Sending it Over the Ledge with Matt Bromley

“I jumped off my board in the tube, like I always do, and my board just seemed to follow me,” said Matt, reminiscing about his horrific injury last year at Puerto Escondido. “Then I think the lip pointed the nose of my board straight at my head. After the impact, I remember going underwater and grabbing my head, and there was this big ugly flap of flesh hanging off my head.”

If you’ve ever met a positive big wave surfer, Matt Bromley takes the cake. Always upbeat and buoyant no matter the scene, Matt loves a big wave or two, loves it even more when it’s far away from home, and is open and honest about the fears in his life. Let’s dive in.

There have been some waves in Cape Town recently. We keep seeing flashes of massiveness on social media. Break it down for us.

There have been some big waves and some disappointments. Last Friday was supposed to be the day of the year for Dungeons, and we had it all lined up. Pulling it off these days is pretty challenging, but we had everything good to go – boats, drone guys, guys shooting from the land and everything ready to go. The best day of the year didn’t come at all. The swell didn’t even arrive. It was so weird.

You guys down there are usually good at forecasts and charts.

I know, and then Monday after, the swell looked ok, and it just pulled in big time, and there were some beautiful big waves at Dungeons. It was a bit windy, but feeling the Dungeon’s power and juice was so good after a long summer. Dungeons is so scary every time, but to be amongst those massive mountains and huge walls of water coming in from the deep ocean…it is such a special place. The wind was strong from the northwest, making it borderline paddleable. I paddled two waves, and the rest of the day was tow-ins and severe beatings.

How does the season look?

This winter is going to be great. Some of the smaller swells have come in big time, with so much energy to spare, and for some reason, this early season is giving a feeling that the portal for big swells has opened for Cape Town.

Big wave surfing in Cape Town in general?

We are so lucky in Cape Town. We get to surf waves all of our southern hemisphere winter, and when the northern hemisphere winter opens up, we go to Hawaii and Ireland, among other places. There are not that many places around the world that consistently produce big waves – you can go to South America, or you can try Australia, but South Africa is probably the most consistent for big waves of the Southern Hemisphere winter. We’ve got Sunset and Dungeons right here and are very blessed.

What are your thoughts on SURFER sponsoring the Big Wave Challenge?

I am so incredibly stoked that SURFER is getting behind it. Also, a huge thanks to Bill Sharp’s massive efforts. We are very grateful for all his hard work, and Bill consistently emerges at the top of the pile when it comes to big waves and big wave awards.

Getting rewarded for hard-charging is very exciting. We’re putting our lives on the line, spending so much money chasing these swells worldwide, and leaving our families. We are taking significant risks all around, and to be recognized for this is so exciting and getting me so psyched to be pushing it and then pushing it even harder.

You love to travel in your spare time. Where are you off to next for a swell chase?

Actually, I’m set on being home for the winter here. As mentioned, it’s looking like a great winter, and we will get the best waves between Sunset and Dungeons. So, as of now, I have my eyes on the charts, and I am working on a film about Dungeons, mapping out the reef and every little nuance of every swell, and how they hit the Dungeons Reef.

One thing I do want to do is get Shipstern Bluff this year. I have my heart set on that, and there’s the mysto reef slab at the back beach at Nias that I surfed around the corner and would like to get back to at some stage. There is also Puerto Escondido that I need to revisit after my injury last year. So pretty much any mega swells heading for those regions will see me heading on over to meet the swells.

Then, finally, tell us about that injury and what happened there. That whole drama was gnarly. What happened exactly, what was the treatment and how was the recovery process?

The Puerto Escondido incident was so heavy. I have been very fortunate for so many years my whole big wave career without any serious incidences, so I was probably due something, but it gave me a big fright. I’ve been out when people have been knocked unconscious and broken their backs and vertebrae and other bones, and in this situation, I was pretty unlucky.

I took off on a big one, and it had a nice tube on it. I locked in and rode for a while, and when I saw I wasn’t going to make it, I jumped off my board in the tube, like I always do, and my board just seemed to follow me. Then I think the lip pointed the nose of my board straight at my head. After the impact, I remember going underwater and grabbing my head, and there was this big ugly flap of flesh hanging off my head.

That’s not nice.

No, it was super scary. I got three more set waves on the head, and I couldn’t see anything because of all the sheets of blood going over my eyes. I did a complete check on myself to see if I was conscious and altogether there, and I was so stoked to realize that I was ok and thinking lucidly. It was so weird. It was the gnarliest accident, but I was clear-thinking and grateful.

The surfers in the water came to me, and I paddled with them for about half a kilometer to the safety zone, where I was helped to the land by a fishing boat. There was an ambulance waiting for me, and I was given 35 stitches to the head. It was a massive wake-up call for me.

Did you start thinking about home?

Bru, I have a family, two baby boys, and my wife, and it was quite the wake-up call. It makes you realize that our sport’s risks are super real, and we can’t mess around.

Recovery? Was that an onerous task?

It was. A month out of the water, I waited for these cuts to heal and get solid enough to surf. I couldn’t risk bumping them and have them open up. Then, the funniest, not so funny of them all, I broke two ribs in my first surf back in the Mentawais. So, lots of injuries last year.

What does this do to you as a big wave surfer?

Well, one way to overcome the fears and drama and improve the whole approach is to work on the mental game. I have been working on the mental game, mapping out spots I want to surf, drawing maps, and working on what each swell does on the big wave reefs. I now have an analytical and calculated approach to the big wave scene.

At the end of the day, I am still terrified of and excited about places like Jaws, Mavericks, and Mullaghmore, so I will be watching them.

For more about Matt’s horrific injury at Puerto Escondido last year, look out for NowNow Media’s new movie Place Of Thorns, debuting on June 3rd. Filmer Alan Van Gysen was in Puerto at the time and captured some of the wipeout and dramatic situation, which is included in the film’s Official Trailer, Place of Thorns | The Story of Puerto Escondido:

To watch the premiere, subscribe to NowNow Media’s YouTube channel.