“I don’t understand them, but I sure do respect them.”

Nate Lawrence told us that last night after attending the opening ceremony to the 30th Annual Quiksilver in Memory of Eddie Aikau event with Ian Walsh, John John Florence and the rest of the world’s best big wave surfers — including DEKKA author/photographer Derek Dunfee — who was invited as an alternate this year.

So now all we do is wait. For a serious swell, and nothing less. For those who don’t know, The Eddie is more than a contest, it’s a very prestigious handful of sessions that go down featuring some of the best big wave guys in the world charging for all the right reasons, which is why it’s a competition we can get behind. And anyone who’s ever been on Kam Highway the day Waimea breaks will understand exactly what Nate means. Let’s hope Eddie wants to charge this year. Stay tuned.