The forecast didn’t look great — it looked like it could be great, and there’s a big difference between the two. Still, they pulled the trigger. Tickets were booked, boards were packed and a few hours later, Marc Lacomare, Tikanui Smith and Alex Laurel were making their final descent into Dublin. The pot of gold was theirs to find.

Then they arrived at the beach to find a furious tangle of ocean that would only be approached by the clinically insane (unfortunately, Marc and Tika are just on the brink). After all, there’s a big difference between waves that are great and waves that could be great. And what they saw here was a jumbled mess of potential. It was a slab that could only be surfed on the highest of tides — low exposed a graveyard that looked a little bit like a rock formation and a lot like a trip to the hospital. It was wild and dangerous. It was enough to make them want to come back.

Which they did, a few months ago. The result? Push play and see for yourself.