on that day, with a larger than normal ocean swell, darrick doerner piloted the watercraft, towing hamilton. pulling in and releasing the tow rope, hamilton drove down into the well of the wave's enormous tunnel vortex, in full view of boat-based photographers' and videographers' cameras. with his signature artistic flair, hamilton continued deeply carving water, emerging back over the wave's shoulder. a still photograph of him riding the wave made the cover of "surfer" magazine, with the caption: "oh my god..." the wave became known as "the heaviest ever ridden".