The wave at the Banzai Pipeline has been described in many ways; runaway train, fire breathing dragon, precision guillotine, compression chamber, meat grinder, iron hammer, Neptune’s revenge, collapsing building, surfer’s graveyard, uncoiling serpent, liquid pile driver, and other colorful, evocative phrases.  There are a few waves in other places that on their days are comparatively bigger, hollower, shallower, and scarier, but they’re all eventually compared to the Pipeline as the standard bearer of each element of this dramatic criterion. It’s important to note that collectively, more surfers have died riding here than anywhere else on Earth. Underneath all the obligatory superlatives lies the fact that the Pipeline is the worlds most dramatic and dangerous wave, and gutsy surfers flock here each winter to measure themselves against it and each other in pitched battle.

There are several professional competitions held at Pipeline every winter, and last month, surf industry giant Volcom held its first ever pro surfing event there.  The battle cry for the 2010 Volcom Pipeline Pro was a potent citation from one Julius Caesar, “I love the name of honor, more than I fear death.”  Indeed.  A simultaneously inspiring and ominous, yet fitting axiom for this daunting event could not easily have been found.

Day One warm up session in gray and treacherous 10’-15’ surf.  The high morning tide and crossed up swell created wobble in the wave faces and guys were taking donuts on huge dumpy closeouts.  Five days into the contest waiting period, officials decided to call the event on! (Photo: D. Luke)

Steadily, the conditions began to organize themselves as the westerly slant asserted itself and the wind turned more east.  Massive, but cleaner second reef foam monsters like these rolled through as competing surfers and the water patrol scrambled for safety. (Photo: D. Luke)

By the afternoon, Pipeline was in classic form with dreamy backlit conditions.  Check out the set of approaching waves stacked up behind this beauty … aahhwooo!!!.  It was truly the stuff of fantasy and the performances matched the incredible surf.  (Photo: D.Luke)

Volcom is a publicly traded California based company that manufactures edgy apparel for surf, skate, and snowsport enthusiasts, and up until this past January, was involved exclusively in domestic amateur surfing competitions.  The Pipeline Pro provided Volcom with its initial foray into the professional surfing arena at its ultimate venue, and they appropriately sunk a sizeable budget into this 5 star ASP rated WQS event that allows local and international surfers the chance to earn berths into the 2010 Pipeline Masters and championship tour qualifying points.  A chance at a share of the heaving $120,000 prize purse and a rare opportunity to surf the place with only three other guys in the water didn’t hurt either.  Volcom also secured a world class webcast production team for the contest, which Oceanic was then able to deliver to its 200,000 + digital customers throughout Hawaii in crisp 1080i High Definition.

The recent procession of giant west swells had swept all the sand down to Ehukai and Pupukea, narrowing the beach and exposing these alien, teeth- like rock formations at the water’s edge.  All the better to eat you (and your expensive surfboard) with, my sweet!  (Photo: D. Luke)

Event announcers David Stanfield, Transworld Surf’s Chris Cote, and Pipeline legend Gerry Lopez.  Dave’s energetic anchoring, Chris’s spontaneous humor, and Gerry’s experience and keen insight were both entertaining and informative for web and TV viewers.  (Photo: D. Luke)

Volcom owns two adjacent houses that boast front row vantage points of the Pipe arena (seen here from the executive veranda). During the winter season, their vaunted international surf team is ensconced there in splendid and elite habitation, and the compound can now double as the Pipeline Pro command center.  (Photo: D. Luke)

So the stage was set, with three cumulative days of competition scheduled to run within the 1/23 – 2/05 waiting period.  With the El Nino climatic influence still producing swell after huge swell well into January, chances were excellent that the VPP would be held in all-time Pipe.  The only concern with the march of such closely packed low pressure systems is the havoc they wreak on the local wind conditions.  In addition to its fearsome reputation, Pipeline is also known for its fickle nature.  To really shine, it likes groundswell from the WNW, with ENE to SSE offshore winds, and all the sand moved off the reef.  The classic first reef setup can manage surf in the 8’-10’.  Any smaller and it’s not as hollow, any bigger and it just washes through from the second reef.  Rare are the days when all these components come together, but the confidence level was high amongst all.

