hellwoman
01-30-2007, 02:15 AM
::Rescue Surfer::Kelly Sorensen
Wax On: Kelly Sorenson plucked surfers out of a mammoth wash like flies out of the air.
Photo by Jane Morba
By Ryan Masters
March 9, 2005, will be remembered as one of the great days in big wave surfing history. It’s the day that Ghost Tree, the infamous big wave break off of Pebble Beach, made an indelible mark on the surfing world’s map by serving up some of the biggest waves ridden anywhere on the planet.
And while all of the glory may have gone to the handful of surfers who rode the 50-foot beasts, there was one man out on the water that day who risked his life not for the cameras or the thrill of the ride, but simply in the interests of safety.
Kelly Sorensen has owned and operated On The Beach Surf Shop for almost 20 years. He’s a big man with equal parts business sense and wave sense. A lifelong surfer with a taste for big waves, he was one of the first to make the leap to tow surfing—which allows surfers to ride waves the size of six-story buildings with the aid of personal water craft (PWC).
In 1999, Sorensen joined the Pacific Grove Ocean Rescue Team and began volunteering to do water patrol every year for the Pacific Grove triathlon. Then in 2001, Sorensen met Shawn Alladio at Maverick’s, the legendary Half Moon Bay big wave. Alladio has been a vocal advocate of PWC safety and legislation for over a decade and her K38 safety courses have helped define the sport of tow surfing.
Concerned with the rising popularity of tow surfing and the sheer number of vessels and surfers in the water, Sorenson took Alladio’s course—training that proved itself invaluable when Ghost Tree went off this spring.
Early on the morning of March 9, Sorensen was one of the first people on the scene. Alone, he stood at Pescadero Point and watched the ocean rear up and repeatedly hurl itself with a terrible roar into Stillwater Cove.
It was going to be a big day and, with all the media attention the spot had recently received, it was going to be crowded. The lineup wasn’t going to need another surfer, Sorenson surmised, it was going to need some dedicated water patrol. He climbed back into his truck and went back to Monterey to launch his PWC from the breakwater.
Sorensen’s instincts couldn’t have been better. March 9 proved both glorious and nearly fatal. Carmel native Don Curry caught a wave that nearly won the 2004/2005 Billabong XXL award for the biggest in the world, while Australian Justen Allport had his leg broken in four places.
Through it all, Sorensen patrolled the impact zone, picking up stranded surfers and managing traffic.
Then, early in the afternoon, Santa Cruz pro Russell Smith towed his brother, Tyler, into a monster. Tyler styled straight down the thing’s massive face before Ghost Tree dropped a 50-foot axe on him.
When Tyler’s brother was blown off his PWC trying to save him, Sorensen raced into the chaotic impact zone to save both brothers. Thanks to Sorensen’s training and nerves, Tyler suffered only a strained rotator cuff and the Smith boys lived to ride another day.
http://www.montereycountyweekly.com/issues/Issue.06-30-2005/cover/Article.cover_story/print
Wax On: Kelly Sorenson plucked surfers out of a mammoth wash like flies out of the air.
Photo by Jane Morba
By Ryan Masters
March 9, 2005, will be remembered as one of the great days in big wave surfing history. It’s the day that Ghost Tree, the infamous big wave break off of Pebble Beach, made an indelible mark on the surfing world’s map by serving up some of the biggest waves ridden anywhere on the planet.
And while all of the glory may have gone to the handful of surfers who rode the 50-foot beasts, there was one man out on the water that day who risked his life not for the cameras or the thrill of the ride, but simply in the interests of safety.
Kelly Sorensen has owned and operated On The Beach Surf Shop for almost 20 years. He’s a big man with equal parts business sense and wave sense. A lifelong surfer with a taste for big waves, he was one of the first to make the leap to tow surfing—which allows surfers to ride waves the size of six-story buildings with the aid of personal water craft (PWC).
In 1999, Sorensen joined the Pacific Grove Ocean Rescue Team and began volunteering to do water patrol every year for the Pacific Grove triathlon. Then in 2001, Sorensen met Shawn Alladio at Maverick’s, the legendary Half Moon Bay big wave. Alladio has been a vocal advocate of PWC safety and legislation for over a decade and her K38 safety courses have helped define the sport of tow surfing.
Concerned with the rising popularity of tow surfing and the sheer number of vessels and surfers in the water, Sorenson took Alladio’s course—training that proved itself invaluable when Ghost Tree went off this spring.
Early on the morning of March 9, Sorensen was one of the first people on the scene. Alone, he stood at Pescadero Point and watched the ocean rear up and repeatedly hurl itself with a terrible roar into Stillwater Cove.
It was going to be a big day and, with all the media attention the spot had recently received, it was going to be crowded. The lineup wasn’t going to need another surfer, Sorenson surmised, it was going to need some dedicated water patrol. He climbed back into his truck and went back to Monterey to launch his PWC from the breakwater.
Sorensen’s instincts couldn’t have been better. March 9 proved both glorious and nearly fatal. Carmel native Don Curry caught a wave that nearly won the 2004/2005 Billabong XXL award for the biggest in the world, while Australian Justen Allport had his leg broken in four places.
Through it all, Sorensen patrolled the impact zone, picking up stranded surfers and managing traffic.
Then, early in the afternoon, Santa Cruz pro Russell Smith towed his brother, Tyler, into a monster. Tyler styled straight down the thing’s massive face before Ghost Tree dropped a 50-foot axe on him.
When Tyler’s brother was blown off his PWC trying to save him, Sorensen raced into the chaotic impact zone to save both brothers. Thanks to Sorensen’s training and nerves, Tyler suffered only a strained rotator cuff and the Smith boys lived to ride another day.
http://www.montereycountyweekly.com/issues/Issue.06-30-2005/cover/Article.cover_story/print