Billabong’s XXL Awards nominate the 5 best rides up for contention for this year’s $50,000 prize purse. They are as follows:

Grant “Twiggy” Baker – Dungeons, South Africa
Shane Dorian – Jaws, Hawaii
Billy Kemper – Jaws, Hawaii
Greg Long – Puerto Escondido, Mexico
Shaun Walsh – Jaws, Hawaii

In contrast to previous years, all five ‘Ride of the Year’ nominees are for paddle-in waves this year (three of which took place at Jaws) despite Teahupoo offering plenty mind-blowing rides last summer during this swell. This begs the question: has tow surfing officially made big wave surfing too accessible to too many people, inflating expectations to such levels that the discipline has been made redundant?