Big waves are a whole different ball game. You're riding a wave with an immense amount of speed and power, generally over 10 meters. On the face of the wave, obviously life and death thoughts start to happen.
There are so many different elements to surfing. Small waves, big waves, long boards, short boards. This makes it a sport you can share with people. It's not just a solitary thing - it's become a family thing, too. It's about exercising and passing something on from father to son, and from mother to daughter.
Maintaining marriage seems to be tougher than fatherhood: apparently it's the most difficult thing in the world.
Fatherhood isn't always a planned thing, but when it happens you just do it. It's very natural and in that sense it's not really difficult.
Most of what Hawaii has to offer is no secret. Pipeline is probably the most famous wave in the world.
I feel like an ambassador for surfing at this point. I'm happy to go and play that role and share that where I can in certain areas of the mainstream media that doesn't get the surfing attention.
My belief is that 'heaven' and 'hell' are metaphorical terms for what you make of your life. In any instant, you have the ability to make your life total pleasure or total hell.
For a surfer, it's never-ending. There's always some wave you want to surf.
A wave isn't like a skate ramp or mountain; everything's moving around and you have to time how to move along with it. That's easier with a slow wave.
I surf more now for other people than myself. I feel a lot of support from people wanting me to do well, and I feed off that. I can send a positive message to people from what I do.
It's a perfect wave when small and the most beautiful and scary wave on Earth when it's big, as the swell from deep water hits the shallow reef ledge. A ten-foot high wave and a 30-footer break in the same depth of water.
