Some waves take a lifetime to master. And in most cases, it’s not even master; just surf somewhat decently. People, quite literally, dedicate their entire surfing careers to one single wave – waves like Pipeline, Nazaré, Teahupo’o, Jaws, etc.
Hence, why it’s not typical for someone to paddle out at one of these spots listed above and, on their first wave, get the ride of their lives.
But that’s exactly what happened earlier this year with 17-year-old Maddix Alotis at Jaws.
In recently resurfaced images from surf photographer Fred Pompermayer, Maddix’s ride from January at Jaws is shown, with the caption:
“Imagine you decide to surf Jaws for the first time and you get a clean barrel on the first wave. Yes, that happened with @maddix_alotis”
Pretty unbelievable.
Maddix takes off on a hefty, pristine blue Peahi bomb, he sets his line perfectly, and he tucks in for the tube, getting spat out into the channel with glory and disbelief.
In Maddix’s post of the ride, he wrote:
“I have been wanting to surf Jaws for a long time and finally got to check it off my list! This was my first ever wave out there. Huge thanks to @mauimaxx @peahi_hui for helping me get the best wave of my life! Truly humbled thank you GOD for sending me this insane wave and keeping me safe while I was out there. Thank you @tomomcphoto for capturing this amazing moment!”
Beginner’s luck? Not likely.
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