1 big-wave or any-size-wave spot in the Islands,” Greg Noll concedes in his autobiography. “Downing and Trent had helped establish Makaha as the No. To the Californians, they considered themselves the first to ride Waimea and the North Shore. Not overly concerned with history, the predominantly-Californian group of “Coast haoles” riding the North Shore at that time largely dismissed or forgot about Dickie Cross, Woody Brown, Wally Froiseth, Fran Heath and the rest of the Hot Curl surfers riding the spot since the late 1930s. In Greg Noll’s Da Bull, Life Over the Edge, Noll recalled the first time Waimea Bay was “successfully” ridden by surfers following the Hot Curlers. I repost this story here from Legends of Surfing to remind us to of the courage of those pioneers and to remain humble and always respect the power of the ocean. And as for most surfers, to face their ultimate fear. It is a gripping story and one that I have never forgot for the courage it must have taken to be the first to paddle out, to risk the fear of the unknown. Although other surfers followed them into the lineup it is generally agreed that Greg Noll had convinced them to paddle out and thus led the charge to conquer Waimea Bay. That is until Greg Noll pushed his friend Mike Strange to paddle out in 1957. The lore was that surfers had been watching it for years, building up the courage to go out. Add to that a gnarly shorebreak, raging rip current, sharky waters, and the presence of a church on the point and a Hawaiian h eiau in the valley and it all added up to a scary, forbidden place. From the beach Waimea appeared too big, too fast, too steep and just generally too treacherous to ride. Surfer Dickie Cross had died there in 1943 after padding down the coast from Sunset beach on a fast-building step-ladder swell. Everyone at that time were too afraid to surf Waimea, and for good reason. Photo by John Severson.When I was young I read about the first surfers to ride Waimea Bay in 1957. Greg Noll, one of the first surfers to ride Waimea Bay, studying Pipeline before paddling out, 1964.
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