Bruce Irons Late Drop At Pipeline

I shot this photo of Bruce Irons during the 2001 XBOX Pipeline Master. This was the second wave of the set and the first wave was taken by a Japanese surfer who ended getting a perfect 10 for that ride. This was a huge set where you can see it forming out at second reef. Bruce was paddling back out to the line up when the Japanese surfer caught the first wave of the set and as the second one came, Bruce just swung around and went. It was insane. Since I was there and I look at the photo the wave just seemed so much bigger and powerful than it shows here. It was total commitment on Bruce's part. He made the drop, but hit the boil at the bottom and it just bounced him off the board. He ended up winning the heat though and the event by beating Kelly Slater, then newly crowned World Champion CJ Hobgood and local pipe charger Jamie O'Brien. I've never seen anyone drop in on a wave like this since. It was incredible to see.