It was a “dark, evil wave” that almost killed him, but for Australian surfer Kerby Brown, riding this 12m (40ft) monster in his own backyard was one of the highlights of his surfing career.
The 25-year-old surfed the enormous break at an outdoor reef in the Southern Ocean “somewhere between Margaret River and South Australia” on the southwest coast of Western Australia (WA) last August.
Local surfers discovered the break – the exact location of which they want to keep secret – after deep-sea fisherman alerted them to the amazing waves they had seen about 15km (9 miles) off the coast.
Mr Brown and his entourage, including his brother Courtney, decided to try and ride the dangerous break - which is only suitable to surf about four or five times a year because of the rough conditions - just before the sunset one day when the perfect wave presented itself.
“We sat out there and waited and watched for a long time, and then about an hour before dark the water dropped so we just went for it,” Mr Brown, who comes from Kalbarri, north of Perth in WA, told Times Online.
“It was not like any other wave I’ve seen, it was a real evil wave, the hardest wave I’ve ever had to surf.
“It all happened so quickly though I didn’t even realise what was happening, I just knew it was a big, powerful chuck of ocean, it was just amazing.”
Despite the incredible death-defying ride on what is believed to be one of the biggest waves surfed in Australia this year, Mr Brown said the conditions at the spot, about 40 minutes ride by jet ski offshore, were not at all pleasant.
“It breaks so far out, right in the middle of the ocean, the deepest water you can get,” he said. “It’s really cold and choppy and rough, and the water is really black out there, it’s very creepy and eerie to be out there.”
And not everything went swimmingly. Mr Brown, who was surfing less than a foot above a rock shelf, was knocked off his board and received an enormous beating as the water crashed down onto him.
He said he got pulled so far underwater he feared he would drown, but miraculously paddled away with only torn shoulder muscles.
“I went straight over the lip and did a few somersaults, and my arm felt like it got ripped out of the socket,” he said.
“My leggie [leg rope] snapped and I got pushed super deep, when I opened my eyes under the water and couldn’t see the surface, I was so deep down.
“But the time I got to the top I was completely out of breath and was really struggling, but luckily my brother was right there when I popped up, and he pulled me up and put me onto the jet ski.”
Courtney Brown said he was scared as he watched his brother go under.
“All the water was draining off the reef and I couldn’t even see him or the bottom of the wave,” he said. “I was scared for him … then he just popped up and we were so stoked.”
The amazing moment was captured by photographer Andrew Buckley, and has been entered into a competition of impressive surfing moments for the Oakley Surfing Life Big Wave Awards.
The annual awards encourage fearless surfers to capture the moment they face the biggest waves in Australasia.
Mr Brown said Australia has some of the best locations for the increasingly popular daredevil pastime of big wave surfing – where surfers have to be towed out to the enormous breaks on jet skis.
Big wave surfing is becoming increasingly popular and surfers are beginning to discover previously unknown locations because of the accessibility provided by jet skis.
The most popular big wave locations are in Hawaii, Mexico, Tahiti and South Africa.
There are also some recently discovered big waves in Britain and Ireland, including Newquay in Cornwall and Aileens in Western Ireland.
However chasing the big waves around the world gets too expensive, Mr Brown said, so he prefers to find the hidden treasures in his own backyard.
“We’ve got so many waves here in Australia, so I’m happy to stay here,” Mr Brown said. “I’m just lucky that I live somewhere that’s perfect for it.”
