Last weeks swell was another whopper. We thought it might be smaller than the first one, but there were a couple sets early that morning that reached code red magnitude. I saw the buoy get barreled around 5:45am. Wade Tokoro said about 10 minutes before I paddled out, there was a set that white watered outside both the red and the green buoy. I paddled out with Garrett McNamara who had just made it back from some beastly barrels in Tahiti for first light Ala Mo Bowl. I remember him saying, at least three times to his photographer that the direction was once again too south for the Big Bowl. We watched about 3 sets come close to closing out the channel and paddled out on the fourth one. Then the swell seemed to back down for about an hour. Garrett caught a nuts wave from the middle which guys will be talking about for a long time. He took off grabbed rail and got barreled all the way from the middle peak through the Big Bowl, proving that sometimes a bigger board is better. After that, Michael Ho and Derek Ho paddled out and went to try their luck from the middle. An hour into the session two macking sets came that had me paddling way outside the green buoy in an attempt not to get caught. I made it, and the waves looked ridable from the outside, but the question is where would something like that take you; the rocks the piling, the channel, nowhere, who knows? We donʻt get to see it that big very often, but this year we have had two, once in a decade back to back swells. Eric Haas, Randall Paulson and Wade Tokoro caught some of the biggest bombs that morning and Kainoa McGee got the hooking barrell of the session. The energy from those two macking sets and the surging tide, swirled that current into a whirlpool again. There were 6 foot sets consistently and the whole line up was paddling the entire time. I felt like I was surfing Haleiwa in the middle of an obstacle course. After three and a half hours, I gave up and went in. Thirty minutes later, I noticed that the crowd was sitting in the line up without having to paddle. To be honest, I was a little jealous of that after paddling in circles for an hour. Then the swell backed down just enough to hit the reef better and the tide or the direction turned just enough that the Bowl started hooking and doing itʻs thing. It still was not the real SW that we want, but it was big and barreling and there were a few waves that were really working. Mike Akima got some of the best waves all day. As one of da boyz explained, it looked like the whole channel was folding over him. Derek Lyonswolfe, Ronnie Boy Ongos, Davey Boy Gonsalves and a few of the other regulars were catching some bombs and pulling into some beautiful green barrels while Northshore guys like Flynn Novak and Jonah Morgan were getting in the mix. Most of the guys from the morning went back out, Greg Quinn paddled out and got a bomb before the tide got too high and kind of killed it. Unlike the last swell, it barely lasted through the next morning, but it was a lot cleaner, nicer and even a bit bigger on some sets that the first big swell. Unbelievable!

What I admire about the guys in town is that they are able to hold down full time jobs, raise a family and still make it out to rip every single swell at their favorite spot. I am not sure any pro can top that, yet these dedicated regulars rarely get a mention in modern day surfing. Sure, we all enjoy a bit of recognition for what we do, but more importantly there are no better role models for our youth. The hype of modern surfing obsesses over fame, name dropping, and a mirage of living the dream, but in my opinion, the regular guys are the ones who really have it all!

The swell started late in the evening on Thursday May 16th, and there were some solid 6 footers early Friday morning. There were still solid 5-6 foot waves on Saturday morning and it was real nice before the wind came onshore around 10am. Everyone left the beach sort of surfed out, when it rained, glassed off and pulsed up to solid 8 ft. Mike Akima, Ronnie Boy Ongos, Clyde Lani and his son Issac said they scored perfect conditions with just the five of them out. Surfers from every spot have similar stories about how they waited out the onshores and scored some of the best part of the swell.

The next morning started out in the 6 foot range and had some solid 8 footers. Some guys were even claiming 10 ft which I would have to agree with since I had a really hard time getting in that morning. Although it may not have been quite as big as the Code Red session in late August 2011, it was really consistent with swells coming from several different angles. Its funny, I consider myself experienced, after surfing there for twenty five years, but in reality, I could count the times I have surfed it like that on one hand. Sure, rogue waves that size are more frequent, but I think the only other swell that offered that kind of consistency in my lifetime was that huge washing through swell in the mid-90s.

When the channel starts closing out at Bowls, the waves can wind up into something of a big whirlpool. It starts with the wave stirring the surfer around the red buoy and then swirls around the reef, the green buoy and the channel before taking you right back out to sea. You have to deal with the crowd, the reef, the rocks, the pilings, the buoy and the boats. None of them are good options if you get caught by the set or sucked in the the wrong place at the wrong time by the current. Still, it is always so exciting to surf the Bowl that big because its like your waiting to see what happens; your thinking what happens to this place when it gets this big, what happens when it gets bigger?

