Windy Conditions and Pipeline Barrels

By Carlos Rock

Pipeline Perfection. Photo: Jeremiah Klein.

This weekend’s west-northwest swell didn’t materialize on Maui like it did for the North Shore of Oahu and just in time for day one of the Pipeline Masters event on Saturday.

The webcast of the contest showed contestants pulling into perfect Pipeline tubes all day long with offshore conditions from fresh tradewinds, as it normally does. Oahu is so spoiled with the offshore winds.

All the while, surfers on Maui were waiting for the same swell to hit over here, but it never really happened, and to add to it, the winds were dominantly onshore/sideoffshore 10-25mph and just tearing apart the lineups of Ho’okipa and other spots.

Surfers on Maui tend to question themselves — why is it that Oahu has firing perfect groomed offshore 6-10 ft waves and Maui is getting the sloppy and choppy?

It is just the way the islands are shaped and the way they manipulate the winds. It just happens to be like that.

The truth is that Maui surfers were spoiled as well with the two weeks of Kona winds making glassy conditions so that when the trades came back, lineups returned to their old windswept selves that surfers here are used to.

Windy Maui conditions, good for kiting, not for surfing. Photo: Jimmie Hepp.

Surfers who spoke with Maui Now were very much hopeful about this WNW lighting up Oahu. “Maybe the swell is too west,” one surfer speculated, meaning that it might just miss Maui altogether, or get blocked by some of the outer islands. “Hopefully tomorrow it comes in. It sure looked good on the TV,” says another, referring to the live webcast of Pipeline perfection.

But when Sunday rolled around, things remained the same, on both islands. Pipeline was still perfect, and Ho’okipa was still a windy mess.

However, that’s just how it goes on Maui, and it should never serve as an excuse to not get in the water and catch a couple. Although watching the pros try their best at the beautiful beast that is Pipeline was probably just as entertaining than actually surfing, maybe.

Maybe, a little bit of jealousy as well as realization that you may not even be able to ride those waves if you got a chance to, also it must feel amazing to get blown out of a Pipeline tube in front of well, everyone.

Being hopeful is the part of the game of surfing. Hopeful of what tomorrow or that next swell on the charts will bring because chances are you are still in for the best waves of your life and with a positive outlook like that, it could very well happen.

Day 2, still nice and glassy. Backdoor. Photo: Ryan Craig/Surfline.

There are tons more swells on the way, as the winter season is not looking like it is slowing down any time soon.

Look for the Pipe contest to resume tomorrow 12/10 and watch the action on the webcast, or don’t watch those being paid to surf — go out and catch some for yourself, obviously.