Professional Big Wave Surfer Lucas Chumbo getting towed into a huge wave in Nazaré, Portugal, during the big wave session of November 20th, 2019, which was one of the biggest days of this Winter season in Praia do Norte.
After an impressive ride, Chumbo exits the wave successfully and waits for his team mate Ian Cosenza (on the jetski) to pick him up before the next waves rolls in. This wave was not the last on the set, a bigger one approaches, so the rescue needs to be done quickly as Chumbo is now on the inside, which is the most dangerous spot in Praia do Norte, also known as the impact zone.
Cosenza reaches Chumbo in a matter of seconds, Chumbo grabs the sled and they speed up to outrun the upcoming wave. Cosenza has to go full speed and needs critical control to avoid the bumps in the water that can easily flip the jet. Given this was a high period swell, waves are faster than usual (reaching speeds of 60mph) and eventually the monster wall of white water that is chasing them, end up swallowing the jetski and both surfers.
When something like this happens it generally doesn’t end well, but incredibly and against all odds, Ian Cosenza saved the day successfully riding the jetski out of the white water and putting them both out of harm’s way (in the same session, two other jetskis were washed by the huge surf with one ending up heavily damaged).