story in the local paper today
The barrel that caught the world's attention
By BARRY FRANKS
April 16, 2013, midnight
COVERED IN GLORY: Kyron Rathbone on the cover of the May edition of Surfer magazine riding deep inside a huge wave on a reef off Bicheno.
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KYRON Rathbone is deep inside the cavernous throat of a huge, beautiful killing machine near Bicheno.
He is a guided missile racing for the exit as it thunders, cracks and roars all around him, guided by instinct and the finely honed skills of years of experience.
Subtle weight shifts are made, slight angle adjustments to his flight path along the steep face of the breaking wave.
They must be made quickly and with precision to match the rapidly changing surface inside the barrel.
Too low and he will spear into the flat water in front of the wave. Too high and he will be swept up the face of the barrel- forming surge of water then tossed violently onto bare rock before being blasted by hundreds of tonnes of exploding water.
He remains calmly in control inside the green room, with its glowing sun-pierced ceiling and curtains of phosphorescent spray.
It's a moment of intense beauty, serenity, awe and a little terror. It's a room of unique rarity.
Seconds before it didnt exist, in a few more seconds it will be no more.
Fifteen metres away, barely in the safety zone, Andrew Chisholm clicks the shutter and millions of surfers around the world will later view the image on the cover of Surfer magazine.
That's the moment of glory, but the race is not over yet.
The monster is gaining ground and preparing to devour its prey. The foam ball at the deepest part of the barrel, where chaos begins, is approaching.
As Kyron told Surfer magazine: "The whole slab was bone dry in front of me, and I managed to negotiate around the rock before looking up to realise I was 15 feet too deep inside the biggest, greenest glass house I had ever seen," he said.
"As the shockwave caught up to me it felt like a state of suspended animation just kind of floating in space before being pushed super deep on the other side of the reef."
Kyron believes the Bicheno wave is more dangerous than the better known Shipsterns on the Tasman Peninsula because of the exposed rock shelf.
He explained to Surfer magazine: "They were just big, perfect barrels. I have never seen a wave bend and warp so hard, and all onto a completely exposed slab of reef. I sat in the channel on my board watching the guys cheat death on every wave, some skimming the rocky ledge with their hands."
These guys know what they are doing. They are highly skilled and highly talented. They train for these waves by carrying large rocks under water to improve their ability to hold their breath for extended periods. They know how to stay calm and relax while being thrown around like rag dolls by watery explosions. Panic in this situation and you're dead.
It is easily understood that Tasmania has elite athletes, world class cricketers and leading AFL players.
Tasmania's exceptional waves are producing outstanding and committed surfers.
They are athletes and gladiators - the world is watching.
