It’s late September 1999 and a massive South Pacific swell is bearing down on Puerto Escondido.

Along the shoreline of the fabled Playa Zicatela, the onslaught has carved the soft sand into a series of miniature cliffs. Atop their peaks, spectators stare out towards the horizon. Between long, marauding clean-up sets surfers can occasionally be seen falling from the sky on huge chunks of foam and fibreglass – guinea pig gladiators at the world’s first big wave longboard barrel riding event. 

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