AggieDave 6 #1 January 5, 2005 Yall hear about this guy? Clicky QuoteSurfer rode tsunami wave to safety January 4, 2005 Page Tools A veteran surfer has told how he was forced to ride a towering tsunami to save his life as it engulfed an idyllic Sri Lankan village. Martin Hambrook, 40, from Porthcawl, south Wales, was in the sea off the island's southern coast waiting for what he hoped would be a perfect wave. Partner Vicky Maxwell, 42, and son Jai, 7, were watching from the beach as the horrific form of the tsunami appeared on the horizon. The family-of-three fly to Sri Lanka every year and were staying at the Hansa Surf Lodge, in Hikkaduwa, when the giant wave hit on Boxing Day. His partner and son were forced to flee to the safety of their nearby hotel balcony and watch in horror as the wave scooped him up. "It was really terrible because I was surfing on a wave I wasn't supposed to be on," Mr Hambrook told Wales on Sunday newspaper in an exclusive interview. "As an experienced surfer, when I saw the wave come I realised something was wrong, but I couldn't escape because the surfboard was tied to my ankle." Despite the ferocity of the wave, he stayed on his board as he was carried over the sandy beach right up to the hotel. He leapt off in the restaurant as the sea withdrew and a second wave, about 10 metres high, rolled in. The family then fled to higher ground. All three survived the devastation which has claimed thousands of lives and have opted to stay on the island to help local people clear wreckage. PA--"When I die, may I be surrounded by scattered chrome and burning gasoline." Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PhillyKev 0 #2 January 5, 2005 That definitely requires video. I call BS. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BillyVance 34 #3 January 5, 2005 Sounds like he did what he had to do. Good head on his shoulders, and great balance staying on the board! I had heard that a group of 12 - 20 surfers had been wiped out somewhere by the Tsunami..."Mediocre people don't like high achievers, and high achievers don't like mediocre people." - SIX TIME National Champion coach Nick Saban Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
AggieDave 6 #4 January 5, 2005 Its being carried as a legit story on the news wire, but yeah...video proof is sort of needed with a story like that.--"When I die, may I be surrounded by scattered chrome and burning gasoline." Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jib 0 #5 January 5, 2005 If it could happen on Gilligan's Island, have some faith! -------------------------------------------------- the depth of his depravity sickens me. -- Jerry Falwell, People v. Larry Flynt Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tunaplanet 0 #6 January 5, 2005 QuoteIts being carried as a legit story on the news wire Dave, Dave, Dave. Don't believe everything you read. This was carried as a legit story as well. Show me video then I'll believe. Until then I'm not buying. Forty-two Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KawiZX900 0 #7 January 5, 2005 people ride em.... don't know about that one. But people ride em.... take a look http://www.garrettmcnamara.com Accelerate hard to get them looking, then slam on the fronts and rollright beside the car, hanging the back wheel at eye level for a few seconds. Guaranteed reaction- Dave Sonsky Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
flyingferret 0 #8 January 5, 2005 Seems a bit much, but watch Step into Liquid, successful 65 foot tow in waves.-- All the flaming and trolls of wreck dot with a pretty GUI. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JohnnyD 0 #9 January 5, 2005 QuoteThat definitely requires video. I call BS. I'll second that BS. I've never heard of a big wave surfer (or wave of any size surfer) from South Wales. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Courteney 0 #10 January 5, 2005 I call a third Bullshit on that!!! I've been to Wales...and let me just say this, the surf sucks and I doubt there's any "big wave" riders there. Plus anyone surfing 65' waves doing tow-in surfing, knows the wave is coming and is fully prepared for it. That would mean that he got sucked out to sea first and then survived without hitting anything on the way in? Cough! Cough! Bullshit! Cough!...drags me down like some sweet gravity!!! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
flyingferret 0 #11 January 5, 2005 Yeah, it would be really hard to get on the wave. He could not come in from the landward side...and I dont see how he could catch it from the seeward side.-- All the flaming and trolls of wreck dot with a pretty GUI. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SkymonkeyONE 3 #12 January 5, 2005 QuoteThat definitely requires video. I call BS. Anyone remember the episode of Gilligan's Island where a guy surfed a wave all the way from Hawaii to their island? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Shotgun 1 #13 January 5, 2005 I was looking for more news about this and came across several other articles about different people who survived on surfboards: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/dorset/4139779.stm http://iccheshireonline.icnetwork.co.uk/0100news/0100regionalnews/tm_objectid=15041101&method=full&siteid=50020&headline=surfer-rides-killer-wave-to-safety-name_page.html Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
