Maldive madness 11th june 2008 June 11, 2008 – Tags:

Well i never thought i would say this, but today would have to have been up there with one of the most rattling days of my life. I woke to a slight rise in the swell and knew i had a heat coming up soon. I packed my gear waxed up a couple of boards and jumped on the dingy to land to prepare, the waves looked like they were smoking, and everyone was ripping, By the time i paddled out the tide was on the turn which meant the waves were becoming inconsistent and i was totally out of rhythm, i opened with an ok wave then sat there the rest of the heat watching guys getting 7’s and 8’s all around me.. Quiet a bummer losing in the round of 96 in a place so far away from home, but at least there were a few perfect waves to be had..So by the afternoon we decided to trek to a right and left about an hour up the coast in search of some uncrowded waves to get some shots on. Luckily enough the waves were pumping we surfed the right first there was no one out and everyone was taking turns getting pitted and doing the odd flare, Pagey got the best one, a good 4-5 second barrel right in front of me. The light went a little funky and we decided to check out the left for a bit before dark, thats when i had a blow out..
Taking off on what looked to be a perfect wave, i bottom turned into a hook off the top and stuck my arm in the wave only to feel my arm come completely out of its socket. I screamed for help as i was getting pounded in the impact zone to get pushed out, being out in the middle of no where, and having no one on board our boat who knew how to put the shoulder back in, we decided to check the nearest land camp, when we found the indian doctor he started yanking on my arm in all different directions as i screamed in agony, when i asked him if he had done this before, his simple reply was “NO thank god” I packed up and ordered a speed boat to get to Male’ ,the main island for some proper treatment.
 
2 hours later and only a few cigarettes to ease the pain, i was starting to get light headed as i looked at my arm hanging loosely, because my arm had been out for so long my arm started to lock in that position and the doctor struggled to pop in back into position, and with no pain killers it was one of the most excruciating feelings i’ve ever had. As i caught the speed boat back to my floating home, i couldn’t stop thinking of my career, what this might mean for my chance to qualify, how long would i be out for? and what would my sponsors think, but hey its all a part of it, injuries come and go and its all and adversity we have to overcome as professional athletes.