Slater praise for surfer, 19, on 'wave of my life'
Malakai Hagley's wave went viral on social media, with multiple champ Kelly Slater praising it.
A 19-year-old surfer has described the moment he rode the "wave of my life" at the notorious Mullaghmore break in Ireland. North Devon surfer Malakai Hagley's moment on the huge wave went viral on social media, with 11‑time world champion Kelly Slater commenting: "That looks fake! What a ride!
" Hagley said waking up to praise from Slater was overwhelming. "Kelly is the man. To have even a little respect from him blew my mind.
" Hagley, who grew up near Croyde and works as a surf coach on the beach, travelled to Mullaghmore in County Sligo, encouraged by big‑wave rider Andrew Cotton, also from north Devon. Hagley had already made several winter trips to Mullaghmore to paddle the break, but this time Cotton offered to tow him into the swell on a personal watercraft, opening the door to far larger waves. Hagley said the conditions at the challenging wave, which attracts elite surfers from around the world, turned out to be "some of the biggest waves I have ever surfed".
It was also his first experience of tow‑in surfing where a surfer is "whipped" into a wave on a tow rope. "I could not even get my feet in the straps at first," said Hagley. "I was seeing the biggest waves of my life and falling forwards off the board.