Nic von Rupp Discusses The Newly Hyperbolized “Longest Righthand Sandbottom Tube In The World”

How many barreling right-hand sand points does the world actually have?

Three years ago we were introduced to Mick’s “Snake”, one year later it was Naxto’s Taco Grinder (as first discovered by Kepa Acero), and now we have this oversized running shorey, as surfed by Nic Von Rupp (dropped simultaneously with a SURFER video producing a similar looking point).

At first glance, it’s clear that Nic’s/SURFER’s wave is different from Mick’s, but it’s possible they could be Naxto’s. What leads us to believe otherwise is the distance at which this wave breaks from the shore in relation to Naxto’s, which is uber close. Also, Naxto’s wave look a little heavier than this one and harder to surf.

But again, it very well could be the same.

We got on the phone with Nic Von Rupp to ask him about the above, and despite his reservations, Nic shared some (semi-)useful insights.  

Stab: Hey Nic! We just saw your clip and are pretty baffled. Just how many of these roping sand points are out there?

Nic Von Rupp: There’s a lot man. It’s just a matter of having the time, money, and resources to get out there and find them.

Correct me if I’m wrong, but it seems this wave is the same as the one recently posted on SURFER.

I don’t know man. It’s hard to say. Maybe…

But it also looks different than, say, Naxto’s wave.

They look really similar — it’s hard to be sure.

Well what can you tell me about this wave?

It’s really big, and really heavy. I’ve been watching swell maps for years, and this is the biggest system I’ve ever seen hit this coast.

And did you find this wave on Google Maps and just decide to go check it out?

Nah, it would be silly to claim you “found” anything nowadays. If there’s a setup like this, chances are someone has surfed it before you, and in this case I was lucky enough to be brought there by a few really awesome locals. I just got to show up and have fun surfing.

How does this wave compare to Skeleton Bay?

What I surfed here was definitely bigger and heavier than Skeleton. But the biggest difference is the length of this wave. It’s easily five times as long as Skeleton.

Were you riding waves all the way through, or kicking out at a certain point?

You would definitely ride the wave as long as you could, but it was a little bit sectiony so most of them wouldn’t go all the way down the point. You could get some incredibly long barrels though. I didn’t really, but you could [laughs].

What were you riding?

I was on a 6’2. The wave was pretty solid, but it sucked so much water up the face you didn’t want to ride anything too long. There were a lot of broken boards though. That place is super powerful.

Anything else?

I just wanted to say thanks to all the locals that had me over there and showed me the ropes. They could have easily kept this wave for themselves, so I’m super appreciative they let me come there and enjoy it with them. I’ll definitely be keeping an eye on that region and trying to head back some day. Maybe in 5 or 10 years or something.