I could not believe my eyes when it was still pumping on Monday morning. That was probably the best day of the swell. Even though it was a little smaller, it was hitting the reef better, more barreling, less chaotic and no more whirlpool obstacle course action. The conditions were perfect. Unfortunately the swell was not as west as we like it in the Bowl, but most of us were not complaining.

On Tues the swell was still solid 5 ft and it just dropped a notch on Wednesday before pulsing back up into the 5 ft range again on Thursday. If that were not enough, a solid 6 ft country swell surprised us early Wednesday May 22nd and lasted through the weekend. What an incredible run of surf. If I am dreaming, please donʻt pinch me.

The Local Motion Surf into Summer carried on from that Friday through the Memorial Day weekend where Ala Moana locals like Mike Akima won the Sr. Mens Division, and Izumi Baldwin captured the women's. Johnny Boy Gomes daughter, Summer won the T&C Grom division at Queens recently and it looks like she is raking in some good sponsors as well.

The last two weekends were busy indeed. They had the lantern lighting ceremony on Magic Island for Memorial Weekend and this weekend was stacked with Surf N Sea/ Oneil sponsored SUP race on Saturday and an outrigger race on Sunday. I usually stay near home on holiday weekends nowadays, but when I have to go out, I feel like Oahu is literally busting open at the seams. There is so much going on and so many people. It does not matter who you are, where you go or what you do, its crowded. Itʻs so nuts, sometimes I donʻt even know how to filter it all through my brain. On the one hand, we are lucky to have so much going on and the other hand, its almost too crowded to enjoy doing any of it.

Donʻt forget the Haleiwa Farmerʻs Market has returned to the Northshore at Lili‘uokalani Protestant church. It starts every Sunday after church around noon. Be sure to support our farmers and this historic Hawaiian church.

Looks like we are on for sister south swell strike 2. I tell you what, the anxiety starts early now with all the photos people post from Teahupo‘o. Shoot, I used to start getting excited when the buoys came up, but now I freak out 3 days before the swell even starts. It took them a while to start posting from Teahupo‘o this time though which is probably because most of the guys are in Fiji for the Volcom Pro. Garrett just posted a nice little slide show from Tahiti yesterday though that looks similarly sized to the last swell. It probably will not last as long or be as consistent, but shoot I feel like it is all bonus from here on out. We already had 5 days of swell that were better than anything all last summer.

I am calling it the best Spring since 2008. There were 10 foot plus days on April 1st, 5th and 8th and then we had several 3-5 foot plus swells through the end of April. I marked April 28th the best small day of the year. It was 3-5 plus with nice WNW swell and epic conditions. Those conditions prevailed with small surf through most of May until last weekend when the winds turned north again. It was so beautiful that I found myself surfing 1-2 foot waves for hours just because I was enjoying the warm, sunny conditions and clear, green glowing reef that was like an aquarium between sets. One day I realized that we have not had those real warm, still days in a few years (not with any consistency) I remember being cold throughout most of the summer for the last couple years so it was really enjoyable and all the locals were having fun. The uncrowded, clean, fun days made up for the overcrowded, cold and stormy winter most of experienced. All an all I think it turned out to be a pretty fun winter especially since we had a good early and late season.

Looks like the waves will continue from an epic spring into an exciting summer. We have all been watching the exciting waves at Teahupo‘o on our Facebook pages and are super anxious to see what exactly will make it here to our town shores. Whatever it is, the forecast suggests that it will last for one week straight so I hope you all got your chores done.

Make sure to check out Kamehameha Schoolʻs big sample sale tomorrow. It is an important fundraiser that helps their surf team raise funds to travel to the NSSA Nationals in California. The sale is held at Kamehameha School on Kōnia Field. This sample sale is always a blast. You see a lot of people you know. They have music, food and killer deals from brands such as Billabong, Adidas, FCS, Skull Candy, Nixon, Lost, Pualani Swim and many more. The event runs from 10am-2pm with a $3 entry fee. Itʻs like a shopping pā‘ina! Have fun!

Small swells have keep us in the water all week. Todayʻs swell was a bit of a disappointment, but the beautiful conditions made up for it. We had such a cold winter that nice weather seems like a treat right now even though it is still kind of cold.

Make sure to check out Storm Surfers 3D which opens tomorrow, Friday April 26th at Ward Theaters in Honolulu and at Ka‘ahumanu 6 on Maui. Surfing legends Tom Carroll and Ross Clark Jones will be in Honolulu at the 7pm screening to kick off the film.

We went to check it out last week and were amazed at the 3D footage since it was the first 3D surf movie we have ever seen. The documentary follows Tom Carroll and Ross Clark Jones on their big wave adventures throughout the Australian surf season with a fresh new outlook that values friendship and family. It is an exciting film for surfers of all ages!