Dropknee Champion

Newport, California

Spring 2007

The swell that hit California on April 10 and 11 will not be forgotten. Helicopters flew overhead looking for a man and a woman swept off the jetty and were never found. Hundreds of people watched the powerful surf in pure awe. Bodyboarders charged the epic swell. We got the change to ask Eddie Solomon about the swell and what led up to it.

EDITOR: How was the Wedge?

ES: BIG! VERY BIG! Pretty freaking nuts for California.

EDITOR: Did you track the swell?

ES: On the 9th and into the 10th, I couldn’t keep my fingers off the refresh button on the buoys as I watched the swell rising by the minute. I only slept three hours because I was so excited to feel some real Pacific Ocean power right here in California.

EDITOR: Were you intimidated or are you accustomed the Wedge going off?

ES: Not intimidated at all really but I did get pretty worked to the level where I was a little concerned about my well being which does not happen at all especially in California.

EDITOR: What was your intial reaction when you rolled up to the Wedge?

ES: As we rolled up to The Wedge the waves inside the harbor were the biggest I have ever seen there. It was quite jaw dropping. The Wedge was weird though. It is very early in the season for The Wedge so the sand was not the best but the swell was there and the waves were thick, really thick, and heavy, the way we like it! It was pretty much just beastmaster closeouts, closing out even faster more than normal.

EDITOR: Who else was charging? Who stood out in your mind?

ES: Rusty Friesen, Erik Lorton, Jason Throman, Mark Klien and Zach Baz. These guys don't just go straight out there and think they are charging. They PUINSAI.

EDITOR: How does this session stack up in comparison to previous large sessions?

ES: Biggest I surfed it since he massive swell in 1995 I believe where Mike Stewart went from Tahiti to Alaska.

This swell will be remembered for years to come in California as one of the strongest and best swells ever. Only if Southern California had waves like this all the time! More heavy reefs would be found, beach breaks would be better from the sand shifting all the time and bodyboarding as a whole would be at a different state with the media and surfing industry, comparable to Australia maybe? It is a "What If?" that probably will never happen but very cool to imagine. Who knows, maybe global warming will contribute to some more massive swells so the USA can see how gnarly bodyboarding can be?

MAKE SURE TO CHECK OUT THE NEXT BODYBOARDER MAGAZINE FOR THE FULL FEATURE ARTICLE AND ALL OF THE GOOD PHOTOS WE CAN'T SHOW YOU YET.

Send us your story/photos of the this timeless swell to info@bodyboardculture.com, so we can add it to this story.