TAMATO says : “ Digging through some relics known as #surf #magazines, I stumbled on this classic memory. Looking back at 12 plus years of visiting Teahupo’o, Tahiti, the #wave & the people were always so kind & good to me. Many #amazing #memories were created here spanning the decade plus of #adventures journeying to this #beautiful place. With the 3 definitive swell directions that grace this wave rich reef with awestruck perfection, I’ve always been blessed when I visited the Teahupo’o region with large SSW swells which I’ve always thrived in. With SSW swells, I would always be battling for the unofficial Wave of the Day & putting on a consistent show of bravado alongside the usual heavyweight Kumbaya contenders of that era. This particular summer season in Tahiti with the photo featured above, was rife with large & terrifying West Swells !!! I barely caught any waves of substantial notoriety that year. With personal pride pounced on by pure & unadulterated raw nature, I had to reach deep with in to throw myself over this hellish ledge of destruction. You can see the fear of death in this photo emanating out of my face. The only real psychopathic Hellman who wanted it was @markhealy on the corner & I had to scream him off the wave not to go. He graciously pulled back as I chucked myself over the beyond vertical cliff of this bottomless pit & the rest was history. This particular photo & moment in time was captured by at least a dozen of the planets most influential surf photographers & ended up in just about every surf mag on the planet, from covers to spreads. It was an absolute blessed moment for me, because if not for that one wave, I would have completely skunked out in Tahiti that year & my foolish pride would have been at an all time low. It’s crazy how #surfing #psycho slab #waves can turn you from a Zero to a Hero & then often times right back to a Zero again. Partaking in raw nature is to say at the very least, absolutely humbling. ” - this #photo was taken by Australian #photographer Tim Jones & Published in either the Australian Magazine Waves or Tracks in 2002. #teahupoo #tahiti #surfer #tamayoperry @oahusurfingexperience #youneverknowuntilyougo (at Teahupo'o) https://www.instagram.com/p/Ci13dVouJo5/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=
