Sunday, April 09, 2006

AUSSIE SURFERS PREPARE FOR BIGGEST WAVES IN THIRTY YEARS

WAVES UP TO NINE METRES HIGH EXPECTED


This stunning photo by John Alcock appeared on the Sydney Morning Herald site today.

Surfers on the East Coast of Australia are now getting in a few hours sleep before they rise early and head out to tackle what are expected to be the biggest waves in almost three decades.

Wave faces of up to nine metres are expected to appear off shore at a number of Sydney beaches and up the coast. It's bringing every surf legend still alive and able to stand on a board out of the woodwork.

On Saturday the surf beaches were packed, with some seeing wave riders numbering in the hundreds. Insane.

About the waves expected today, former world chapion surfer Barton Lynch told the Sydney Morning Herald : "Regardless of how experienced you are, you have got to be on your game and concentrating completely in these sort of conditions. It is no time to be experimenting or learning."

'Lynch and his surfing partner, two-time world champion Tom Carroll, will be towing each other out to a bombora with a power-ski to make the most of waves that are predicted to hit seven metres at their peak.

"We have known this swell has been coming and have spent the week on test runs with the Jet-ski, checking the equipment and making sure we are well rested and ready," he said.

"Obviously being out in seas of that power and magnitude is dangerous. The ocean pays no regard to whether you are a world champion or a novice, so you cannot relax for a second."'

Go here for the full story.

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