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Not to get worked up and mouth off but this is so much spinning, more than we’re used to all at once by a good half turn. It happened in Western Australia at a rude shallow reef where trying airs is stupid and Albee was out with Matt Meola and John John, trying airs.

We saw the photos, looked again, counted the spins, and then called Albee to invite him into our studios. We turned on the recorder and showed him the sequence above, and here’s what he said.

Albee Layer: 

It looks retarded that I fall. In the footage you can see that there’s no shock on the landing, which is why I think I didn’t pull it. The wind was so good for airs that you could go out in the flats and it would set you down gently, so I thought I was going to smack but it was like landing in feathers. I didn’t try that many of these and this was my best attempt for sure. I came up screaming.

That trip was gnarly because the very first day we surfed we saw John John do this huge sideways flip, just something I’ve never seen before. So then I started trying flips and just getting weird.

Matt pulled a backside cartwheel on like a five-footer on the gnarliest section — Kai Neville said it as the best air he’s ever seen. Kai said he stopped filming because he thought Matt died, the way he aired into the flats, but the wind just set him down.

The funniest part about this wave is how shallow this end section is. It’s craggy rock with barnacles. After ever air you try, whether you fall or pull it, you take three waves and have to starfish and watch your friends do airs. I did this big double-grab on one and looked over and John was starfishing in front of me, then I joined John on the reef dry-docked and we watched Matt punt a huge one.