By the time April rolls around, Pipeline is generally getting a little sleepy. Winter Pipeline is a bit of a party monster, but summer Pipe? Summer Pipe is a hibernating bear. But every now and then, the most famous wave on Earth will get a bit of a second wind in the form of a late season swell — and that’s what happened on March 25th. Koa Rothman was there to squeeze the last of the juice from what should be a pretty withered fruit by now… but it was surprisingly juicy.
“This was definitely one of the best swells to hit Pipeline this season!” Koa wrote. “It feels really good to be back out there! Could it be the last swell?”
Koa wasn’t the only one out there, of course, but compared to some of the other mid-winter days, it was relatively uncrowded. Mark Healey showed up early, well before the crowd, and absolutely scored in the way only Mark Healey can score.
This is what we were waiting for: the morning sickness to go away,” Koa said before paddling out. “And now the sun’s out and it’s going to get good. We gotta get out there before the crowd.”
Rothman paddled out on a 6’6″. It’s an older board from a few years ago with a very obvious paint job, and it’s one of his favorite boards for the conditions on offer. There were plenty of other legends out, like Michael Ho among others, and if this was indeed the last real swell of the season, it was a good way to go out.
