Laura Enever has faced death many times and holds the world record for surfing the world’s largest and most dangerous wave, but there is one simple act that all Australians do every day that has terrified her… until now.
The Australian surfer has spoken openly about her death-defying expeditions in some of the deadliest places on the planet and how she manages to overcome her fears.
Enever began her career by winning the ISA Junior World Championship in 2008 and the ASP Women’s Junior World Championship in 2009.
He competed on the World Surf League Championship Tour, achieving a career 10th place finish in 2016 and transitioning to big wave surfing in 2020.
Enever set a Guinness World Record in 2023 for the largest wave paddled by a woman, measuring 13.3 meters on the North Shore of O’ahu, and was honored at the 2024 Big Wave Challenge Awards for her efforts.
O’ahu’s North Shore is famous for its huge, powerful waves, particularly during the winter months, with its combination of strong currents, sharp coral reefs, and unpredictable wave conditions.
Australian surfer Laura Enever has faced the biggest and most dangerous waves in the world and has the trophy to prove it
The Australian set the women’s world record for the largest wave surfed at 13.3 meters
Enever, 32 years old and only 168 centimeters tall, knows he doesn’t look like the type to brave O’ahu’s deadly waves.
“People looked at me and said, ‘You’re not strong enough.’ You need to grow, your legs need to grow,” he told Sydney Morning Herald.
‘But catching the biggest wave isn’t about being the biggest person; It’s about positioning and knowledge.
“It’s this huge ocean that you’re in and you’re trying to catch a wave that’s been generated by a storm thousands of miles away, and you’re positioning yourself in a line, trying to match its speed as you paddle toward it.” .
‘That’s all knowledge, intuition and experience.
‘The people who have believed in me have played a vital role in my own belief that I can go out and belong in this world. And I just thought, ‘Stop it, I’m not telling myself I’m not strong enough.’
But while Enever has no problem taking on the world’s biggest waves, what she fears most is the simple practice of “adulting.”
Enever has watched her friends become parents, including podcaster and model Chloe Fisher this year, and wondered how she would handle all the duties that come with motherhood.
Enever, right, has revealed that being an adult is her biggest fear and wonders how she could become a mother like her friend Chloe Fisher (centre).
Enever married her long-term partner Jake (pictured together) in September and is now considering the idea of balancing having children and continuing her surfing career.
She previously thought the kids would come after her surfing career ended, but now that she’s married to her long-time love, Jake, she’s watching her friends become mothers and considering the idea of balancing the two.
‘I feel very inspired by so many athlete mothers who have been able to come back and do incredible things. “They have shown that you can be a mother, be powerful and play sports as well as you did before having children,” she said.
‘The sport is dangerous and I have spoken to big wave surfers who have children.
“And you’re always as safe as possible: you have your safety equipment, your training, breathing underwater, but bad things can happen.” And that would surely influence whether he wanted to slow down.
“But I would also like to tell my son: ‘go ahead.'”
Enever recently underwent surgery for pterygium, also known as surfer’s eye, which is caused by sun, wind and dusty conditions.
The Australian surfing champion has also revealed the alter ego she uses to muster the courage to take on the monster waves.
While Enerver is human, with real human fears, she has also revealed how she has conquered those fears in recent years by taking on the world’s most treacherous waves.
‘From the first time I went to Jaws (a well-known big wave surfing challenge off Maui in Hawaii) and put myself in this situation of death-defying waves, this person emerged from me that I just didn’t know existed. ‘ said Enever.
“I’ve tried to find her in competition; she rarely comes out.” But when I surf these waves, what comes out is the most focused, determined and empowered version of myself.
‘She doesn’t have a name, but she should, right? I think everyone thinks she’s just ‘Crazy Laura.’ Maybe we’ll call her Lorita? That’s Lorita out there. She loves it. I love it.’
Enever said ‘Lorita’ allowed her to calm her nerves and trust her skill and intuition to conquer any wave in front of her.
‘Lorita is in charge. “There is always fear, but when I get into alignment, that’s where I am: I’m in the present and I trust my intuition,” he said.
‘All the fear happens in the week before the waves. You’re packing up your boards and thinking about the worst things that can happen.
‘Now I have realized that they are just thoughts. That’s all.