Gold right there.
Well, pocket guns can and do work in some pretty big surf, if the wave comes right to you, and there aren't 12 guys outside paddling full speed while you're heading outwards, and some old guy in a yellow board isn't sitting 100 yards outside everyone else on his 11' gun.
Can't say I can ride over 12' on anything close to 6'. But that NaturalArt day in SanFrancisco, with PeeWee, Bones, and Ehni riding some really mushballs outside, the morning sesh I picked off 4 set waves with a downrailed 6'1" x 19" single fin, made the first 3 no problems, and got stuck a foot too deep almost half way to shore on the last. Got out, drove home in the wetsuit, grabbed my now 9'4" or so x 20 gun, and went back out for 6 waves, 3 of them caught by FredWindisch. Those were smaller but steeper than what we rode in the morning.
Garrett just surfed the biggest wave ever ridden on a 5’8". Tiny boards surf big waves great. It’s paddling into them they don’t do so well… especially if you’ve reached the other side of middle-aged as I have 
When I was younger (and probably didn’t know better), in better shape, and surfing endless hours every day, I used to surf 6’0"s on days when the Huntington peir was completely engulfed by set waves - 20+ faces. My “big wave gun” was 7’0", and I spent way more time surfing monsters in those days. Now my go-to big wave board is 10’0". I don’t know if it’s that I know better, I’m not as fearless, or not as fit, but I’ve become a fan of more foam.
OB is a whole different story. While the foam may help paddling, it’s definately not your friend when you’re trying to endlessly duck-dive in the death zone. Like llc says, crowds and paddle battles for waves aren’t the issue when OB gets big. Making it outside is everything. It can be hands down the hardest spot in the world to paddle out. Even the greatest surfers have washed up on the beach (usually a long long walk from where they started) with their tails between their legs after fighting a seemingly endless battle with the whitewash.
btw llc - the film you reffered to is Great Highway - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dmlUAwC5Lik - by Mark (Marko) Gunson, Krista Howell, and Mark Ruegg. I’ve seen tons of cool footage, but they’re not quite done with it yet… they’ve only been working on it for around 8 years. Should be done soon. haha.
Well, tow in and paddling in are two different sports.
I never surfed with the legend guys on there, starting in the mid '60's, those guys were dropping out like flies. Except for BillHickey.
George was my surfing bud from '72 thru the early '80's. Arnie, what can I say? He put his head thru my windshield one night driving home from Indicators, me hitting the right rear tire of a car that jumped the highway running from CHP and StatePolice.
Scott went on to become a pretty good Deadman's/Eagles surfer.
Haven't seen most of those guys since the mid '80's birthday party for Wise.
I surf with George now and then. We’ve done a bunch of road trips south. Kauai a few times.
Thanks for the link, Kendall…familiar faces, old friends,…
DK will always be the consummate waterman…surfer, shaper, boat builder, fisherman, prankster, senior elder of the tribe…the time I spent around him when I was young was the best.
Bill Hickey, always a gracious soul…gave me a lot of good advice on what to eat, what to stay away from while a young pup…about 5 years ago, see this racy looking sun browned old longboard on a beach up here in Oregon, think man does that look like one of Bill’s old boards from the 60’s, which always had really gunny outlines, lotta entry belly, pulled tails, knife rails…went over and checked it out, yep, his name on the bottom…hadn’t seen a Hickey in 35 years.
always liked George…talked a lot of surfboard shapes with him over the years, both in Wise’s shop and while waiting for sets. George knows surfboards.
Alex was pretty funny guy, always had an eye out for the gals…only saw him and Zarate around Pedro, never at OB…
Lance C
That GreatHighway nostalgia vid is sorta cool, like Dogtown, but SF.
I'm talking NaturalArt by FredWindisch. That shows the biggest OBSF waves being ridden by Bill, Eric, and Ralph. It's kinda a lost vid, I think.
Fred, the Smiling Walrus…huge man, huge heart…used to pick me up hitchiking to the beach on Hwy 1 63’ - 65’…see that rig coming, would already be picking up my 9’8 Wardy…The Natural Art was the quintessential surf movie of our time, our place…
conditions, conditions, conditions…
warm water and channels, explore your respective capabilities with a lot of latitude
cold water and tough paddle battles, not so much…
I think Marko scored Fred’s footage when making Great Highway. They’ve been working on that sucker for a long time. I think they’re gonna release it soon.
It comes down to age, what physical conditioning you have, and how well you surf. The older we get the harder it is to push the limits. There are some in their 50’s in great shape and pulling it off, but the kids in their 20’s or younger have better strength to weight ratios. They also have probably had less really bad near death experiences, so they are fearless. Age and wisdom tend to make you a lot more cautious, sensible.
I’m a month off 50 now and the truth of what you say is ringing in my ears.
Some mention of PeeWee, TimBodkin, Doc, Edwin, MarkRobatham here. Those old farts gotta be hitting 55 by now. It's their last stand before old age forces them to sit in front of computers and dream about their old exploits.
In conclusion, the most important surf equipment one needs to shape is the body. I want to be surfing when I am over 50 so keeping healthy and fit is key and I have to be thankful I am very on time. I am 35 and lost my good condition for the last 4 years (got lazy and fat) but I am now getting back to top shape, riding smaller boards and I intend to maintain a good condition from now on as I have heard many times that getting back in shape is harder the older one is.
Three famous surfers come to mind: Michael Ho, Gary Linden and Clyde Aikau. They all still charge. Oh, and we can’t forget Chapman… Some of the above are in top condition, others… well, experience and mana…
I don’t think the older guys in their 50’s or more are riding boards under 7’ and paddling in to triple overhead waves (18’+ faces). They are riding big wave boards that can paddle well, most are probably over 8’ long. Maybe double overhead maxed at triple (12’ - 18’) they’ll be on 7’ boards.
I surf with a bunch of guys well over 50, some are close to 70, that still ride regular short boards under 7’. I see Craig Sugihara on a short board all the time. At 54, I’m still a young guy compared to some of my friends. I’ve surfed with my classmate’s father not long ago. He was in very good shape, but he rides a high-peformance longboard about 9’+. I have friends who just turned 60 that still go out to Waimea on good days, but they ride big guns.
The key to longevity is to not let yourself get too far out of shape. It’s a lot harder to work back to fighting shape and as we get older it’s easy to hurt yourself trying to get back into shape too fast. One thing that I like to do if I’m out on a day that is close to my limit, is get nailed. Once I come up from a good pounding and know I can handle that, it’s so much easier to go for it. If I’m struggling, then it’s time to go in.
True, lots of bigger wave riders don't mind getting caught inside by the bigger sets if they know they can make it out.
OTOH, lotsa times, at bigger OBSF, that ONE time you get caught on your way out can be the start of an unending torrent of whitewater that easily pounds you for over an hour and 3 blocks, whichever you give up on first.
For you point break riders, remember RickyGrigg still rode big Sunset well into his lower '70s.