Surf
Teahupo’o literally translates to “to severe the head” or “place of skulls” in Fijian.
Teahupo’o, Tahiti is inarguably the heaviest wave in the world. To drop in here you have to either be a verified badass or simply insane. Both is good.
This wave is a below sea level wave, with the thickest lip on Earth, that breaks in around 3-6 feet of water. When you go down here, you’re gonna go over-the-falls and then get slammed into the reef. If you don’t get mortally wounded in the process, you’re killing it.
Watching people surf Teahupo’o is spellbinding. You truly never know if a guy is gonna make it or not. Some guys make it all the way to the end, then there’s that last steep section that gets them off balance right as the tube collapses behind them and the furious spit knocks them off their board.
When guys flat out don’t make it, it’s ugly. Even as a voyeur that loves seeing wipe-outs, you won’t exactly enjoy wipe-outs at Teahupo’o. Obviously, people have died here. Obviously, people have been hurt bad here. So why do people flock to this wave anytime it’s big and glassy? Because it’s Teahupo’o.
Learn much more about Teahupo’o here: Teahupo’o, The Heaviest Barrel on Earth
I remember some years ago seeing in a surf mag a picture posted of Teahupo’o seen from the back of the wave, looks gigantic and straight scary!
Yep, that’s heavy.