Andy Irons’ surfing stands the test of time. We’re nearly a decade removed from the last time we saw him ride a wave and the footage dug up in Taylor Steele’s Momentum Files is far older than even that.
“This is AI in his prime,” Steele writes. “Hitting his stride. Firing on all cylinders. On top of dropping the final section of the Under 23 movie, he had enough leftover footage to create another full section.”
He really did have the full package of generational skills. Powerful surfing, comfort and grace in heavy waves that was just as strong as his ability to throw himself around in a skate-like fashion in small stuff. He could do it with style. He could do it with aggression.
But it’s also just as entertaining to remember AI’s kryptonite — the one thing that could always throw him off his A-game at a moment’s notice. Bruce. As much as you’ll enjoy watching Andy do his thing in this segment that Steele never released, you’ll probably also find pleasure in a classic moment of Andy-Bruce brotherly tension and laughs from the peanut gallery.
“You can just feel the equatorial heat cooking the situation,” Steele says.
