AIR WIND FIRE
Albee readily accepts the fact that he long ago pledged his youth to the pursuit of surfing progression. He made roaring winds and cavernous Jaws pits his accomplices in his lofty quest and has taken his fair share of knocks – physical and psychological – along the way. Curiously, while he is well-known for his forthright opinions, Albee leans heavily on self-deprecation as a tool for personal motivation.
“AS A KID, I NEVER WANTED TO RELATE TO WHAT I WAS WATCHING. I WANTED TO ASPIRE TO WHAT I WAS WATCHING.” THAT’S ALBEE LAYER REFLECTING ON HIS ADOLESCENT AMBITIONS IN A STYLE THAT SUGGESTS HIS CAREER IS A LIFELONG ATTEMPT TO IMPRESS HIS YOUNGER SELF.
“I really don’t have any talent for airs. For me, it’s all about repetition,” he insists. Albee enjoys reflection because it allows him to at least fleetingly recognise his successes. Otherwise, he is back in the moment, not quite believing himself to be the surfer his childhood self aspired to. That lingering doubt is what fuels him to go bigger, charge harder, and operate at the cutting edge. Putting psychological factors aside for a moment, it’s impossible to understand how Albee became the darling of the aerial surfing world without considering the part played by geography.
The North Shore of O‘ahu features the seven-mile miracle, that celebrated stretch of coastline that fades southwest down the coast from the northernmost tip of the island, spared the full tilted whip of easterly trades by a volcanic windshield.
Maui’s northern coastline, mostly formed by the base of Haleakala mountain, is east-west oriented and thus lacks the same wind shield. Instead, wrathful
