"Natxo Gonzalez falling out of the sky at Pe'ahi in 2016. Photo: WSL/Richard Hallman"   Natxo Gonzalez Paddles Historic Barrel at Nazare Challenge The Nazare Challenge went down in near-flawless conditions last week, with 15-20+ waves and light offshore winds. Spanish charger and surf explorer Natxo Gonzalez was one of the standout performers, making the final and ending up in third place (which also positions him well for the world title race, since there are only three events each year). And while Grant “Twiggy” Baker ended up winning the event, Natxo stole the day with what most agree is the best wave ever ridden at Nazare, and one of the most impressive big-wave barrels ever paddles. On a solid 18-foot double up, Natxo spun under the lip and backdoored a throaty lefthand tube that chandeliered twice before ejecting him out into the channel. Barrels are rare at Nazare, and this one was a 10 before he even came out, but the fact that Natxo made the tube means it will likely be in contention for ride of the year at the Big Wave Awards. We had a chat with Natxo a few days after his monumental ride, to get his...

Credit: @ WSL / Poullenot After an epic late summer/early fall, winter has started off pretty slow here in Hawaii. Town is heading into its winter slumber, and while there have been a couple of decent pulses on the North Shore, none of them have really set the buoys off. But that’s not to say that the big wave season hasn’t started. In fact, over in Europe, Nazare has been going ballistic for the past two weeks—and things are about to ramp up even more today. The World Surf League has called the Nazare Challenge on for Friday the 16th, and the conditions are forecasted to be pretty much perfect. It won’t be the biggest Nazare we have ever seen—probably in the 20- to 35-foot range on the face—but the wind should be light offshore and the ocean should be about as smooth as it gets at Praia de Norte, so the Big Wave Tour should be kicking off with a bang. Then, to make things even more exciting, the swell from hell is bearing down on Europe and expected to hit sometime Sunday morning. This one is also going to have perfect conditions in many places, but it’s so big...

The Quiksilver Pro and Roxy Pro France ended this week, and with them came some major developments for the world title race. First, on the ladies’ side, Steph Gilmore had a chance to make history. She has won six world titles already—just one shy of Layne Beachley’s record of seven—and is widely considered to be the greatest female competitive surfer in history. The opportunity was there for her to clinch her seventh title in France—all she had to do was finish one round ahead of Lakey Peterson, who trails Steph but is still mathematically in contention for the title. But Steph ended up coming up just short in her round three heat, missing out on progressing by a mere 0.06 points! Lakey then had a chance to make up some ground on Steph, but ended up losing in the very next heat, so both women left France with equal 9th place finishes—hardly a keeper result on a tour with only 17 women. Courtney Conlogue ended up winning the event, demonstrating a return to form after an injury-plagued season. The ladies now enter their last event of the season—Honolua Bay on Maui—with Steph Gilmore sitting pretty approximately 7000 points ahead of...

Drug Aware Margaret River Pro Going Small to Go Big The Drug Aware Margaret River Pro is on this week over in West Australia, the second stop on the WSL world tour. And to be honest, the main venue at Margaret River Main Break is not the most exciting wave in the world to surf or watch. The backup venues of North Point and The Box are exciting—North Point is the ultimate barrel to boost setup, and The Box is one of the original slabs—but we usually don’t get more than a day of competition at the backups, which is why this event is rumored to be canceled after this season. Main Break is simply not that good of a wave—it’s slopey and fat, basically a big series of cutbacks with an air section at the end of the right if you are lucky (and crazy enough to huck one into the bricks). And unfortunately, it’s where we end up running 90% of our heats at the Margaret River Pro. No wonder guys like Kelly Slater complain about the event every year. But once in awhile, Main Break brings the drama. And this past weekend was one of those rare...