Video: Hurricane Lee Prompts Rare ‘Epic’ Rating with Cranking Surf in New York
From a surf perspective, the Atlantic hurricane season got off to an epic start.
As for a macro, real-world perspective, stronger and more frequent storms are likely an indication of a changing climate and our collective, self-imposed destruction of our home and planet, along with our long, slow, painful demise as a species.
But for now, at least the surf’s been good.
The latest in storm to pulse in the Atlantic, and send surf to the East Coast, is Hurricane Lee. And, as seen in the highlight reel above, the waves were cranking in New York.
Per YouTuber SoCal Surfer’s description:
“Hurricane Lee brought epic surf to the East Coast this and Caribbean week! New York, Florida, New England, Puerto Rico, and Virginia Beach were some of the standout locations.
“Lido Beach in New York got an epic rating on Surfline on September 14th and 15th. Friday was the bigger day with occasional double overhead sets. The deep water offshore held the size and offered dozens of peaks up and down the beach. The wind was howling offshore offering surfers barrels all day long.”
The “epic” rating on Surfline is pretty elusive. It has to be pretty damn good to warrant that. But it looks like Hurricane Lee delivered. Per Surfline, before the swell’s peak:
“The week-plus-long swell from Lee finally hits a peak Friday night as the storm tracks closer to landfall in the Northeast. The south-facing zones in the region are the standouts, as strong northerly winds groom the growing inbound swell. Well overhead to double overhead surf started the day — and there’s more on the way. On Friday morning, 40-foot seas were measured less than 500 miles from New England — that should arrive as more than 15 feet of swell by 10pm tonight. Far removed from the storm, Florida and Caribbean were pumping too, with long-period swell and calm local winds.
“And here’s the interesting thing: Typically, during hurricane swells, once a storm lifts north past a region, the surf is on borrowed time. But with Hurricane Lee, a number of areas will see swell continue through the weekend, thanks to a number of favorable factors: Lee’s slower initial track north, the storm’s large size and the interaction with high pressure over the Western Atlantic. All of which taken together are helping extend the life of swell. If you missed out during the week, you still have a chance to score.”
Stay tuned for more Hurricane Lee highlights to come.
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