iStockphoto / fredtamashiro
Surfers are just built differently from other athletes. There’s something about the adrenaline-seeking nature of the sport coupled with the primal closeness to the earth that draws in a special type of crazy to the sport of Surfing.
Case in point, surfer Ben Gravy (real name Benjamin Graeff) who traveled to Alaska to go glacier tsunami surfing.
Not only did he seek out surfing in the icy glacial water of Alaska that’s cold enough to cause hypothermia in seconds without a protective suit, he’s also trying to surf tsunami waves caused by falling glacial ice into the water.
And he succeeded. Ben Gravy got some sick footage of surfing glacier tsunami waves in Alaska and his video has started going viral on YouTube.
The video is long. I recommend starting at about the 9-minute mark:
You have to be truly nuts to get this close to falling glacier ice WHILE SURFING. Getting that close in a boat is unadvisable but on a surfboard?!
Ben Gravy also rode a 15-minute wave during his surfing glacier tsunami trip to Alaska. This wave, however, was caused by a 40-foot tide surge. There is a 30-minute version of that video along with an Instagram clip showing the action:
Full video:
I simply cannot fathom flying to Alaska to get in the icy water to go surfing. Has anyone told him there are good waves in warmer climates? Sure, there’s an incredible thrill with being the first to do something (surf these glacier tsunamis) but why not just go to Hawaii or Costa Rica?
It is hard to fathom athletes from other sports seeking this out. I grew up wakeboarding in Florida before I ever learned to surf. Primarily because I’m from the Gulf Coast and we get smaller waves but our water is warm pretty much year-round.