Portuguese surfer Alex Botelho has surely taken the most out of the "Black Swell". He rode a wave for one minute and 40 seconds, in Lagos, Algarve, Portugal.
Despite being injured, Alex Botelho decided he couldn't miss Winter Storm Hercules. On the 6th January, blessed by perfect surf lines, the intrepid wave rider took off on an endless journey.
"It was an exceptional swell, and waves were coming in bigger. I was sitting in the beach and, in 20 minutes, waves jumped from two feet to seven feet", Alex Botelho tells Surf Portugal mag.
"I didn't expect to surf that wave. I passed by a friend that was surfing in the river, passed the pier, and suddenly I was in Meia Praia".
Botelho was still recovering from an injury, but the adrenaline rush pushed him to salted water. He took off at Batata Beach and rode the wave for one minute and 40 seconds, until he touched sand at Meia Praia.
Is it the longest wave ever ridden in the Algarve?