Kelly Slater is no stranger to one of the worlds most famous waves. Pipeline the pinnacle of  Hawaii north shore  and the ultimate proving ground for any surfer this isn’t your regular beach break of France or the UK this is the real deal. Pipeline is know as the Ultimate wave on the north shore because of it intense tube rides and is shallow bottom, all whilst being so close to shore you can taste the sand. its got deadly rip currents, hard reef with plenty of holes and caves to get stuck in on wipe out, not to mention its one of the more hollow waves on the planet, its no wounder then that pipeline is the hub of action every winter with the final contest of the WSW ( world surf league )being held at pipe every December and the Volcome pipe pro in January. Its no wounder that careers can me made and end here. Surfing this waves come with consequences a lot of great pro surfers have died at the famous waves or had near death drowning experiences. Its a wave that’s so demanding that getting the perfect shoot of clip hear can make or break you. Just look at the careers of legendary locals that become pipe specialist and boosted a pro surf career form surfing one wave. With so many pro surfing pipeline incredibly well over the years i might be difficultly to say who’s the best at surfing one of the gnarliest wave son the planet.

Well we think there is one true stand out and it may come as no surprise to you that we think Kelly Slater is the best to ever to surf pipe now sure i know what your saying surfers like Andy irons , john john Florence and Jamie O’Brien are defiantly some of the best but if there has to be one best, our pick is Kelly and here’s why

5 Reasons Why We Think Kelly Slater Is The Best Surfer At Pipeline 

(2) Consistency 

Kelly Slater is probably the most consistent surfer on the planet he just loves to surf but his greatest strength is his consistency with all the smaller details Kelly’s not just catching fluke waves or the boom sets that come through. Hes consistently there every winter on all the good days hes even got wave of the winter in 2014 and wone more peiple line events than any other surfer let alone be the top 2 in a pipeline event for the best part of 20+ years.

(3) Performance 

There is no argument that Kelly Slater isn’t a good surfer, he has taken on the worlds best at pipeline and won many times beating surfers like Andy irons Jamie O’Brien and john Florence in an epic final at pipe in firing waves,  not to mention this hes an 11 time world surfing champion won more events that anyone in history and won the pipe masters 7 times. Kelly has won against almost every other great or good surfer at pipeline because of his performance in the tube aswell as wave knowledge, hes just incredible on a surfboard coming out of waves that would don’t think its possible. Even at 46 yeas young he competed at the 2018 pipe masters and Kelly fell off his board in the barrel and some how managed to get back on his board and come out the tube if this isn’t a true sing of the best pipeline surfer ever i don’t know who is.

(4) Knowledge 

Surfing pipeline isn’t just something your average Jo walks up on the beach and paddles out and drops in first wave, the locals might not be to happy with you. its a whole new experience for surfers with some times 40-70 surfers in the water, you could say the line up is pretty crowded. Pipeline has its own pecking order and strictly enforced with localisum. Kelly Slater has earned his right to be in the line ups because of his time spend at the spot hes taken his fair share of beating over the years and showed just what hes capable off when the waves get big. To become a pipeline expert you have to know everything people line up the best way to do that is to surf it  “a lot” and that’s exactly what Kelly has done for almost the last 30 years from a young grommet working out the take off points, learning how different swell directions and trade winds affect the waves, which ones to miss and which ones to go on all comes with experience. Most surfers on the world tour would come to Hawaii for 4-6 weeks but Slater would come earlier that most others and stay later than anyone else just to learn everything he can about pipeline as well as master other Hawaiian waves.  Putting in that extra time over the years and really helped him command the line up and he know every spot.. He even said hes been snorkelling over the reef when its flat to learn what the reef looks like underneath the waves. now that’s dedication 

(5) Motivation 

Most professional surfers Kelly’s age have retired from professional surfing years ago, even world tour veterans like 3 time world champion mick fanning retired at 37 compared to Kelly’s 46 with a 9 year difference why does Slater continue to push the boundaries of what he can do at pipeline. If you have ever read anything about Kelly Slater or seen any interviews you will know hes a smart guy and knows his body will get weaker with age but his mind is stronger but he also loves to win, competing is a driving force for him to progress and to be fair hes been doing it his whole life, so you can guess hes got pretty good.  Staying fresh and staying in the mix with the new younger generation gives Kelly that fire of competition and also gives him that motivation to keep improving and stay in shape to even extend his surfing career longer. Who knows, we might see Kelly Slater crowned as pipe champion at 50 or 60 you never know with Kelly Slater.

We want to know what you think  

Is Kelly the greatest pipeline surfer ever or is he just over hyped, we want to know if you think differently and who you would put as the best pipeline surfer ever.