Cost of last minute airplane ticket to SFO: $245.

Fine for violating NOAA’s idiotic policy against using jet-skis in the sanctuary: $500.

One hour of helicopter time to bring you the aerial perspective: $550.

Dropping some cameras and lenses into the ocean: $9,925.

Documenting the biggest waves ever ridden in a contest from air, land and sea: Priceless!

22 feet, 17 seconds and glassy. Enough said, well almost. After months of anxious waiting, second guessing on missed opportunities, legal wrangling and some epic free surf sessions, the Mavs contest finally happened in what many are considering the biggest waves ever surfed in a jersey. From the epic daybreak pre-contest waves of Rusty Long and Shane Dorian to the final heat with Carlos Burle putting it all on the line, the level of performance shattered the ceiling of what was previously considered paddleable.

As Grant “Twiggy” Baker succinctly stated, “Tow surfing is dead.”

Chris Bertish was named the champion but as cliché as it may sound, anyone who paddled out there was winner and had a hand in altering the future of big-wave surfing. What Jeff Clark started long ago alone in the fog a half mile off Pillar Point has morphed into something we could only dream about before Saturday — paddling into 60-foot-plus surf.

50,000 fans cheered on shoulder to shoulder from packed cliffs, the beach and an armada of boats that filled the channel while set after set pounded the lineup from dawn to dusk. Another 40,000 people watched from the high tide surge-free zone of their living rooms. The total prize purse of $150,000 was the largest in big-wave surfing history, fitting considering the size of the surf. For his efforts, Bertish pocketed 384,727 Rand. He can probably now afford to pay back his brother who loaned him the money for his ticket from South Africa.

Anthony Tashnick won the gnarliest drop award and Dave Wassel won the Jay Moriarty Award, given to the surfer who best exemplifies the spirit and passion that Jay was famous for. Wassel thanked the Half Moon Bay locals for accepting him, was also blown away by today’s conditions. “It was undoubtedly the largest surf any paddle-in contest has ever seen.” Having just won the Todd Chesser award in Hawaii a few week back, it’s safe to say the aloha and respect runs deep in Dave.

Now that I’ve had a few days to go collect myself, lick my wounds and edit all the images, a few things stand out. The biggest and thickest waves in no particular order were ridden by Shawn Dollar, Twiggy, Rusty Long, Peter Mel, Alex Martins, Carlos Burle, Anthony Tashnick, Zach Wormhoudt, and Kohl Christensen although pretty much everyone who was out there got at least one memorable wave. From Ken Collins perspective, “Shane Dorian surfed Mavs like it was a pointbreak.” Coincidentally, it was Shane’s first day out at Mavs, but you couldn’t tell from the way he was dominating the barrel and casually taking off deep and late on every wave. Every local was in awe of his aggressive yet stylish approach. Unfortunately, by Sunday even his luck had run out as he took a horrible beating, coming within micro seconds of a three-wave hold down that will undoubtedly change his perspective and approach to surfing the place.