Surfs UP! And up and up and up! Surfers at Praia do Norte, Nazaré, Portugal, are no strangers to big waves. Video footage of professional surfer Sebastian Steudtner from Germany shows him tackling many beastly waves. The wave that won him the Guinness World Record for riding the largest wave (unlimited) – male measured at 86 feet (26.21 meters). Estimates had the wave as high as 115 feet, but the official record stands as measured by Guinness.
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Wave measuring is not an exact science (yet). The wave size is studied in video footage, where each pixel is broken down and converted into feet. Officials measure the surfer’s size and any static images in the video, such as the lighthouse. Different factors weigh in on the final measurements, including weather and overall video quality.
It took Guinness nearly two years to extrapolate the wave measurement for Sebastian Steudtner’s record-breaking ride in 2020. The award was made on May 24, 2022, although the record was broken in October 2020.
There have been some exciting new developments in wave measuring. Porsche Engineering is developing drone technology with Team Steudtner. This state-of-the-art technology offers different perspectives for measurements. Combining drone images with computerized extrapolation calculators can speed up the process and create more accurate real-time measurements of waves.
Seeking That 115-Foot Wave
The 2020 record may have already been surpassed according to this new technology. Surfers Steudtner and Lucas “Chumbo” Chianca surfed waves that may have broken the elusive 100-foot barrier. GWR adjudicators are still evaluating the technology and these potential new records. Until then, Steudtner’s 2020 record still holds.
Praia do Norte, Nazaré is famous for its tremendous waves. The surges are the result of the underwater Nazaré Canyon. With new measurement technology, surfers may exceed the 115-foot wave dream. So far the cap has been overly generous guesstimates of wave height, but it could be reality soon.
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