Just like some movies are about lots of different things, the surfing documentary series 100 Foot Wave is also about lots of different things: surfing, yes, and stunning scenery around Nazare, Portugal. It’s also about family, friendship, aspirations, a community, sanity, the ocean, tragedy, triumph, and perhaps above all: fear.

These people are surfing the biggest waves they can find and risk their lives every time they go out on the waves. The fear is real: tragedy does sometimes strike.

The series starts off with an inspiring quote about fear and how facing it head-on can transform you.

The goal is to face fears, to go straight at the fear, to release it, to free it.

In doing this and facing this fear, I’m gonna discover a part of myself that I didn’t know was there.

Not everyone should jump on the next gigantic wave to change themselves, but everyone has a fear to face.

For me, it was living on my own and really being by myself for the fist time in my life around age 45. Now I’m pretty damn happy on my own. Or upgrading jobs when I had an easier option. Or even something small like sharing some ridiculous photos.

Yes, you do need fear, but don’t let it stop you from moving forward or let it become a mind-killer.