Almost a week after the first fore-runners of the massive South Pacific swell that stole the spotlight (and world champ) from Jeffrey's Bay, the first emissions of light and sound from an epic 72 hours are now surfacing. While Kelly Slater was obviously the most notable name in the lineup, there were some seriously demented individuals floating around hunting for bombs. The reef at Cloudbreak is isolated a mile off the nearest dry sand, and that distance only makes the wave more powerful and dangerous. It's easy to get lost out there, especially during a swell of this size. Everyone, including Slater, was claiming this was the biggest and cleanest they'd ever seen Tavarua.

Kohl Christensen put his North Shore outer reef paddle-knowlege to good use in the maxing conditions, snagging some of the bigger waves ever paddled into at Cloudbreak. Australian Ryan Hipwood was another standout of the day, getting what he's claiming to be the barrel of his life. The thing is scary big. Video below. Also out ruling the lineup were Nate Fletcher, Mark Healey, and Bruce Irons.







Mark Healy at Cloudbreak from surfreportes on Vimeo.