The surf for Day Two was substantially smaller, but local guys like Pipeline specialist Sion Milosky didn’t seem to mind at all.  (Photo: D. Luke)

Day Three mirrored the epic conditions of the 28th, and the competition intensified markedly.  Here, Bruce Irons straightens out after being dropped in on by John Florence.  (Photo: D. Luke)

After quickly making it back out, Bruce got this beefy drainer to himself, pigdogging the hole from way behind the peak and nearly making it out before the wave pinched on him.  (Photo: D. Luke)

Contest officials passed on the first five days in the period because of smallish northerly surf with flaky side to onshore winds.  Day One, January 28th dawned with booming but wobbly 12’-18’ surf breaking top-to-bottom on the third reef (yikes!) and thundering through the contest area proper.  The call was made to start the first round of eliminations at 8am and everyone scrambled to their respective battle stations.

The competitors really manned up considering the super heavy conditions on day one, but eventually the surf began to organize itself midday.  By the afternoon, Madam Pipeline donned her finest as she pumped sets into the second and first reefs and the wind clocked around to the SE and dead straight offshore.  Day two began the next day in fun 6’ Pipe that then deteriorated into floppy mushburgers with the ragged onshore flow, forcing an early stoppage.  Sunday the 31st looked very similar to the 28th with the elimination rounds and the quarter finals doing battle in monster second reef bombers and lumpy conditions settling into monster afternoon perfection.  I’d never seen so many brutal wipeouts and broken surfboards in one place at one time.

Day four for the quarters and the final were blessed with conditions as sweet as they get.  Aussie Anthony Walsh was tapped as an early favorite to win the contest and deep tuberides like this one made it clear as to why.  (Photo: D. Luke)

On February 1st, two semifinal heats and the final were held in silky smooth 8’ surf.  North Shore resident and Pipe wizard Jamie O’Brien was blown out from behind the curtain enough times to capture first place, $16K, a slot in  the 2010 Pipeline Masters, and a massive Roman soldier’s helmet trophy.  This contest was earthy, small footprint, low impact, high stoke and hardcore, and the surf turned out to be everything this past December’s Billabong Masters wished it would’ve had. It also showcased little known young talent such as 13 year old local charger Landon McNamara, East Coast upstart Brett Barley, and ballsy Australian bombardier Nils Schweitzer. I really love North Shore contests because they’re ALL about powerful surf and powerful surfing (how novel!); no trick airs, no tailslides, or bunny hops, no BMX or skate exhibitions, no live bands, no bikini contest (not an official one anyway), and absolutely no posers.  The focus is fixed squarely on these courageous young surfers who’re sent out in huge dangerous surf and it’s appreciated by a knowledgeable audience at the beach, on the web, and now TV (yay!).

2010 Volcom Pipeline Pro winner Jaime O’Brien is chaired up to the podium by friends and cheered by surf fans on the beach.   An acknowledged master of the break, O’Brien has won a number of past Pipeline events and now adds this one to an increasingly crowded family mantle.  (Photo: D. Luke)

Aloha and congratulations to Richard Woolcott, Brad Daugherty, Troy Eckert, and the rest of the Volcom crew for putting on a successful and classy event from start to finish.  By all indications, the Volcom Pipeline Pro will be back in 2011, and Oceanic will be there to provide you with the live broadcast!

NOTE: Look for local media announcements and keep watching Oceanic digital 250 and HD 1250 for more live broadcasts of 2010 WCT and WQS events from Hawaii and around the world, as well as rebroadcasts of all the past contests and new surf videos in between.  If you have any comments and suggestions, please shoot me an email (dean.luke@twcable.com).  Aloha!