25- to 40-Foot Surf Forecast as Nazaré Big Wave Challenge Gets Green Light

The Tudor Nazare Big Wave Challenge has officially been given the green light to potentially run on Tuesday, February 18. The final call will be made  tomorrow at 9:30 a.m. GMT for a possible 10:15 a.m. start. 

In terms of conditions, Surfline reports that "a WNW swell will build through Tuesday from a strong but not ideally located storm in the North Atlantic over the past couple of days. After a slow start first thing on Tuesday, the surf will build mid to late morning and be strongest during the afternoon."

"Wave face size should hit 25-40 feet through the afternoon with a mix of walls and occasional peaks thanks to the more westerly swell direction," continues the forecast. "Offshore S to SE wind is expected through the day."

Using a team format, the Nazare Big Wave Challenge will feature 18 surfers in the draw (nine teams of two), most of whom are already in Europe. For those not in Europe they have 24 hours to load up the board bag and hop a flight to Portgual.

The format allows for each team to get two 40-minute heats. A surfer’s final scoreline is decided by the two highest scoring rides from either heat. And because this is big-wave surfing and everything’s bigger, instead of a perfect score being a 10-point ride like on the Championship Tour, the max score possible per wave at Nazare is 30 points.

Five-time Nazare winner Lucas “Chumbo” Chianca and teammate Pedro Scooby might be considered the headliners, but there's plenty of talent in the draw, including Nazare pioneer and “100-Foot Wave” star Garrett McNamara, who’s currently in the draw with teammate Andrew Cotton.

Stay tuned as things develop from the world's biggest rideable wave.

TUDOR NazaréBig Wave Challenge Invitees
Team 1: Lucas ‘Chumbo’ Chianca (BRA) and Pedro ‘Scooby’ Vianna (BRA)
Team 2: Nic von Rupp (POR) and Clement Roseyro (FRA)
Team 3: Rodrigo Koxa (BRA) and Vitor Faria (BRA)
Team 4: Rafael Tapia (CHL) and Pierre Rollet (FRA)
Team 5: Andrew Cotton (GBR) and Garrett McNamara (HAW)
Team 6: Kai Lenny (HAW) and Ian Walsh (HAW)
Team 7: Michelle des Bouillons (BRA) and Ian Cosenza (BRA)
Team 8: Justine Dupont (FRA) and Éric Rebière (BRA)
Team 9: Laura Crane (GBR) and Antonio Laureano (POR)