Watch: A Ride of a Lifetime - Eddie Hudson

Craig Brokensha picture
Craig Brokensha (Craig)
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A great behind the scenes interview with today's Wave of the Day star, Tamarama lifeguard - Eddie Hudson. It was his first time surfing Cape Solander and after a few tips from the locals, he nailed a bomb. Footage courtesy of Tim Bonython.

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Santosha's picture
Santosha's picture
Santosha Wednesday, 24 Feb 2021 at 4:30pm

Yeah he got the magic wave alright. Bit messy getting towed through the pack at 1.55 though. What are they thinking.. driver passes less than 2 metres from the outside paddler and they duck under his wash. Guess pwc distance laws in relation to paddlers must have changed.. and with him being a lifeguard and all , must be ok.

BirdPerson's picture
BirdPerson's picture
BirdPerson Wednesday, 24 Feb 2021 at 4:53pm

Yeah that was pretty average, the boog nearly got his head taken off.

sales-rep's picture
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sales-rep Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 9:05am

That is actually ridiculous. He drops the rope on top of the pack. Wankers.

Trentslatterphoto's picture
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Trentslatterphoto Wednesday, 24 Feb 2021 at 4:59pm

towing this size wave is embarrassing but good on him for milking it into a 7 minute clip.

Haski's picture
Haski's picture
Haski Wednesday, 24 Feb 2021 at 5:07pm

Frother!
Love it

I focus's picture
I focus's picture
I focus Wednesday, 24 Feb 2021 at 5:21pm

Towing into the pack with the rope going over their heads?

savanova's picture
savanova's picture
savanova Wednesday, 24 Feb 2021 at 5:53pm

Should be renamed "Wanker on a jetski of the day". The covid super draw down has been spent wisely by many a dickhead.

chad schomberg's picture
chad schomberg's picture
chad schomberg Wednesday, 24 Feb 2021 at 5:58pm

What happen the rules if there are paddle surfers you stay away? Its just dangerous and frustrating for the paddle surfers.
Perhaps they are all mates and are cool with it.

udo's picture
udo's picture
udo Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 10:22am

Freeze @1.54 that Ski Rope is bullshit - Tim you edited out the ski rego number ?
Well surfed Eddie.

kipp's picture
kipp's picture
kipp Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 9:48am

Yeah brother I’m guessing you have probably never surfed here in your life? Also I was there for 6am till dark and maybe a handful of waves were paddled all day everyone paddling was taking turns slinging in and having fun as you need the speed when it’s that north but hey if you want to come paddle some on a day like that we will all stop towing and cheer you on haha

kipp's picture
kipp's picture
kipp Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 10:16am

Also I wasn’t driving at 1.50

udo's picture
udo's picture
udo Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 10:28am

Edited the above Kipp - i Read on Tims utube and assumed you were the Driver. -My Error.

frog's picture
frog's picture
frog Wednesday, 24 Feb 2021 at 7:56pm

Photog should have destroyed the video and kept the hero still shot.

I say that cause the still was THE peak moment. The before and after is interesting but may have been better left to the imagination.

We often see too much these days. Less can be more.

billie's picture
billie's picture
billie Wednesday, 24 Feb 2021 at 6:31pm

Fucken kook. I would hide in a closet if I behaved like that.

Tim Bonython's picture
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Tim Bonython Wednesday, 24 Feb 2021 at 6:50pm

Well, i feel the heat re the ski's in the lineup. Really on days like this towing is the only safe way to do it. I actually thought that there should have been more tow surfing as that swell direction from the Nth East to east is as dangerous as it gets. Most waves ridden either got towed into or got left behind. The amount of empty waves i videoed just went to show that paddle surfing on a day like this is almost impossible. In fact I am now going thru the days data and there were only a couple of waves paddled into the rest were wasted. Solander back in the day when the Bra boys ruled, mostly towed the place. And from my perspective the big ones are the less dangerous. It's the small paddle waves when you make a mistake that can leave you on the rocks.

billie's picture
billie's picture
billie Wednesday, 24 Feb 2021 at 9:07pm

I do not agree. I have said it before and I'll say it again and it's fairly bloody obvious etiquette. If people are paddling go elsewhere. Some wonderful waves won't get ridden. That is ok. Some wonderful waves won't fill your memory card. That is ok. Some wonderful waves will do just as they are meant to do; to fill us full of wonder. That is ideal.

