You might remember Russell Bierke as the precocious 18-year-old who won Cape Fear in 2016. The son of Hawaiian big wave surfer Kirk Bierke, Russell never had a choice, from a young age it was always charge hard or charge home, and that's just what he's done.
Growing up on Australia's South Coast meant growing up on a diet of raw ocean energy, the Pacific endlessly broadsiding his hometown of Ulladulla and its plethora of shallow reef slabs and deep water bombies with swell.
Away from the maddening crowds of Sydney and with an endless supply of heavy waves, Russ has staked a strong claim to be his age group's heavy water champion of the world, and can count a handful of teenage Tahitian and Hawaiian madmen as his only peers, as
his stunning video resumé will attest.
Hot on the heels of the 2016 win that put his name on the minds of surfers around the globe, Russell snuck off on an Australian big wave rite of passage to Tasmania's notorious Shipstern Bluff, a mission that was as humbling as it was rewarding.
With equally-talented filmer
Steve Wall joining him on his voyage to Van Diemen's Land, the edit above, of a young charger finding his place in the world, came to be, and it's our pleasure to bring it you now. Jump on board and hit play, we hope you enjoy the ride.
