In the past fortnight Kipp Caddy passed two important milestones. The first was reaching his 18th birthday and legally enjoying the benefits that comes with that. The second was more auspicious and could be considered Kipp's real rite of passage; a trip to Teahupoo and a firsthand look at how perfect and how heavy waves can be. For a young bloke with designs on a big wave career his first glimpse of a real Teahupoo set was a moment of truth.

"My whole perspective on surfing changed," said Kipp, but the violence of Teahupoo didn't deter him from the career he's only just embarked on.

Swellnet spoke to Kipp before and after the trip.

Swellnet: Where are you from originally?
Kipp Caddy: Ulladulla, on the South Coast of NSW

Where do you live now?
I'm currently living in Cronulla. I was 14 so I didn’t really have a say in where I would live, but in saying that it wasn’t too hard because there isn’t a better place to live in Sydney when it comes to waves. I soon fell in love with places like Shark Island, Cape Solander, and a few other reefs we have in the area.

There are so many benefits to living in Cronulla in the sense of opportunities, coaching, sponsorship, and photographers. It's also so close to the airport and not to mention the amount of girls, it's actually crazy. They're everywhere!

What do you miss about your old hometown?
There were so many options when it came to surfing serious slabbing waves with nobody in sight. I have some really cool friends and it was the perfect place to just go and surf.

Do you still consider yourself a local there? Reckon you could still paddle out and command a few sets?
I guess so. I learnt how to surf there and the locals are pretty well just good friends. Both of my Nan and Pops live there and have a crib for me to hang out at. The best part is waking up for an early and already having my bacon and eggs on a plate. Thanks Nan!

In pro surfing there now appears three ways to make a career: competition; progressive free surfing; and big wave surfing. Where do you fit into that scheme?
I definitely see it like that but the number of people who make a living out of professional big wave surfing is pretty slim. I think you have to take advantage of opportunities, you have to be smart. People like Mark Mathews and Ryan Hipwood have done really well for themselves.

I think Mark and Ryan have always looked at things progressively and have gone out and done things people thought weren't possible. I'm going to follow the big wave path because I enjoy the feeling I get when I'm in solid surf. Slabbing barrels is where my interest is.

Have you always been fixed on that path? For instance, did you consider the comp route when you were younger?
Well, I got sponsored from Rip Curl when I was 12-years-old and that came from doing the Rip Curl Grom Searches. I used to follow the comps around from age 11 to14, I had some moments, I was consistently making Semis and Finals for a couple of years there. But in my particular age group the competition is incredibly high. I placed second in a couple of major competitions, like the Taj Small Fries in Western Australia to Jacob Wilcox. He surfs so good and definitely has a career in professional surfing, he's already proven that by beating Kelly Slater.

I guess I struggled when it was small. I've always been much taller then the other kids and it was a bit of a disadvantage in waves under three foot, and it's beyond rare to turn up to a comp and have sizey waves.

As a grom I was thrown out into a bombie on the south coast. I'd just turned 13 and it was a solid 10 – 15 foot with the odd bigger one. I had the whole lineup to myself and people like Brett Burcher were in the channel yelling so I had no option but to lock into a genuine set. Afterward I received a mention by Brett Burcher in Tracks and the caption read: I thought I was seeing things when I saw him behind the rope, I don’t even think he has pubes yet and he’s doing this shit.

I'm pretty sure I didn’t have pubes but wiping out and copping a beating out there gave me confidence and I have loved big waves ever since.

A day after this conversation Kipp asked about a storm forming below New Zealand. Two days later he'd hooked up with filmmaker Tim Bonython. And four days later he was winging his way to Papeete on his first trip to Tahiti.

The following sequence was shot by Tim. Keep an eye out for a mini documentary Tim is making featuring Kipp, plus other young crew such as Sam Jones, Russell Bierke, Matahi Drollet, and Jack Robinson.

How were the waves at Teahupoo?
I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. My whole perspective on surfing changed when I saw the first real set come through! It was so crazy, but at the same time picture perfect. Surfing out there is a calculated risk. We get heavy slabbing waves here on the east coast but they pinch or sometimes closeout, but out there you know exactly what it's going to do, it's sooo perfect!

Were they the heaviest waves you’d surfed?
Yeah, it's the heaviest wave I've surfed. The hold downs aren’t too long but they are pretty violent. When you fall off you have no say in what happens, the wave is 100% in control. When a set comes through there is so much power in it. When we where there it was a 19 second period so the waves were moving so quickly which was making it a little more challenging.

Back home in Australia it's pretty rare to get swells up over the 12 second mark, and there is definitely more power when the period in between waves goes up. There's more water in the waves and it pulls more water up off the reef making it much more powerful...and I forgot to mention it's a shallow coral reef. It rips skin off you every time you touch it...

Speaking of, you cut your self up in Tahiti. What happened?
I took a wave deeper on the reef. There was someone on the inside of me, he pulled back last second so I went pretty late. I was way too deep, the shock wave took control, it felt like there was no water under me and I went straight into the reef on the back of my shoulders, my back twisted and my knees were up in my face. It then picked me up again and slammed me on my lower back. The coral ripped a fair bit of skin off. I then copped another wave on the head. I was pretty out of it by the time I got thrown into the lagoon. Liming my cuts wasn’t all that pleasant.

I surfed the next day but I was tight, so I just took it easy, I was in a fair bit of pain. I have now been home for two weeks and haven't been able to surf yet, my back and neck are so tight.

During the trip did you get more of an understanding of what it takes to become a pro big wave surfer?
Yeah, most definitely. To do it as a profession you have to want it, you have to prepare yourself, and then put yourself in crazy situations and be comfortable with doing that.

How did you go overcoming the fear factor?
I train with some older mates in a pool twice a week and they push me. It's given me so much confidence knowing I can hold my breathe for longer than most waves are able hold be down for. I've been surfing larger waves for a while but it's probably only the last six months I've started feeling really comfortable.

I have a brand new 7'6” from Dylan Perese, my shaper, and I’m pretty keen to have paddle some bombies down south. I also just got my hands on a jetski and I have my license so I can’t wait for Cape Solander to have a solid tow swell. I love that place.

Changing topic for a moment: In our last conversation you mentioned Mark Mathews and Hippo, both those guys have become social media brands in their own right. Do you ever get pressure from sponsors to increase your social media exposure?
I think Mark and Hippo have really got social media sorted and it's part of the job. All the brands have Instagram and that's because it's free advertising and it's a massive market. So there is definitely pressure on anybody working with a company to best create a marketable image for themselves and the brand.

Follow Kipp on Instagram
Follow Tim Bonython's Swell Chasers on Facebook