To endanger paddlers lives of ANY craft whilst zooming around, burning fossil fuel, creating noise pollution, creating fume pollution, leaving vast trails of ego pollution in the lineup and all over social media - is to express ones apparent entitlement or insecurities or ignorance. Or all of the above. A great way to be disconnected from nature and to spoil the day of those connecting deeply with nature.

kipp's picture
kipp's picture
kipp Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 5:35pm

Everyone paddling was taking turns towing in we were sharing the ski haha

udo's picture
udo's picture
udo Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 5:45pm

3 + skis out there ?

billie's picture
billie's picture
billie Friday, 26 Feb 2021 at 3:05pm

So if I paddle out next swell and I express that I'm not comfortable with the ski, and I also say I don't want a turn; will you leave?

bocirl's picture
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bocirl Wednesday, 24 Feb 2021 at 9:23pm

Love your work Tim but can’t agree with this take. Basically what you are saying is that the paddle guys aren’t getting many so in order to get the waves we’re just going to drive right over them.
Ok, maybe the paddle guys shouldn’t be out but still, you can’t condone driving a ski through a line up just so you can get your shot?

Neddy's picture
Neddy's picture
Neddy Wednesday, 24 Feb 2021 at 7:33pm

Wow so much negativity... A random legend gets the wave of his life and the majority of comments are putting him down? I wonder if those keyboard warriors above who are quick to write him off would have a crack given the opportunity he had? Onya Eddie!!!

chad schomberg's picture
chad schomberg's picture
chad schomberg Wednesday, 24 Feb 2021 at 8:27pm

Yep would have a crack but not at the expense of towing through paddle surfers. I get that the best waves were best towed but to close to the paddle crew. Yes what a sick pitt. But also other people and safety to consider.

Dunko's picture
Dunko's picture
Dunko Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 12:42pm

What do you mean “given the opportunity” ? I recon everyone has the opportunity, who doesn’t know a mate with a ski?
But the reality most have enough respect or have a different value on surfing not too.

Seems to be coming a bit accepted towing in on days and places that it’s not needed.

Though maybe this was a borderline day, hard to say unless you were there watching

Jaspo's picture
Jaspo's picture
Jaspo Wednesday, 24 Feb 2021 at 7:39pm

i hate being negative but i need to vent. tim's glorifying shitty behaviour and adding to the over-exposure of places like cape. there's no etiquette in the water, the video was 7 mins video with 30-odd seconds of footage and even then it was slow mo. there's neither any soul left in surfing, nor surf film making. poor form.

frog's picture
frog's picture
frog Wednesday, 24 Feb 2021 at 8:05pm

Not fussed about exposure for such an exposed spot. But as i said above sometimes less is more. The still shot (or maybe 2-3 shots) was the hero shot. That concept has been lost a bit these days.

Ads2.0's picture
Ads2.0's picture
Ads2.0 Wednesday, 24 Feb 2021 at 8:12pm

7 minute clip for some wave he didnt ride out of.

boogiefever's picture
boogiefever's picture
boogiefever Thursday, 4 Mar 2021 at 2:01pm

This comment above !!!
√√√√√
What has surfing become......???
Lose the ego( and the jetski) and respect other ocean goers.....

eel's picture
eel's picture
eel Wednesday, 24 Feb 2021 at 8:31pm

Should have been a 1 minute clip. Interview could have been:
"I got illegally towed into a wave at Solander and blew it"

And Tim just because you don't think guys should have been paddling doesn't make it legal or right that there were guys towing in around the paddlers.

Troppo's picture
Troppo's picture
Troppo Wednesday, 24 Feb 2021 at 9:06pm

I watched the vid and really felt the need to comment!!!
Luckily I read the comments before I did, cause it seems virtually everyone else above has the same opinion. Not cool!

goofyfoot's picture
goofyfoot's picture
goofyfoot Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 6:17am

Jeez this has gone down well.

Spuddups's picture
Spuddups's picture
Spuddups Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 6:26am

Poor form with the ski. Simple as that. "Wasted waves" is not an excuse. You seem like a good bloke Tim, but you've seriously misread the room on this one. Time for a rethink.

Aussieinsweden's picture
Aussieinsweden's picture
Aussieinsweden Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 7:16am

Totally agree with all the above comments, there’s not much more to say. Jet skis should not be towing where paddling surfers are. And this instance was extreme! All for the interview and insta video eh!!

savanova's picture
savanova's picture
savanova Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 7:21am

The ski driver is no different to our leather life jacketed friends from Lakemba giving zero phucks on their skis, putting others at risk to impress those on the beach.

Hiccups's picture
Hiccups's picture
Hiccups Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 7:53am

This sucked on many levels, but I think the real crime was the music selection.

Old Gregg's picture
Old Gregg's picture
Old Gregg Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 8:29am

So 7-8 guys were already paddling in and you rocked up and proceeded to split the pack with a ski!? Yeah well done.

Blowin's picture
Blowin's picture
Blowin Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 8:54am

The vid is a decent little study into the psychology of modern surfing.

Bloke gets towed into a lurching lump of swell, confesses to blacking out the memory of the event, then gets skittled by the foam ball. The rider himself didn’t think too much of the wave and he didn’t even think it was that thick or impressive until his mates started telling him that it looked cool from the channel.

