I barely suspended myself from the hot metal. Each time we hit a bump my arms and legs gave just enough for the truck bed to burn my ass. The tropical sun bore down through the trees as Tyler, Jared and I held tight ignoring the sting as we rolled along the dirt road. 

Tyler and Jared each had single fins. Tyler’s was around 8’, Jared’s around 7’. I had a 6’3” widowmaker I’d shaped. It was inspired by Dave Parmenter’s wide point forward, larger center fin and 2 smaller side bite experiments decades prior. Neal Purchase had proven the design for backside tube-riding applications on the flawless point surf of Australia’s Gold Coast in the 90’s. I’d been infatuated with their ability to hold true lines in more powerful surf and I was excited to try it down here. 

Walking down the shaded path to the break we caught our first glimpse of the mid-day surf. It was low tide and only a handful of surfers were in the water. There had been an earthquake months earlier which raised the reef a good foot and half according to the locals. The knuckles in the lips of the peeling waves showed it. It couldn’t have been more than a foot deep in the impact zone.