Mason Ho Turns Slop Into Liquid Jazz
If you’ve ever written off a day because the waves looked like a washing machine packed with bricks, Mason Ho is here to shame your inner pessimist. In his newest clip, reported by The Inertia, Mason tracks down a mutant wedge where two swells head-butt each other into a neck-high clap of ocean. The result is half skate-park, half science experiment, and 100 % entertaining.
Armed with a brand-new …Lost Light Speed II Puddle Jumper, he threads sections that most of us wouldn’t even paddle for. The board’s extra foam turns gutless dribble into launch pads, proving once again that equipment choice can be the difference between a grovel and a highlight reel. It’s not high-performance in the contest sense—there are no air-revs or 10-point claims—but it’s pure Mason: loose, creative, and grinning like he just got away with something.
For photographers, sessions like this are gold. Weird angles, unpredictable sections, and a surfer who treats every wave like a blank canvas mean you’re guaranteed shots no one else has. Pack a long lens, climb the nearest rock, and watch the chaos turn into art.
Flashback: The Day Cloudbreak Went Full Code-Red
When the WSL announced Cloudbreak as the Finals venue this year, every surf fan’s mind snapped back to one day: June 8, 2012. As The Inertia reminds us, the swell arrived like an uninvited guest who refuses to leave. Buoys spiked, winds refused to cooperate, and by mid-morning the Fiji Pro was officially put on ice.
Instead of jerseys and judging towers, the lineup filled with the CT’s heaviest hitters riding for nothing but bragging rights. Think Owen Wright, Gabriel Medina, and half the Big Wave Tour paddling into 20-foot drainers with no prize money on the line—just pure stoke and the very real risk of broken bones. The footage that surfaced afterward became instant folklore: double-overhead sets stacking to the horizon, spit so thick it looked like steam.
Chances are slim we’ll see a repeat during this year’s Finals—the window is shorter, and safety protocols are tighter—but the memory lingers. For photographers, 2012 set the benchmark for dramatic Fijian imagery: back-lit barrels, channel boats bobbing like toys, and the occasional airborne two-story monster. If you’re lucky enough to be on the ground this year, keep one eye on the swell charts and the other on your fisheye lens.
Your Turn
Got a Mason-like session at your local junk wave? Or maybe you were in Fiji in 2012 and still have SD cards full of code-red glory? Drop your best shots on Surf Snaps and tag them #JunkToJewel or #CodeRedThrowback—we’ll repost our favorites and send the winners a fresh set of lens wipes. Because every wave, no matter how sketchy, has a story worth sharing.