100ft World Record Wave, Garrett McNamara Surfing Nazare, Portugal
26 Video Views·Jan 5, 2024
WaveJet athlete and big wave world record breaker, Garrett McNamara (HAW), sits down with Surf Channel Television Network to explain the monster waves that Portuguese Nazaré creates, including his much-scrutinized 100ft wave caught in January 2013. McNamara has been surfing since his family moved to Hawaii in 1978, growing up with his older brother and talent agent, Liam McNamara. During the winter of 2002–03, McNamara won the World Surfing Championship tow at Jaws in 70ft conditions. Hawaii's big wave chargers went on to catch a record wave of 75 - 90 ft at Nazaré in 2011, then returned in January 2013 and caught another big wave that could reach up to 100 ft.
My name is Garrett McNamara. I'm from Hawaii. I just like to surf big waves.
In Nazare, you really never know what you're going to get. It's so bizarre and it's like you
take Jaws, you take Porto A Escondido, and you take Waimea Shorebreak and then put them on steroids
all together and then you've got Nazare. I knew it was going to be the biggest wave I ever rode
and I knew what I was getting myself into. I've been preparing for it for years.
It's just a fate's wonder of the world when it comes to big waves. I found the holy grail.
Sometimes I look at it and go it's not that big at all and then other times I look at it and go wow.
When you're in the water looking at this wave, it's a lot bigger than it has been photographed.
The main part of the wave where it was really big, you can't even see it. The picture that
went around the world, that was the end of the wave when I was speaking out. It's half as big
as what it was in the beginning. It's really weird because it like took off and kind of was
trying to find where it was going to break and it broke right at the top but then this wave went for
like forever and then it kind of backed off and then it went into the inside and started to break
again and that's where I kicked out. When I'm in the ocean I really am totally comfortable and
when you're riding waves or in any situation in life, if you're in the moment then you're
really connected to what's going on and I usually just deal with the situations that come and
actually really enjoy the situations whether it's getting sucked over by an 80-foot wave or
or you know going in to pick up my friend in a really dangerous spot. Just deal with it.
People have to come see for themselves.