Later that night when the still shots went viral on Insta and his status rose amongst his peers was when the adrenaline kicked in and the idea that it was the wave of his life formed.

If no one had witnessed the wave would he ever think anything amazing about that particular wave at all ?

JackStance's picture
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JackStance Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 10:00am

precisely.

Sprout's picture
Sprout's picture
Sprout Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 10:11am

That reminds me of Wassel talking about that crazy Cloudbreak wave he got and didn't think too much it of compared to everyone in the channel, how subjective surfing is.

But yes, fuck these tow-in clowns. It was a shit wave anyway.

82shoes's picture
82shoes's picture
82shoes Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 10:53am

The surfer involved comes across as a really nice guy and i feel that to get a read on the situation with the ski etc, being there on the day, knowing the crew and conditions and all would play a big part.
But for mine, Blowin has just nailed the biggest issue here. Really couldn't put it any better myself.
Also that comment from above: "To endanger paddlers lives of ANY craft whilst zooming around, burning fossil fuel, creating noise pollution, creating fume pollution, leaving vast trails of ego pollution in the lineup and all over social media - is to express ones apparent entitlement or insecurities or ignorance. Or all of the above. A great way to be disconnected from nature and to spoil the day of those connecting deeply with nature."
Yep

Jd13's picture
Jd13's picture
Jd13 Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 4:44pm

Touchè

Ben Harding's picture
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Ben Harding Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 7:54pm

To play devil's advocate: they had the same dilemma in 90s. Watch the whole thing, but he address digital immediacy vs film and the subsequent lack of impact Toms first wave at jbay had on him and surfing as a whole right there and then in the moment. And that it only hit home after reviewing the tape much further down the track.

From 2:50

spookypt's picture
spookypt's picture
spookypt Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 11:04am

yeup - Sadly kudos lost to the bloke and wave due to how it was done. The end dont justify the means. More examples of me me me's. Sorry Tim, I reckon what you do is great but this stuff ain't.

rj-davey's picture
rj-davey's picture
rj-davey Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 11:52am

Hmm I can understand both sides here. I would be keen to hear from some of the crew who were paddling that day. If it's the case, as Kipp seems to suggest, that they knew their limitations and were happy enough with the tow ins happening around them, well no harm no foul. But if not...

Given the photo has gone viral and the vid is now getting traction, their silence may be somewhat indicting

billie's picture
billie's picture
billie Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 11:58am

What about the crew that won’t paddle out there because of the hassle? I know the dialogue. “Too many ski fuckwits”, “too much hassles”, “full of dick heads”. These are from fair dinkum fellas that would love to paddle out there and have a dig but couldn’t be bothered with the circus. The ILLEGAL circus encouraged by social media addicts.

JMC's picture
JMC's picture
JMC Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 11:57am

Can any of those paddling in give their 2 cent worth? I'm a firm believer in paddle before tow, but me thinks they were cool with it and actually were probably handed the rope too

spookypt's picture
spookypt's picture
spookypt Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 12:22pm

And....all the paddle crew are cool with it until.....the ski bloke kooks it or has a mechanical failure and takes out someone in the water and injury or death occurs. Its daft imo.

Shaun Hanson's picture
Shaun Hanson's picture
Shaun Hanson Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 12:25pm

Yep agree with the music selction comment ....it hurt my head

Ape Anonymous's picture
Ape Anonymous's picture
Ape Anonymous Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 12:38pm

Bogans, god love em'

gragagan's picture
gragagan's picture
gragagan Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 12:54pm

What's the go with the driver @ 1:57, just after nearly running the crew over, turns back and points at them. Doesnt look like he's sorry, looks more like a threat, like he deliberately almost ran them over. I'm guessing one of the paddlers told him where to go, and that's his response. Typical ski driving clown.

epictard's picture
epictard's picture
epictard Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 1:11pm

Looks like he's slowing down and pointing to the rope handle for one of the other guys to grab a hold of and have a spin. As noted by Kipp "everyone paddling was taking turns slinging in".

udo's picture
udo's picture
udo Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 1:23pm

More like Watch out for the Noose halfway up the Rope .

donweather's picture
donweather's picture
donweather Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 1:34pm

Agree with the above. Total disregard by the skis for anyone else’s safety. Send this to the authorities I say!!

Let me ask you this Tim. If a cyclist is legally riding their bike on the road and you’re driving in your car and think to yourself that the cyclists shouldn’t have been on the road for whatever reason you’ve thought about does that make it right to illegally drive your car through that pack of cyclists?

spookypt's picture
spookypt's picture
spookypt Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 1:38pm

don...if they were wearing lycra..........

lomah's picture
lomah's picture
lomah Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 2:19pm

i wonder what reaction you would get from eddie if you pulled a similar stunt at tama while he was on duty?

goofyfoot's picture
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goofyfoot Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 2:29pm

Eddie Rothman?

ringmaster's picture
ringmaster's picture
ringmaster Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 9:28pm

Eddie Charlton?

zenagain's picture
zenagain's picture
zenagain Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 9:59pm

Eddie the Eagle?

