Jamie O’Brien marketing his new line of soft-tops during a crowded session at Snapper Rocks. Photo: Jamie O’Brien//Screenshot
Snapper Rocks is notoriously one of the most hectic lineups in the world. The thick crowd and regular drop-ins are almost as well known as the perfect, sand-bottom right-handers. Jamie O’Brien, who is half-Australian, was on a family trip to the Gold Coast and decided to get in the thick of things — albeit he was the only one riding a mini soft-top.
“So, I’m not going to be telling people to drop in, and I’m definitely going to be calling them off,” O’Brien warned before he paddled out. “So, you’re going to see how difficult it is. I mean, maybe nobody drops in on me, and maybe I drop in on somebody. I just don’t really know what is really going to happen out there.”
Between a morning session at Snapper and an afternoon session at Burleigh Heads, it appears that the locals respected the Pipe Master turned YouTube superstar. The drop-ins were minimal. To the contrary, many local surfers were eager to stop and get a photo with O’Brien.
O’Brien, who recently told us he views his vlog as a vehicle to promote his brands, used this episode to promote his soft-top line, which will be available for purchase this summer. He rode the 4’11” Mini Blade. Even though it’s not necessarily the board to maximize performance when a swell is running at Snapper, between a few tubes, floaters, and laybacks, he made it look fun.
Oh, he also ran into Jack Robinson, Mark “Occy” Occhilupo, and Caio Ibelli, who were all in town to get a piece of the action.