Eddie Went.

Although I've spent most of my life on the Island of Oahu, where some of the biggest and best waves on the planet form off the coast of the North Shore, up until December 8, 2009 I had never seen what is perhaps the most prestigious big wave contest in the world -- the Quiksilver in Memory of Eddie Aikau. This year marked the 25th anniversary of the contest, but it had been held only seven times prior to this week's contest because the contest is held only when wave heights reach at least twenty feet (Hawaiian size). I had tried in previous years to see the contest, but every time I had made the trip up to the North Shore, the waves weren't big enough or the conditions weren't favorable.

This year, the media hype surrounding the size of the waves was especially high. On Monday, newspapers reported that we'd receive the largest surf in forty years. The Eddie was expected to go on Monday, so a friend and I drove up at 6 in the morning. We found a decent parking spot and were just about the reach the top of Waimea Bay, when we encountered several people heading toward us. We heard that the contest was called off and decided to head back to town A.S.A.P., get to work, and hope to return the following day. In the back of my mind, I thought that I was cursed to never see an Eddie despite having made several valiant efforts over the years.

Tuesday morning, December 8, my friend and I again ventured out to the North Shore. After our dry run the previous morning, we knew exactly where to park, which direction to face, what to pack (well, almost... more on that later), and what time to go. Anticipating even larger crowds, we arrived at Waimea Bay around 4 a.m. and found an excellent spot above the bay. Armed with towels, jackets, cameras, binoculars, an umbrella, food, and water, we were pretty stoked. All we needed was the official notice that the contest would be a go.

We heard they were going to call the contest at 6 a.m. We waited and waited... but no word. I ran down to the bay to check out the scene and overheard people saying that it was a 50/50 chance at best that the contest would go. Discouraged and feeling a little tired, I ran back up to our spot and conveyed the news. The waves looked like they were getting smaller, and it was feeling really chilly. 7 a.m. came around, and still no word. Packs of surfers started paddling out into the surf and riding some of these waves, though, which made it all worth the while for me. Without any measuring stick, it was difficult to tell just how big the waves were. As these guys started streaking down the faces, it became clear that these waves were actually fifteen to eighteen-footers. Since these potential contestants were out surfing, I was resigned to the fact that I had failed yet again to see the Eddie. Suddenly, we heard a cheer from the crowd at the bay below. That had to be a good sign. Soon, our neighbors were checking the contest website from their phones and told us the contest would start at 8 a.m. Finally! The Eddie was a go!!!

Having waited for four hours by the time the contest started, my friends and I were quite cold. Trying to switch between taking pictures and viewing through the binoculars made my fingers numb, and I hadn't worn long pants. Mental note: Next time, bring blankets, sleeping bags, a canopy, and hot water. But once the contest got going, the air was filled with excitement. Before we knew it, the sun came up, and some pretty good sets were rolling through. I turned around and noticed the long stream of cars crawling up the hill, straining their necks to see what we were watching. I can't believe people would drive all this way, sit through all this traffic to find parking, then walk so far to be right where we were at that moment. The first two heats of round one were exciting. Although it was from afar, we got to see surfers like Andy Irons, Jamie O'Brien, Sunny Garcia, Bruce Irons, Brian Keaulana, and others in person.

After the first two heats, the waves calmed down. With one hour per heat, we got tired and hot as the sun began beating down on us. We walked down to the bay and got several close-up shots of the first-heat surfers paddling in and the second-heat surfers paddling out. When we got up to our eagle's eye view, the waves seemed to die down, and the third and fourth heats of the first round seemed to drag. We were doubtful that the waves would pick up again and decided to call it a day. We left just before the second round started, satisfied with our entire experience. We didn't even hit any traffic going or returning home. Unfortunately, we found out later that the waves actually did pick up later on in the afternoon and that we missed an exciting final hour of the contest. Oh well... maybe next time. We were so inspired by all the surfing we saw that we decided to surf in town instead. Waves were pretty much flat to a foot, but we charged like it was Waimea.

I ended up getting sick, probably due to a lack of sleep and the long exposure to cold on the morning of the Eddie. But I don't regret it for one minute. Now I can go out and buy my very first piece of Eddie paraphernalia; I'd been holding out until I actually saw the contest. All in all, an interesting and fun experience. We met some great people, and it felt pretty much like one big block party out there. Next time, I'll be more prepared and plan to stay the whole day. Until then, I'll have lots of stories and pictures to remember that wonderful day at the bay.