Patrick's picture
Patrick's picture
Patrick Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 10:08pm

Eddie the head?

billie's picture
billie's picture
billie Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 3:00pm

Good point.

Rabbits68's picture
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Rabbits68 Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 2:47pm

Kipp - "Yeah brother I’m guessing you have probably never surfed here in your life? Also I was there for 6am till dark and maybe a handful of waves were paddled all day everyone paddling was taking turns slinging in and having fun as you need the speed when it’s that north but hey if you want to come paddle some on a day like that we will all stop towing and cheer you on haha"

Sounds like everyone in the line-up was ok with it and actually participating in tow-ins, if Kipp is to be believed.

Not until a paddler is killed by a ski will anything change for the better, in fact the prevalence and mayhem will just continue to increase, hence an impending death IMO. Not much room for error when you take into account all the variables.

savanova's picture
savanova's picture
savanova Friday, 26 Feb 2021 at 2:40pm

Hasnt there already been a couple of deaths at Currumbin?

vbabin's picture
vbabin's picture
vbabin Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 4:42pm

Should have gone left and let the paddlers on the rights

Remigogo's picture
Remigogo's picture
Remigogo Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 9:26pm

Well what a mongral caarnt of a wave to catch. I thoroughly enjoyed every second..

I haven't rode a wave almost a year and this is just how I had invisioned myself surfing, looking across the channel down the passing barrels of recent bombing swell.

10/10 , until... reading above comments.

What a downer. My question is, were the paddlers bothered by the skis on this day?

I'm watching it again...

eel's picture
eel's picture
eel Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 9:44pm

Doesn't matter if they were bothered by it, it's flat out dangerous and one day someone will get hurt or killed. Do you think they will be bothered by it then?

Remigogo's picture
Remigogo's picture
Remigogo Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 9:56pm

I have always thought that Cape Solander is one of those few spots that paddlers and engine racket coexist peacefully..

dawnperiscope's picture
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dawnperiscope Monday, 1 Mar 2021 at 8:59am

I reckon you'd be pretty close to the mark with that. I think there's enough crazy gents out there, that some shit would go down if they weren't happy.
I just hate the way its normalising the ski / paddler interactions. Footage like this is slowly eroding the barriers and we're all going to suffer the long term effects.
Surfed a 5 foot open beachy on the 2nd last swell and there were skis with some very well known heads on them basically destroying the line up by buzzing back and forth. Pretty much every set had a wake lump on it. I understand why they were out there, it was forecast to be bigger that day.... but it wasn't.
Miles of empty beaches north and south. I may be old and irrelevant but the groms are growing up watching this apparent lack of respect and think its fine.

SurferSam's picture
SurferSam's picture
SurferSam Thursday, 25 Feb 2021 at 10:17pm

Towing through a busy line up.. that’s a paddlin
Claiming internet glory about it.. that’s a paddlin.
Paddlin the school canoe .. you better believe that’s a paddlin

pussyrioters's picture
pussyrioters's picture
pussyrioters Friday, 26 Feb 2021 at 8:02pm

Bad behaviour on the skis endorsed by Tim B for his own gain. Very sad but predictable as usual.

udo's picture
udo's picture
udo Friday, 26 Feb 2021 at 11:30pm

Some more from that day

The MIDdleman.'s picture
The MIDdleman.'s picture
The MIDdleman. Saturday, 27 Feb 2021 at 8:02pm

Morning paddle crew seemed to take off after the circus blew in.

frog's picture
frog's picture
frog Sunday, 28 Feb 2021 at 12:33pm

In zee olden days a good shot like that would have been on the cover of Tracks. Everyone would have gone ooh ahhh.

Any grumbles would have been heard over a beer somewhere by two people.

Now it on the grumblenet it is a bit different!

But again, Tim gave us too much information inviting deeper analysis. Two killer still shots and it would have stayed at the "wow" stage.

Liplaunched's picture
Liplaunched's picture
Liplaunched Tuesday, 2 Mar 2021 at 4:47pm

Well i think its unanimous
99 per cent of comments think its just not cool to do that
Unfortunately a lot of the worlds most skillful who we should look up are just greedy fckn cants who think they are entitled to carry on how they want
Got nothing out of that clip because of that dangerous tow in
D0 not take the clip down
We all need to see how its NOT DONE !!!

KingofSea's picture
KingofSea's picture
KingofSea Thursday, 2 Sep 2021 at 9:57am

Are you really a paddle surfer if you're not catching any waves. Paddle spectators v angry!