Big wave celebrity Garrett McNamara was injured at Mavericks yesterday when he caught air under his board during a set wave. Video shows McNamara getting hung up at the lip before plummeting down the face of a huge wave and skipping like a stone before being hammered by the whitewater.
The Santa Cruz Sentinel reports he was taken by ambulance from the break to a nearby hospital. No official word, but Garrett reportedly underwent emergency surgery to treat his shoulder and arm. In the video clip below you can see the force exerted on Garret as he tries to penetrate the water surface.
Original Mavericks surfer Jeff Clark told local TV station KTVU that he estimated some sets at 40 feet on Thursday. He also added that the surf was too stormy to hold the Titans of Mavericks event.
Garrett is on the alternate list for the contest when it rolls sometime between now and March 31.