For anyone who has ever wondered what it's like to surf a 73½-foot (22.4-meter) wave, rest assured — it's just as scary and exhilarating as you think it is.
Brazilian big wave surfer Maya Gabeira is one of few who can provide a first-hand account, having surfed a wave that size during the World Surf League Big Wave Nazare Tow Surfing Challenge in Portugal on Feb. 11. She remembered thinking at the time there was something different about that wave.
Her feeling was confirmed on Thursday, when the World Surf League announced her ride on that wave had earned her this year’s cbdMD XXL Biggest Wave Award and also set the Guinness World Record for the largest wave ever surfed by a woman.