Monster waves today at the legendary Maui surf spot known as “Jaws” attracted the likes of Laird Hamilton, Dave Kalama, Darrick Doerner and some of the world’s other top tow-in surfers.

Throughout the day, several thousand spectators jockeyed for position on the Peahi cliffs overlooking the surf site while three photography helicopters made swooping runs over the swells.
At least three dozen tow-in teams were reported at Jaws this morning. Among them was David Langer and tow-in partner Harry “Bobo” Pahukoa of Keanae.
“It was fun. It was just beautiful, phenomenal. The water was pristine, clean and glassy,” said Langer, 39.
He said Pahukoa may have caught the wave of morning, riding inside the curl of a 40- to 50-foot wave.
“Bobo was throated,” said, Langer, using surfer slang for “barreled out of his mind.”
Langer produced and was featured in the documentary “January 10: The Biggest Day Ever Surfed” about the day in 2004 when Jaws saw waves of up to 60 feet to 80 feet.
Today’s surf isn’t nearly as big as on that historic day, but the promise of 30- to 50-foot swells was enough for surfers like David Rastovich and Luke Egan of Australia and Mike Parsons of California to fly to Maui to join the lineup at Jaws, Langer said.
On the crowded cliffs, where spectators trampled cane grass, stood on their vehicles, climbed trees and found whatever other space was available to observe the action in the water, Igor Merk, 26, of Kula could offer only superlatives for the scene below.
“It’s unreal, incredible. I’ve never seen anything like that,” he said.