The Gnarliest Wipeouts Of All Time In Women's Surfing
In case you haven't noticed, the women are charging just as big as the men in surfing, and we wipeout just as hard, too. Every surfer knows that you have to pay your dues, and earn your waves. It doesn't come easy. Here are the times when the ladies were out there earning it at the gnarliest surf breaks int he world.
Tyler Wright Gets Caught On The Rocks
We've all been where Tyler Wright is in this video. Well, not to that gnar level, but who hasn't found themselves in a bad spot on the inside when the next set rolls in? This lady is tough, and after she takes a beating (in a jersey with the crowd watching no less) her brother Owen Wright is there to give her a hug.
Nikki Van Dijk Hits Her Face On The Reef In Her Rookie Year
Video: The Surf Channel
We were so amped when we found out that Australian surfer Nikki Van Dijk qualified for the 2014 WSL Tour. Her surfing is super exciting to watch and as expected, Nikki came out of the gates charging hard. While competing at the Fiji Pro in her rookie year, Nikki tucked into the barrel that closes out. Nikki then hits her face on the reef and suffers a terrible laceration to her mouth. The injury caused her to get 16 stitches on her face and a trip home to Australia for further medical attention.
She told the WSL, "The certain spot I was in, the wave just crunched on top of me and put me upside down and just threw me backwards. I felt it all up my hands and chest and chin. In my mouth I could feel everything was smashed up. Straight away I was really scared because I couldn't see it but I could see the blood."
Keala Kennelly Pays Her Dues At Teahupoo
Video: The Surf Channel
Keala Kennelly has gotten more than her fair share of world class barrels. This time, she earned all of those one hundred percent. While surfing Teahupoo, one of the most intense waves on the planet. Keala is clipped in the head by the lip and takes the worst wipeout of her life.
"You need the big hospital," she was told before she was able to see the injury to her face. Keala went into surgery and took 30-40 stitches to get her face back in shape. She still looks amazing.
Paige Alms Cartwheels At Pe'ahi (Jaws)
Unless you're doing gymnastics, you don't want to be doing cartwheels. Big wave surfer Paige Alms took a wipeout so massive it was nominated for Wipeout Of The Year by WSL Big Wave Awards. Here she is at Jaws, paddling into a beast of a wave when she goes over the falls and does not one but two cartwheels down the face. Paige committed to that wave and learned first-hand where Jaws gets its name.
Let's Not Forget That Maya Gabeira Almost Died At Nazare
Maya Gabeira didn't grow up surfing like many people who surf at her skill level. Beyond that, she has nerves of steel and the desire to charge the biggest waves available to her. Maya holds the record for the biggest wave ever surfed by a woman: A 46-foot wave she caught at Dungeons in South Africa.
She's won numerous awards for charging big waves, but on October 29, 2013 at Nazare in Portugal Maya experience the wipeout of her life. She was knocked unconscious and pinned underwater during a huge set. Her partner on the ski had her eyes on her, until he lost her. She survived the wipeout, but it shook her to the core.
