Kai Lenny’s house is around 15 miles from Jaws. His life revolves around that wave. Sure, he’ll surf other big waves around the world, but it’s likely that in Kai’s head, those other waves are merely training grounds for Peahi. When Jaws is working, it’s almost a sure thing that Kai will be there, tow boards and paddle boards at the ready. But one doesn’t become one of the best surfers at one of the biggest and best waves in the world without copping a very high number of wipeouts, and wipeouts at Jaws are… bad.
Recently, Jaws turned the volume way, way up. Kai was there, of course, and he, as usual, did things no one else can do. But he also paid the price.
“It’s been a good start to the winter,” he said. “We’ve had two pretty decent swells. This last one was BIG. It was west, it was rough, it was bumpy.”
Kai opted to ride a tow board, and he had a something in mind for the day.
“Ultimately,” he explained, “my goal was to do a brand new trick that I’ve been working on.”
While he did indeed manage to complete the trick he had in mind, it wasn’t completed without his fair share of horrendous beatdowns. In the video above, he explains how it feels to know that you’ve messed up.
“There’s sort of a moment where you see that wall and you know the writing’s on the table,” he said. “You’re not going to make it and you might just get absolutely destroyed.”
You’ve got to pay to play, though, and Kai is willing to shell out.