storm1977 0 #14 January 5, 2005 BS BS BS.... Iknow, because the debis and the trees and the buildings wouldn't have posed any danger and wouldn't have knocked him off!!!!!!!!!! In open water a tsunami travels at 400-500mph. Near shore they travel between 70-150mph. First I want to know how he catches the wave and then how he rides it dodging all of the debris and tress and buildings goin 70-150mph!!!!!!! ----------------------------------------------------- Sometimes it is more important to protect LIFE than Liberty Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Zoter 0 #15 January 5, 2005 QuoteI'll second that BS. I've never heard of a big wave surfer (or wave of any size surfer) from South Wales. Yeah?? But then again I bet you never heard about a surfer caught at sea with the biggest approaching Tsunami in living memory..wondering what the hell to do. Its not like he planned it......he faced it because he had too.....no choice...and thats where alot of weird and strange success ( and failure) stories come from...Take a walk through the incidents forum on cutaway stories for a 'relevant' example of the phenomenon Ok I bet he didnt 'ride' it ......but if he made it out alive after being on a board on the sea at the time....he did something right. I guess a guy floating on a tree trunk out at sea for over 100 hundred miles for 8 days living on cocunuts opened by door handles is BS as well...... no video, didnt happen ...right? Extraordinary situations realise extraordinary stories I say .....well done mate...you lived. Whether he was from Porthcawl or Cali....whatever, he did something right. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Casurf1978 0 #16 January 5, 2005 BS BS BS BS BS. The second wave was 10 meters, thats freaking 30+feet, so how big was the first. This paper is telling me a new South Wales surfer paddled intoa 30 foot plus wave and rode it. A handful of surfer can ride those waves, they get towed in and are riding 10 foot plus guns specially desgined for huge ass waves. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JohnnyD 0 #17 January 5, 2005 QuoteOk I bet he didnt 'ride' it No kidding. If the wave passed by him without cresting and left him in the ocean while the shore was being ravaged, I would believe that. But to say he paddled onto the tsunami wave is a Powerade commercial. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tunaplanet 0 #18 January 5, 2005 Is this the thread where we can talk about Bigfoot and Loch Ness monster sightings? Forty-two Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
gjhdiver 0 #19 January 5, 2005 QuoteYall hear about this guy? Martin Hambrook, 40, from Porthcawl, south Wales, was in the sea off the island's southern coast waiting for what he hoped would be a perfect wave. Actually, if it was to be a perfect wave, and recreate the experience of surfing off the Welsh coast, then you would have had to have bunged in a few fresh human turds and some used condoms and syringes to accompany him on his ride into shore. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PhillyKev 0 #20 January 5, 2005 QuoteActually, if it was to be a perfect wave, and recreate the experience of surfing off the Welsh coast, then you would have had to have bunged in a few fresh human turds and some used condoms and syringes to accompany him on his ride into shore. Thank god for that gulf stream. Otherwise that stuff would still be off the New Jersey coast. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
wmw999 2,291 #21 January 5, 2005 QuoteI've never heard of a big wave surfer (or wave of any size surfer) from South Wales. Ready..... Post.... Establish facts Always the best way Wendy W.There is nothing more dangerous than breaking a basic safety rule and getting away with it. It removes fear of the consequences and builds false confidence. (tbrown) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Zoter 0 #22 January 5, 2005 He's from Porthcawl....... Thats Wales....UK Not NSW , Australia Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JohnnyD 0 #23 January 5, 2005 QuoteQuoteI've never heard of a big wave surfer (or wave of any size surfer) from South Wales. Maybe not. But New South Wales is in Australia, and I believe it's the home of, among other places, Bondi Beach. Bondi was featured in the classic of surf and skydiving "Point Break." Methinks there are lots of surfers from NSW. Wendy W. There are some bad ass surfers in OZ, but Porthcawl, South Wales is in the UK. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Zoter 0 #24 January 5, 2005 QuoteActually, if it was to be a perfect wave, and recreate the experience of surfing off the Welsh coast, then you would have had to have bunged in a few fresh human turds and some used condoms and syringes to accompany him on his ride into shore. errr....not quite. Some rubbish....mainly just cold and flat Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
wmw999 2,291 #25 January 5, 2005 Ah -- missed the city. Dang. Right up there with the Jamaican bobsled team then, hm? Wendy W.There is nothing more dangerous than breaking a basic safety rule and getting away with it. It removes fear of the consequences and builds false confidence. (tbrown) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
