Watch: Kerby Brown’s Terrifying Use Of A Tow Rope

The Ancient Egyptians were the first civilization to develop and use rope. It dates back to 4000 BC and was made from water reed fibres. A few millenniums later, a rope with a handle was attached to the back of a jet ski. So-called “hellmen” used it to tow into quite frightening waves. Laird Hamilton rode a wave at Teahupoo in 2000, and surf shops across the world featured posters of “the most intense wave ever surfed.”

People were smitten.

Fast forward 18 years and these “hellmen” are paddling into waves similar to Mr Hamilton’s Chope’s stature. And now, Western Australia’s Kerby Brown, a man “born of fire”, is using these same ropes to whip into something even more frightening.

So, thanks Ancient Egyptians, متشكّرين. 

Oh, this song is intense. Volume down, or up, depending on your affinity for death metal.