Update: The Eddie Aikau Big Wave Invitational was held on Jan. 22, when 50 foot waves rolled through Waimea Bay. A local lifeguard beat out the world’s top professional surfers for the title ...

Big-wave surfing is dangerous enough – the world’s best taken into the maelstrom by jet ski – but Von Rupp makes the thrill-seeking more dangerous still by paddling himself in.

Surfers caught waves as tall as 50 feet high Sunday in Hawaii, producing epic rides and wipeouts during the Eddie Aikau Big Wave Invitational. More than 20,000 spectators showed up at Waimea Bay ...