When The Surf's Way Up

Who cares if it's dangerous? A cadre of daredevils is chasing the 100-ft. swell

Pete Cabrinha had ridden killer waves before, but this time, as he surfed down the face of a giant swell rolling in over the notorious Jaws reef off Maui, Hawaii, last January, he couldn't find the bottom. "It was growing in front of me and growing behind me, so it felt like I wasn't getting anywhere," recalls Cabrinha, 42, a veteran surfer from Hawaii. There had already been 10 "horrific wipeouts" that morning. As Cabrinha was gaining speed going down the wave, its breaking lip was closing in fast from behind. People watching from the shore began shouting, "Go, Pete, go!"...

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