Episode 002: Andrew Cotton - Surfing The World's Biggest Waves

Full episode info and show notes: www.wearelookingsideways.com Andrew ‘Cotty’ Cotton is probably the UK’s most high profile surfers and one of the foremost big wave surfers in the world right now. Along with his close friend Garrett McNamara, he’s one of the handful of surfers to pioneer the notoriously heavy beachbreak Nazare in Portugal. His feats, such as towing Garrett into what is considered one of the largest waves ever ridden, back in 2011, routinely make headlines around the world – especially in the UK where he’s achieved some level of mainstream notoriety as much for the fact that he’s a qualified plumber as for his big wave charging. As ever with mainstream media coverage of action sports, these descriptions of Andrew’s feats are massively reductive. Because the reality is that Cotty is one of the most respected watermen in the world today, and he’s travelled a long, hard way from his surfing beginnings on windswept Saunton Beach near where he grew up in Devon. In this conversation, recorded at Red Bull Studios in London in early 2017, we cover a lot of ground – his early surf apprenticeship, his first exposure to really big waves, and his early years working in a surfboard factory and – yes, as a plumber. It’s a great conversation with a fascinating, thoughtful lad, so get stuck in to Andrew Cotton on surfing big waves. Thanks to Nick Smith (www.hiddensound.tv) for post-production help and Matt Ward (https://linguistine.com) for the theme tune.