The Week We Lost Andy Irons

A year ago today the world lost not only a 3 time world champion but one of the most fearless and influential surfers of all time. It all came at a time when Andy was bouncing back and quickly making a comeback to the World Tour. With a win at the 2010 Billabong Pro Teahupoo in early September, Andy sat in 16th place on the rankings leading up to the 2010 Rip Curl Pro Search Puerto Rico. He was surfing like the Andy we all knew and loved and had some momentum. I had flown down to Puerto Rico a few days before Halloween and was more than ecstatic to see the worlds best surfers battle it out at Middles in Isabella. I could have never imagined the ups and downs of the days to follow.

The 2010 Rip Curl Pro Search Puerto Rico wasn’t just another stop on the 2010 tour. Before it even started everyone knew the magnitude of what was to come: It was the first world tour contest to hit the island since the 60′s. Jordy Smith and the then, still 9 time world champion, Kelly Slater were wrapped up in a title race. Beloved Puerto Rican local, Dylan Graves was awarded a spot in the contest by winning the trials. Stephanie Gilmore was on her way to win her 4th consecutive world title. AND, as if things couldn’t get any crazier, there was a chance that Kelly Slater could win his 10th title right there in Puerto Rico. It’s safe to say that everyone on the beach at Middles was in for one hell of a week.

The first heat of round one hit the water on October 30th. The sun was out, the waves were real fun and the pros were surfing really well. Giving that this was my first time seeing surfers of this caliber surf live in person, I was amazed by how different it was compared to watching a live webcast or a surf movie. I was pumped for every heat of the first round but the one that I was most excited to see was the 6th: Owen Wright, Andy Irons, Luke Stedman. When it was time for these guys to surf, there was no sign of Andy. I quickly jumped on twitter and read that Andy wasn’t feeling well. Rumor had it he was hanging at his hotel in PR and he would probably be surfing in his second round heat.

Round two came and went and still no sign of Andy. At this point the rumors were saying that Andy was suffering from Dengue fever that he may have caught in Portugal and that we has on his way home to Hawaii to see his doctor. Sometime on the evening of November 2nd, 2010 the word that Andy had passed started circulating. I remember sitting at a bar in Rincon with my girlfriend reading twitter. The mood quickly went from fun and happy to somber and sad. I started to think about who Andy Irons really was as a person and a surfer. Remembering all the surf movies I had watched him in. Remembering the years were he was the one who ruled the rankings. Remembering watching him battle it out in heated matches with Kelly Slater all over the world. This has been said many times before but Andy Irons was and still seems to be the only other surfer that truly gave Slater a hard time in competition consistently. And he was gone. No more Andy Irons. It was shocking…just shocking.

Andy had passed but there was still an entire surf contest to run. In respect for Andy the competition, had been called off for 2 days. On the 2nd lay day, November 3rd, there was a paddle out at Middles for Andy. All the pros and any friends of the pros, along with some locals and fans all paddled and formed a huge circle past the lineup. I happend to be there for the paddle out with a friend of mine and participated in the paddle out with everyone. It’s a weird thing for me because it was really cool to celebrate Andy’s life with all the pros that he had been friends and competed with over the years but I almost felt like I shouldn’t have been there. Either way it was an honor to be a part of that and it’s something that I’ll never forget in my entire life.

 

When the heats started up again, everyone was still in shock and it was still a bit surreal on the beach. It felt like the gravity of the situation still hadn’t really sunk in yet. The waves picked up and the pros hit the water and got back to what they were in Puerto Rico for. As the contest went on and everyone got back to work, you could tell Kelly Slater, once the archenemy of Andy Irons, was on a mission. Not only to win number 10 but to win the entire contest, not for him, but for Andy. Kelly went on to win a dominating heat against Adriano de Souza which locked up number 10. Later in the day, Kelly had made it to the finals and right before the heat against Bede Durbidge there was a moment of silence for Andy. The beach at Middles had been rocking all week and it was a bit eerie to be there with all those people in silence just listening to the wind and the ocean. Before the silence could end, a rainbow formed out on the horizon. Right then and there as a chill ran through my body, I knew that Andy was there on the beach with all of us. It was crazy.

 

The entire week of the contest was a success and history was made but it was all shadowed by the loss of one of surfing’s true greats. Regardless of the cause of death or any of the stories about A.I. that came out in the months after his death, he was and will always be a legend. It was a truly sad day for the surfing world and our thoughts still go out to Andy’s close friends and his family.

R.I.P. A.I.

 

“i surf because… it keeps my life at an even keel, without it I would tip into oblivion”- Andy Irons