Fatal Attraction

On Wednesday March 16th, Sion Milosky a 35 year old big wave rider from Hawaii, drowned at "Mavericks".  The infamous break is located on Half Moon Bay, a few miles north of Santa Cruz, California.
He was last seen by Chris Killen, a surf filmaker who captured Milosky's last wave. After he paddled on to a 50 foot behemoth with a smile, he was able to negotiate the steep drop but had to straighten up as the mountain of white water engulfed him. He was riding an 11 foot board and Killen could only see 3 or 4 feet of the board out of the water, as it tensioned its leash and drove him deep underwater.  The next giant wave broke directly on the board. With 50 ft waves repeatedly holding you down, there's no chance of survival. Milosky's body was found 20 minutes later by Nathan Fletcher. He was transported to Seton Coastside Hospital in Moss Beach and pronounced dead at 7:46 pm.
Shane Dorian, another Pro surfer from Hawaii also had a close call last year. And Mark Foo, a well known pro, drowned a few years ago. Anyone who surfs Mavericks has to accept the fact that they might get badly injured or killed. Because, even though there are ski patrols, there's a limitation to what they can do. Realistically you are out there by yourself and you will have to deal with such situations on your own. Here's a short video tribute by Jeff Flindt: