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December 9, 2008
21584 visits
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Derek Dunfee likes to play the modesty card.
He has every reason not to - vetted big wave guy, big sponsors, deep Windansea roots, spreads in the mags, tons of friends, gorgeous girl - but he does, unflinchingly.
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You're a surfer who makes his living by being there when the swell hits and the surf is maxing. Take for example this last swell at Maverick's, what goes into making the call to go and what are the logistics of actually ensuring that you get there? The past few years I've spent a lot of time learning about swells, waves and the weather, so I don't have to depend on other people to tell me when the waves are going to be good. The last swell was forecasted to be really big with good weather, so I knew Maverick's would be good. Usually, I will drive my truck up, but my truck had three bald tires and the check engine light was on, so I flew up. Was this most recent swell at Mav's really the biggest it's ever been surfed from a paddle-in standpoint? I don't know if this swell was the biggest it's ever been surfed from a paddle standpoint, but I think the weather was what made it so special. It was sunny and glassy from noon Saturday until Sunday night with huge sets the entire time. Luckily, some of the best big wave surfers in the world were there to paddle it: Mark Healy, the Long brothers, Twiggy, Dave Wassell, Alex Martins, that Brazilian backsider Joao, Nathan Fletcher, Ryan Augenstein, Grant Washburn, Skindog, Taylor Paul, Sean Dollar, Tazy, Flea, Loya and the young kids Nic Lamb and Colin Dwyer. In Puerto Escondido, there are no Jet Skis or lifeguards that are going to rescue you if you're in trouble. There is no channel, and the rip currents look like huge toilet bowls. At Maverick's, everyone is looking out for each other, and if there were an injury, there are a lot of people on Jet Skis that can make a save.
Dunfee on why, when when they're both on, Puerto is more dangerous than Mav's
It wasn't very crowded. Everyone in the water was pumped up because there were consistent big sets throughout the entire swell. Everyone was pushing each other to go bigger and deeper. Twiggy's a legend, he was psyching the entire time; there were a few massive sets that rolled in, and when everyone was scrambling to the shoulder, Twiggy wouldn't move and he would yell, "The bowl doesn't move boys! Where ya going?" These were the best waves I've ever surfed at Maverick's, and probably the best two days of my life. You took a pretty nasty fall during that two-day span. Was that your worst wipeout at Maverick's? If not, take us through your worst fall. Yeah I had a bad wipeout on my first wave early on Saturday. The waves were moving so fast and it was really doubled up so you had to take off underneath the ledge. I was late on the wave so I was off balance when I hit the bottom. Instantly I had the over-the-handle-bar's type feeling. Luckily I got a good breath before I skipped down the face because I got really worked when the wave landed on me. I was lucky there was only one wave behind this wave. This wasn't my worst wipeout out there, last February I had a real bad wipeout, but I had three big waves right behind it. I've never been so humbled in my life. If forced to choose you'd probably say you're a paddle guy who tows as opposed to a tow guy who paddles. That said, what are your thoughts on the recent PWC ban in the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary? I have never surfed Ghost Tree or anywhere around Monterey Bay so I'd rather not comment on that area. I think Jet Skis are very important to surfers' safety in the lineup at Maverick's. I've had a few paddle-in experiences when Jet Skis have helped me a lot. Last year I had a bad wipeout where I broke my board and got caught inside by three big waves. I came up really dizzy and close to the rocks, luckily photographer Frank Quirarte picked me up on his Ski and dropped me off on the beach. If I had to swim after that wipeout, I don't think I would have made it to the beach. Last weekend I had another bad wipeout and my leash broke. My board was gone, nowhere in sight. Luckily, super legend Jeff Clark took me on his Jet Ski and we found my board in front of the Half Moon Bay harbor jetty. I would have never found that gun if I was swimming, so I'm very grateful Jeff and his Ski helped me find that board. Are you going to make the trip to Hawaii this year? I wasn' t planning on going to Hawaii early season because I'm still recovering from a bad injury. In June, I broke my leg -- fibula and my tibia -- surfing Cloudbreak in Fiji. I was grabbing rail, backside, when I broke my leg so I'm kinda scared to go surf Pipe. I'll go to Hawaii in late-season. Heard you dropped into one of the biggest waves of the weekend. Take us through it. Really? I'm not sure about that, but I paddled into the biggest and best wave of my life on Sunday morning. I haven't seen any photos of the wave except from photographer Todd Glaser. Todd was sitting in front of these bombs on his boogie board, and he got some incredible photos of Rusty, Nathan, Twiggy and everyone else who was charging. When it's on, which set-up is more intimidating, Todos, Mav's or Puerto? All of those waves are very dangerous and intimidating, but I think Puerto might be the most intimidating. In Puerto Escondido, there are no Jet Skis or lifeguards that are going to rescue you if you're in trouble. There is no channel, and the rip currents look like huge toilet bowls. At Maverick's, everyone is looking out for each other, and if there were an injury, there are a lot of people on Jet Skis that can make a save. I heard the now infamous, surf conman tried to swindle some money out of you a couple weeks ago. What exactly happened? Yeah the idiot said he was Nathan Fletcher and he tried to con my mom and I out of money. Evan Slater and I tried to bust the guy, but no one would help. Very frustrating. For those of us outsiders looking in at the big wave scene, why is there always such angst between the paddle and tow factions? Where does that come from? Who do you side with and what do you see as the future? When the waves are really big, I think everyone gets nervous and anxious. Some of the more inexperienced tow-surfers might be quick to call it a tow day, when the experienced paddle surfer might disagree and want to give it a paddle. Tow surfing got so popular so fast, that there are lots of guys who shouldn't be in the lineup. There are lots of full-blown tow-bros who have never paddled into a 15-foot wave. I've been trying to focus on paddling big waves for the past four years, so I would rather see guys pushing the limits of paddling-in as opposed to just grabbing the tow rope. I have owned a Jet Ski for the past two years, and have probably only used it 10 times. Want to see more from San Diego? Click here to go to the Surfline San Diego archive. SURFLINE HOME PAGE MORE SURF NEWS |
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