~ The Eddie Is On ~

by Tina~in_ut

I received an email from Kgrl on Tuesday......The Eddie is on! She sent me a link so I could watch it live. I was mesmerized all day long. I had it in the background on my computer at work and showed everyone who walked by. I couldn't wait for my kids to get home from school so they could watch, too. It was still on when I got home from work and the family was watching.

"The Eddie", officially called The Quiksilver in Memory of Eddie Aikau, is held at Waimea Bay, Hawaii. In its 25 year history, this surfing competition, which is by invitation only, has only actually been completed 8 times. The event is only held if waves reach a height of at least 20 feet sometime between Dec 1st and Feb 28th. Tuesday, Dec 8th, the waves consistently reached 35 to 40 feet, with some as high as 50 feet. It was an awesome spectacle. One participant's surfboard broke in half when he wiped out. Another competitor came charging through the white foam even after I was sure he had wiped out. When all was said and done, Greg Long won by a margin of 10 points.

"The Eddie" got its nickname from the very first lifeguard at Waimea Bay, Eddie Aikau. Eddie was regarded as one of the best big-wave riders in the area. The phrase "Eddie would go!" refers to his willingness to take on huge waves that others would not brave and his courage to make a rescue in impossible situations. Not one life was lost in the time that he was a lifeguard. On March 16, 1978, Eddie set out on a 2,500 mile trek from Hawaii to Tahiti in a double-hulled sailing canoe as part of the crew. The canoe developed a leak in one of its hulls and capsized about 12 miles south of Molokai. Eddie paddled toward Lanai on his surfboard in an effort to save the crew. Hours later, a commercial plane spotted the crew and the Coast Guard was sent to rescue them. Eddie, though, despite rescue efforts, was never seen again and lost at sea at the age of 31. Six years later, Eddie's memory would live on as the first surfing contest in his honor took place. His brother, Clyde, won the contest in 1987.

When my daughter and I went to Hawaii in October, we spent time with Kgrl at Waimea Bay. The waves were just a tad rougher than when we had been there in July a year before. We had to go out a little further so as not to be pounded by the waves. Here is a picture Kgrl took that day:



....here's a picture from July 2008.....



....and here is a picture from Tuesday....



Can anyone see a difference? The Eddie Is On.........