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Brazilian extreme surfer Carlos Burle may have successfully ridden the biggest wave known to have been surfed — estimated at about 100 feet high. The wave broke off Nazare, Portugal, during this week's St. Jude's Storm. But it may not have been his biggest feat of the week. The day before, he rescued the world's top female big-wave surfer, Brazilian Maya Gabeira, after she wiped out on a 70-footer and was pulled from the water unconscious with a broken ankle. She woke up relatively fine in a hospital and has been tweeting and posting to Facebook (above.) There is dramatic video of both events, via Pete Thomas Outdoors. And yes, all these people do seem a little on the crazy side.
In the longer video below of the rescue, Burle reaches Gabeira a couple of times in the tow boat but she can't hold on as waves pound her. He finally finds her face down in the water and not moving, and jumps frantically from the boat to pull her head above water. He performed CPR on the beach. Gabeira posts on Facebook: "Biggest wave of my life!"
