Have you ever truly been surprised? I’m not talking mild ‘Happy Birthday!’ scream surprise as people jump out from behind sofas, unfurl themselves from standing curtains or slowly try and remove themselves from the bin (a hiding place that seemed like a good idea until their oversized posterior took a liking to the cramped conditions and now won’t release them from its deadly grip – you know who you are).
No I’m talking heart attack inducing, knock me down with a feather and call me Arthur type, out of this World experiences. The kind you get but once in a lifetime. Yeah? You know the one’s I’m on about now.
Well imagine you’re a surprise that is halfway between the two and you’d still struggle to recognise the surprise factor that Red Bulls Jamie Sterling experienced when he took on the waves of frigid Lake Superior this recent winter season.
Double overhead waves? Monotone dead pan expression? Yep I’m confused as to the stoke factor but if he says he was happy and ‘surprised’ then who am I to judge?
To be fair if I’d been surfing in a wind chill factor of 20 degrees I’d have trouble expressing myself beyond talking out of a tiny mouth opening (you know the one that is shaped a bit like a cats bum) and shivering like a lunatic that’s just been informed axes are on sale 50% off for tonight only.
Btw, did I mention the word suprise enough? Thought not.
Lake Superior
