Do you know how much a static cubic metre of water weighs? One tonne. Now imagine a wave 30 metres high, the same wide, that’s been hurtling across the ocean for hundreds, even thousands of miles. How much do you think that weighs? I’m sure some bright spark could do the maths, all I know is that wave wouldn’t hesitate in killing you.
I got to catch up with Carlos Burle, Brazilian big wave surfer, champion of the first ever big wave world tour back in 1998 and the man who arguably rode the biggest wave ever surfed in 2013. We talked about his journey into big wave surfing, dealing with fear and setting targets for yourself.
If Carlos ever decides to hang up his wetsuit, he’s definitely got the skills of a life coach
I was hoping for an interview, I came out the other side feeling inspired. If Carlos ever decides to hang up his wetsuit, he’s definitely got the skills of a life coach.
When I see people riding those waves, I always wonder what they’re thinking in the lead up to it and if fear even comes into the equation. I dove in and asked Carlos what he thought fear was. He took a moment and replied,
“When you talk about fear to me, you talk about the emotion that is very important to keep me alive. I think we all should feel fear, otherwise we would be dead by now. Some guys that are really crazy, they have a tendency to die early.”
I tried imagining these other people, the people a man who regularly puts his life on the line described as really crazy.
Todos Santos, Baja California Sur in Mexico
But my thoughts were cut off quickly…
“the point here is train yourself physically and mentally to overcome those situations. That’s what I did in my life. I always like to push myself to the limit and get involved with those things that will heighten my adrenalin. But I always respect that I was getting training and I should train myself also. But the problems are there, you’re doing something that can kill you. We all know that. You gotta respect. I have to understand and respect the situation.”
The consequences of falling in a 100m sprint are slightly less severe than in Carlos’s profession
He talked with a calmness and pragmatism I often hear in professionals. During his training he breaks down tasks step by step to reach the final goal. It’s what I’d expect of a professional athlete, although I consider the consequences of falling in a 100m sprint slightly less severe than in Carlos’s profession.
He went on,
“I can’t afford to have a routine where I’m not going to eat well, I’m not going to sleep well or not train at all. Those times didn’t exist in my life ever. When I was young I was focused. From the beginning to now I was always focused on the result.”
Start them young - Carlos dishing out the life skills
In my opinion, there’s a big difference in rocking up to you’re local break, having fun and scoring some waves, to what the big wave surfers are doing. I wanted to find out more about the journey he has taken to ride giant waves and get inside why he does what he does.
“It’s more than just physical,” he said, “the best trip that I did in my life was an inner trip to understand myself.”
I didn’t quite understand, thankfully he explained,
“the more you know yourself the easier it is for you to be happy. If you don’t know yourself very well you’re going to follow others.”
Some real emotion started to make its way into his words.
“MAN if you know yourself it’s much easier. If you don’t know yourself you just get fucking lost. You know? It’s too much information.”
He came back to his point, slightly composing himself.
“So the best trip in life is the trip you do inside yourself, the trip inside your mind. That’s related to what I have done my whole life, especially when it comes to big wave surfing. That shows how I love to drive my life, with a bit of excitement but a lot of respect. I am here and I have to take the best of this opportunity which is life. There isn’t any better moment than today. Why should I be dreaming about the future too much, or regretting about the past. I’ve made a lot of mistakes and I’m still making mistakes. We’re just a blink, don’t try to push too hard on yourself.”
The infamous Jaws in Maui
His journey to riding big waves started off with a lot of yoga and meditation, but to get to where he wanted to be physical barriers needed to be broken.
“I realised that wasn’t enough for me to surf really big waves so I started to do some workout training, hard workout training to be able to overcome all those situations you face when you are surfing big waves. At the beginning I wasn’t surfing the waves that I am now, I was training cardio and a little bit of stuff for my muscles. Then I realised that to really surf bigger waves you have to have a stronger body on your joints. Otherwise you’re going to get yourself disconnected. I learnt that I had to get more and more stronger, physically and mentally to face those fears. Face those obstacles and be able to succeed.”
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