Pipeline is a famous wave. Maybe the most famous wave. As such, when it’s on, it’s crowded — especially this time of year. And this is the time of year when the world’s best surfers converge on the world’s best stretch of sand. Winter swell pounds the North Shore relentlessly, and this year they’ve been pounding a little harder.
Kelly Slater, as usual, is roaming around the place, and as evidenced by the very first clip you see above, taking off on any wave he wants. Dangerous? Very. Slater, although he’s got 11 world titles, shouldn’t be above the law of course. Everyone, though, makes mistakes, and on closer inspection, it appears that Slater didn’t see the person who he dropped in on. That person was very good at threading his way through a dangerous situation and everything worked out fine in the end, but it’s a good reminder that no matter how good you are at surfing, mistakes can (and will) be made.
Slater is pretty good at using a sick burn in competition. It’s in the rule-book after all, and using priority is a way to win. But sometimes, it’s just a playful thing, like this instance with John John at the Pipe Masters a few years back.
The rest of the video is chock-full of world-class surfing during a very, very good day at Pipeline. Billy Kemper, Dean Morrison, Jordy Smith, Eli Hanneman, Italo Ferreira, Conner Coffin, Jamie O’Brien… everyone was there, and everyone got a handful of amazing waves.
