Imagine thinking you’re going to flip a surfboard when the buoys are reading 23 feet at 20 seconds. It’s an audacious idea, even for Kai Lenny, who called this particular November day at Jaws, “My most memorable session of this Hawaiian winter.”
But Kai literally trains to do airs on windy days like this. From trampolines in indoor gyms to the Waco wavepool to snowboard ramps in Wyoming, Kai leaves no stone unturned to better his skill set.
Kai actually did several other airs and chop hops on 20-footers before this massive side flip. On one, he fell early on near the peak only to get sucked over the falls as he attempted to hold onto his board. Yes, even Kai Lenny gets caught once in a while.
Somehow, Kai managed to twist his 15-pound tow board over his head and back underneath him at the top of a proper Jaws peak.
Frame: Elliot Leboe
“All the training did pay off, which was nice,” Kai said. “There’s still so much to learn. Working on the clips, working on the chop hops. It’s really difficult to read some of those waves. So when it gets better, it’s going to get a lot easier to try to get those long barrels again.”
Given his talent and preparation, I think it’s likely only a matter of time before Kai completes an unheard-of Jaws trifecta: A cutback, tube and air on the same 50-footer.
Related: Kai Lenny Busts a Flip Surfing Ginormous Jaws, Gets Sucked Over the Falls (Clip)