Mark Foo's Last Ride

Mark Foo commented often on the possibility of dying in big surf; he believed the Challenger astronauts had “died happy” and said he'd be honored to go out in similar fashion. Thus, it was posthumously suggested that Foo had some kind of death wish. Nobody who knew him well believed it.

Surfer gave Maverick’s a formal introduction in 1992, with a cover story titled “Cold Sweat.” A second coming-out of sorts took place two years later, after a long, photogenic, and ultimately tragic run of winter surf. The Hawaiians by that time had figured out that a nice big-wave bonus could be picked up by chasing waves east, from Oahu to the West Coast, after the bulk of the swell had already ...

Subscribe or Login

Plans start at $5, cancel anytimeTrouble logging-in? Contact us.