Raddest SUP Drop Ever?

[FeralInBaja]

Kai Lenny's second wave, starting at 2:11. I'm still new kid on the block (6 mos. SUP'ing tomorrow) but this looks like the craziest drop/recovery I've seen.
Feral
http://www.surfermag.com/videos/jaws-strikes-again/#9BhgziCABZJvfyzI.97

[Tom]

That is unbelievable. The videos that are coming out of Hawaii this year, especially Jaws, are unbelievable. (or did I just say that?) After seeing rides like that, it almost looks like all other big wave rides are not even in that league. 

[PDLSFR]

Great waves outa the islands and west coast this winter for sure!!

[hbsteve]

How do the safety crews get paid for the work they do?

[PonoBill]

Definitely one hell of a January. I'm officially no longer bitching about not having surf. I haven't been to Peahi at all this year to watch the mayhem. It's been too much fun in the water. The thing that's not so obvious in these Jaws videos is how wicked mean and nasty the waves have been this year. It doesn't translate to height, it comes out as punch, and man do they hit. Everyone has been talking about it. Even mushy spots like Kanaha, the waves the smack you down really hand out a beating. Lots of energy, and it's maybe not just period.

[SuppaTime]

How do the safety crews get paid for the work they do?

Maybe there is some pay for the pro teams support but I think there is a lot of local (friends, not official) support out there. But everyone pitches in when someone goes down and needs help.

My neighbor has a boat and was taking a pro photographer out to Pe'ahi yesterday and asked if I wanted to come along so I went. It is a freaking zoo out there - boats, jet skis, surfers and SUP'ers padding between all this traffic and a huge surge from the waves constantly making near collisions. Boats with photographers are all jockeying for best angles and shots, spinning props just inches away from people paddling. Yikes.

A couple of locals on skis were directing traffic and trying to keep things under control but there is nobody really in charge. A local kid who had beach launched (no easy feat at Pe'ahi) took a really nasty wipe-out and a ski pulled him out of the soup and just dumped him in the channel next to us. He was really shook up and asked us if he could rest in our boat. He got in and was coughing up blood. After a bit he jumped back in the water and paddled back out. Nutty.

[headmount]

How do the safety crews get paid for the work they do?

 But everyone pitches in when someone goes down and needs help.

Not always.  This last swell one of the guys that hires out his jetski and himself as a driver for a photographer, broke down just outside the lineup at full size "jaws".  It was near the end of the day and his passenger hailed another ride back to Kahului harbor.  He, of course stayed with his ski and waited for a tow.  But the burn out factor is huge out there and at the end of the day full of high pumping adrenaline, everyone is anxious to get back to the barn and start eating, drinking and spinning tall tales.  So almost everyone blasted by him, ignoring his pleas for a tow and disregarding whatever 'maritime law of the sea' there is. 

 He was pretty freaked sitting out there in a swell filled sea. Finally another ski driver gave him a tow.  The guy who helped him was almost out of fuel but they made it back to the boat ramp after dark.  Now the guy that broke down was pretty pissed at being ignored but the attitude I heard from other ski guys was this.  Owning and operating a ski out at Peahi is 90% maintenance and 10% operation.  Skis aren't a complicated machine and well maintained they are just about 100%.  Most of the teams out there go with at least two skis and a supply boat.  Kai has an army out there backing him up.  Yes it's expensive to do that and the guys that are spending that kind of coin aren't so sympathetic to some shoe string guy that doesn't maintain his ski.  "If you don't have it together don't go out there, it's too crowded already."  And it really is. Why enable people?  So I thought this was a great human nature tale that had to do with covering peoples bad choices.

[PonoBill]

Twofer

[eastbound]

Ya F E R A L

that drop was amazing--

hope you are well and getting some good goods down there

[stoneaxe]

He actually had a bigger drop there in 2015 or maybe 2014....seemed like he floated forever. Can't find the vid of it unfortunately.

I don't know the background of whether FF maintains his gear well or not but leaving someone out there seems like a shitty thing to do. I don't care if I hated the guy. I wouldn't leave him there in that situation.

[JimK]

I second Stoney

As a professional seaman that is an ABSOLUTE NO NO.
If these guys are getting paid they are obliged
You can give this guy all the SHIT in the world back in the harbor but unless you are not sure you can save yourself (vessel/crew) You are obliged to render assistance

Leaving someone(no matter how incompetent) to the mercy of the sea is ABSOLUTELY WRONG by ALL those who did it for whatever LAME reasons they give/gave

JimK