers’ bucket lists. you descend into the wave), thick lip surf contests held in honor of Aikau, a and rocky shore all get your adrenaline legendary Hawaiian waterman. Waves pumping. consistently reach 20+ feet and up to 60 feet. Pe’ahi, Hawaii: Aka “Jaws”; this pris- tine, heavy wave lies off the north shore of Maui and is the home break Praia do Norte, Nazaré, Portugal: of Ian Walsh and Paige Alms. “The The wave at Nazaré in Portugal is big. Shipstern Bluff, Australia: This isolated shape, speed, size and consistency of Guinness World Record big. Rodrigo spot in Tasmania definitely isn’t for the what the wave offers left and right is Koxa, current male world record holder, faint of heart. Some have described the unique,” says Walsh. When the condi- scored an 80-foot wave in November thick slab wave as a powerful mutant, tions are right, the best surfers in the 2017 and Maya Gabeira holds the female thanks to the multiple steps that form world flock to this spot—where waves record for a 68-foot bomb in January in the face of the wave. And it looks like can reach heights of 60 feet. 2018. In December 2018, Tom Butler of the ocean is folding over on itself before England surfed a wave estimated to be crashing into a pile of boulders. 26 / DISCOVER LIFE / Summer 2019 Fitness Warrior.indd 26 5/24/2019 10:54:47 AM FEELING Staying Safe While Surfing Big Waves GOOD Following the tragic death of big-wave surfer Sion Milosky at Mavericks in 2011, Breathing and Recovering a small group of surfers gathered on the North Shore of Oahu to address the sport’s lack of risk management and safety protocols. From that initial meeting, A key skill for big-wave surfers is the group formed the Big Wave Risk Assessment Group (BWRAG, bwrag.com)… holding one’s breath, says Campbell. and the big-wave safety movement was born. They practice this maneuver for lon- “Surfing is the easy part. Surviving is the hard part,” says Brian Keaulana, ger and longer periods of time in BWRAG chief master instructor. If a surfer goes down, there’s a small window of order to stay calm and prepare for time—minutes—to stabilize them and start performing CPR. And when you’re long hold-downs—and that tortur- miles off shore with no lifeguards or medical facilities nearby, a critical situation ous feeling of struggling for air. Surf- can quickly turn life-threatening. ers start by working on static breath- BWRAG training is designed to minimize potential hazards and maximize holds—lying down on the floor and surfers’ own safety and the safety of those with whom they share the lineup, the holding their breath under the super- area where most of the waves are starting to break and where most surfers are vision of a trained instructor—and positioned. BWRAG hosts comprehensive training summits on Oahu as well as move on to dynamic sessions where in Australia, California, Europe and Brazil. In addition to information on ocean they incorporate breath-holds into risk management, surfers learn skills like first-responder training and rescues, rock running or HIIT (high- surf spot analysis, CPR/AED training and apnea or breath-hold training, and go intensity interval training) sessions through case analyses. to mimic what it feels like to Whether you’re riding big waves or small, rolling peelers, this sport can be hold your breath after falling from a dangerous, so all surfers would benefit from learning the basics of ocean safety. giant wave. Study your break. “Understand the reef, bottom [what’s on the sea floor] and Finally, recovery is a key piece of the depth [of the water], and you pretty much understand why the wave is breaking training puzzle. “The recovery days that way,” says Keaulana. Look at your environment before paddling out and are just as important as the days you’re identify potential hazards. Take a first aid and CPR class and practice your skills. pushing hard,” says Alms. Whether “The art of safety and life-saving is like a martial art. You have to practice. it’s a complete day of rest or active Keep training,” urges Keaulana. recovery, it’s a chance for the brain and body to relax and consolidate the gains achieved in the gym. high effectiveness, along with high- position in space. Being able to know “Big waves are where I feel the most altitude hiking and running. where you are means that “if you’re alive and in tune with Mother Nature. Stability and balance work are air-dropping into a wave, you don’t It’s something I love to do,” says Alms. other important training components need to look to see where your feet “Knowing what I can do in the gym too: They develop the neural path- are in relation to the board and wave.