What would happen if you set up a floating dock so you could jump straight onto a wave instead of having to paddle out?
A group of Volcom surfers answered that after anchoring a 100-foot, half-ton plastic raft in the middle a break at Keramas, Gianyar in Bali. The result, as shown in a joint video by the brand and surfer publication Stab Magazine was a beautiful chaotic affair of fun and mayhem.
But while it looks all fun and crazy in the video, it sure had the potential to go terribly, notes photographer Tom Carey.
“Everything about the dock was dangerous: The whole idea, the ropes in the waves, giant plastic heavy duty industrial blocks coming at your head,” Carey said.
“It’s a miracle no one got hurt.
“There were some close calls but everyone walked away unscathed.”
“The dock’s been scary,” one of the surfers, Ozzie Wright, also told Stab.
“At one stage I just came up, got my board and saw it coming right at me. I like the chaos of it. The whole time everybody was like, ‘Where are we going!? Where are we going!?’ That was the fun bit. I kept thinking what if the tip was on the beach at a little shorey? No paddling, just run out, jump on a wave surf it to the beach then run back out and jump on another one. That’d be so much fun.”
Realizing the full danger of the thing, if it hit you on impact, another one of the surfers, Noa Deane made a startling point.
“It would just kill you if it hit you, yeah?” Dean casually asked.
“What’s it weigh? Half a ton? When it wears a wave on the head it kicks like a snake. Like, Balaram jumped up and went six feet in the air. Then he landed on the wire, so sketchy. It whips right at the end because it’s connected to a cable which adds extra tension.”
Unless a less life-threatening invention comes up, we’ll just stick to paddling out ourselves for now!
Reader Interactions