But Nic von Rupp is not one to ride in the easy lane to a pro surfing paycheck. The Portuguese surfer, big-wave extraordinaire and media mogul has gone to extraordinary lengths to find heavy peaks around the world, often bringing his thickest wetsuit in tow.
It’s easy to get up early for tropical tubes on bright, sunny days. It takes a dark, deep dedication to wake up at 5 a.m. multiple days in a row in the middle of an Irish winter and drive to the water while wearing your wetsuit. That’s exactly what Nic did on this day at Mullaghmore, which included a tow session, a bad wipeout on a nugget of a wave, and one of the best rides of his life (from a technical and emotional standpoint).
But Nic’s emotional bookend came after hours of towing and a painful slam on a left that looked very similar to the one he eventually made. “I knew that was the wave of my life,” Nic said of the wave that sucked him over backwards. “And thanks God, Mully, Ireland gave me a second opportunity.”
But Nic eventually found his redemption. Rocking gloves, bootes, a hoot and an inflation vest under his suit, paddled his 9-foot Padillac down a large face. He stayed on the rail for the entire drop, then centered his weight as he got in the pocket. The thing went square, and Nic held his line. The euphoria and relief in the channel were palpable.
The video above offers more angles and insight into that session.
“That was one of the best waves of my life, if not the best,” Nic said afterward. “I wanted it so bad. It’s been a long couple of days. We’ve been waking up every morning at 5 a.m. And we’ve come straight to Mully because I wanted to get one bomb.”
And to think he almost didn’t paddle out.