Carlsbad Surfer Catches Giant Wave and Rides It All the Way to the Bank

A Carlsbad man won $50,000 Tuesday for riding a wave nearly 50 feet high in a contest sponsored by K2, a Costa Mesa sports equipment maker.

Taylor Knox, 26, caught the winning wave in February off the Mexican coast.

Despite being a former U.S. Tour champion and the 19th ranked surfer on the world pro tour, Knox said that riding the biggest wave of the winter came down to a simple thing: holding on.

“When I caught this [wave] I wasn’t sure how big it was--all I knew was that I heard people yelling, and whatever happened, I couldn’t wipe out this time.”

Peter Mel, 28, of Santa Cruz won $5,000 as a close runner-up for his ride of a wave off Half Moon Bay south of San Francisco that was only slightly shorter.

“Both Peter and Taylor’s rides were really amazing,” contest director Bill Sharp said. “It came down to Northern California versus Southern California in surf the likes of which hasn’t been seen in years.”

The contest offered prize money to the person who rode the tallest wave of the winter. Entries had to be photographed and verified. Knox caught his wave during a surfing contest at Todos Santos.

Les Walker of San Clemente won $5,000 for capturing the best images of the winning ride.

K2, a manufacturer of skis and snowboards, issued the challenge after releasing the company’s first line of surfer apparel.