Surfers brave ‘monster’ 12m-high waves at Sydney beach

Daring surfers have braved “mountain-like” waves as tall as a three-storey building in Sydney.

Strong winds stirred up the 12m waves at Wedding Cake Island near Coogee Beach.

Experienced surfer Adrian “Taco” Kovacic said the waves were the highest he had ever witnessed or surfed.

“It was as big as I’ve ever seen it. They were ranging between the 20 foot mark (6m) and a few bomb sets, which were 30 to 40 feet (9m to 12m) easily.”

Mr Kovacic said the conditions were “unbelievable” and left many surfers with “horrendous” wipe-outs*.

“About 40 minutes into the surf a big set came in and broke on my head. It was the worst flogging* of my life,” he said. “After that wipe-out we all got together and asked if everyone was okay, I was dizzy and seeing stars and trying to catch my breath.”

The 29-year-old surfer said Monday’s waves were so “out of control” they broke his surfboard.

Brazilian bodysurfer* Kalani Lattanzi tackled the monster waves with just his wetsuit for protection with one witness describing his surf as one of “craziest” things ever seen in the Aussie surf.

Mr Lattanzi was seen surfing from the top of a massive wave — paddling to the location by himself before plummeting* down the water cliff.

He was swallowed by the lip of the wave (where it starts to curl over) at one point, but it didn’t stop him from conquering* the watery beast.

The 27-year-old wrote on Instagram alongside some photos of his incredible ride: “A day to remember. The locals said it was the biggest swell at this spot.”

TV’s Bondi Rescue star Anthony Glick, who captured incredible shots of Mr Lattanzi, said the feat was “so epic to watch”.

“One of the craziest things I have ever seen another human do,” Mr Glick wrote.

GLOSSARY

• wipe-outs: falling from the surfboard from the force of a wave
• flogging: being hit by something
• bodysurfer: a surfer who uses their body on the wave instead of a board
• plummeting: falling quickly
• conquering: successfully overcome something
• feat: achievement

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QUICK QUIZ

1. What is the name of the island location where the giant waves occurred?
2. How tall were the ‘bomb sets’ waves?
3. Which country is bodysurfer Kalani Lattanzi from?
4. What caused the surf to be so big?
5. What is the lip of a wave?

LISTEN TO THIS STORY

CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
1. Ride the wave!
How would it feel to ride such a massive wave? Imagine that you are one of the amazing surfers in the story. Write a description of what surfing the waves was like. Your purpose is to make your reader feel like they are riding the wave with you. Remember to include all of your senses (taste, touch, smell, seeing, sounds) and how you felt at the beginning, middle and end of the surf.

Time: allow 25 minutes to complete this activity.
Curriculum Links: English

2. Extension
Do you know what causes swells and waves? Use your research skills to find out more. Use what you have learned to create a poster. Your purpose is to help someone who has never been to the beach understand how waves and swell are formed.

Time: allow 20 minutes to complete this activity.
Curriculum Links: English; Science; Geography.

VCOP ACTIVITY
It’s like learning a second language!
Many sports and hobbies have a language all of their own. As you can see in the article, surfing is no different. Think of a sport or hobby that you like that has some unique terms or phrases. Make a list of some of the unique terms or phrases it uses.

Then write a short paragraph, using some of those unique terms or phrases from your selected sport or hobby.

Re-read your paragraph out loud to make sure it makes sense and it’s grammatically correct.

Next, underline the unique phrases or terms and create a glossary with definitions underneath to explain to readers what they mean.

Then share with a partner and see if they can work out what each of the terms mean without the glossary.

Extension: Discuss with a partner, where using unique language, such as slang and colloquial terms, could be beneficial to the piece of writing to create characterisation.