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Photographer Tom Carey and surfer Imaikalani deVault found this fresh swell too north for their go-to Maui setup, Honolua Bay. Luckily, this substitute nook offered brief opportunities for single-hit slams, and was rich in mood, lighting, and background. Photo by Tom Carey.All too rare South Pacific cyclones send groundswell down the entire length of New Zealand’s East Coast, resulting in once-in-five-year sessions at secluded points such as this. The lone soldier shown relishing the conditions is Iain “Ratso” Buchanan, a Kiwi icon. Photo by Cory Scott.Colin Moran, South Bay, L.A. “It’s such a powerful little wave throwing over manicured sandbars,” says shooter Tom Carey. “Without worrying about getting sucked over onto reef, you can really work on your angles.”Mikey Wright breaks free from the particle field at Backdoor. Photo by Laserwolf.No option left unexplored: Julian Wilson’s trusty Benz diesel, loaded for the day. Photo by Steve Baccon.Subterranean homesick gray: Rob Kelly considers the consequences of a Cape May go-out. Photo by Rick Adams. Noa Deane fearlessly packs the wave of the day at maxing Backdoor. Guts-up performances like this quickly quiet those who might pigeonhole the young Tweed Heads air cadet. Photo by Tom Carey.Seveteen-year-old Zack Flores from Leucadia, California, at Rocky Point on a hand-shaped single-fin. “I flew him over to Hawaii the day after Christmas to shoot,” says the photographer. “The kid blew my mind. There’s so much variety and flavor in his surfing.” Photo by Laserwolf.Derrick Disney in New South Wales, as viewed from Jay Nelson’s Toyota Hilux camper. Photo by Corban Campbell.Winter high-pressure period in the U.K.—cold enough to freeze saltwater. Photo by Al Mackinnon.Mike Gleason at an undisclosed point break in Maine, during Winter Storm Pax. The session was a massive battle with extremely stiff offshore winds and freezing air. (That’s snow in the foreground.) Gleason committed, as always, and stuck the drop. Photo by Brian Nevins.Carissa Moore’s brake-stomping snap—a study in instrument control at Honolua Bay. Photo by Damien Poullenot.Long Island, New York. Photo by Matt Clark.Commercial diver Shanan Worrall knew precisely where to rock up for Cyclone Marcus. Rabbits, Western Australia, 2018. Photo by Scott Bauer.Buxton, North Carolina, as seen from the iconic Cape Hatteras Motel. Photo by Daniel Pullen.The east coast of Tasmania during a 100-year storm event. Photographer Andrew Chisholm relates: “We were coming back from a commercial abalone trip and the run into port was wild. We nearly rolled our boat a couple of times. There would’ve been no one there to find us in those conditions.”“I shot this from the top of a mountain, looking into a bay on the northwest coast of Tasmania,” says Nick Green. “It looked like the veins of the sea.”A distillation of Indo in a single frame. Cam Richards, Super Suck, Sumbawa. Photo by Jeremiah Klein.No jock required: Ryan Burch might be the loosest and least-fettered surfer on a sponsor’s payroll. Gifted on self-made vessels from 4′ to 14′ in length, his shapes and lines are marked by an open mind and a ethos based on pure fun. San Onofre, 2017. Photo by Tom Carey.On a coastline bedecked with right points, Derrick Disney found this tantalizing Moroccan long shot just a short drive from Taghazout. Photo by Woody Gooch.
[Feature image: Newport Point nocturne. Photo by Jeremiah Klein.]
