“I Was Going to Die”: American Surfing Legend Recalls Horrifying Events of a Near-Death Experience During Teenage Days

Big wave surfer Kai Lenny has always been passionate about pushing his limits. The Nazaré Tow Surfing Challenge winner is famous for blowing people’s minds with his zeal to surf on the highest possible waves in the world. However, Kai was not this courageous always. He too was scared of big waves initially. In a recent interview, he shared his first experience as a big-wave surfer. 

On 10 March 2023, Kai Lenny appeared in an interview with Esquire. The 30-year-old surfer opened up about many aspects of his surfing career. More so, he also shared his first big wave story, which was so thrilling that he thought he was going to die. 

Kai Lenny was accompanied by Laird Hamilton and Dave Kalama in his first experience

Recalling his first big wave experience, Kai revealed that he had the famous surfing spot Jaws in the backyard of his house in Hawaii. So he could surf anytime. Legendary surfers Laird Hamilton and Dave Kalama offered to take him there for surfing in big waves. However, Lenny had his first proper experience when he was 17. 

 In an interview with Esquire, Lenny revealed the first time, he was towed by legendary surfer Dave Kalama at Jaws. When he was underwater, Lenny felt a near-death experience. He stated in the interview, “I just thought I was going to die because it was so violent and like nothing I’d ever experienced. I’m like, Well, I’ve lived a good life. It’s over.”

Furthermore, he expressed that the big waves felt like “an atomic bomb going off underwater”. The only thing that he could feel was going up and down with the waves. Lenny compared the experience with “a car accident for an entire minute.”

He talked about the violence and jolting that one feels in such situations. He shared how there was a lot of pressure of his body, to the point that he felt his eyeballs would pop out and he could feel the pressure on his joints.

Read More: “That Was Unreal”: Jaws First Day Video Shows Surfing Sensation Kai Lenny Dangerously But Gracefully Pushing the Limits

However, with years of experience, he feels absolutely confident about surfing. Recently, he appeared in a big wave competition, and Lenny wished for the big wave to never end. 

Kai Lenny shares his experience at a Big Wave contest

In January 2023, Kai Lenny participated in Eddie Aikau’s Big Waves contest. He shared his experience in a Facebook video. He had such an amazing experience that he stated in his video, “I wish it wasn’t over. It made me realize how much I love Big Wave Surfing and to compete with the best in the world”. 

In that competition, the surfers had to surf from Mahalo to the Aikau Ohana. Lenny also shared in the video that his competitor, Luke Shepardson, won the game and he ended up in 5th place.

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