Friends mourn loss of pro surfer Mikala Jones
Hawaii surfer Mikala Jones passed away while surfing at a remote secret wave off the Mentawais Saturday evening Hawaii Standard Time — Sunday morning Indonesia time.
He was 44 years old.
His longtime friends shared stories and memories about the humble surfer, who was a man of few words, but always smiling.
According to a friend who was on the boat with Jones, he had a four-inch deep cut on his leg and he was losing a lot of blood after catching a wave. They put a tourniquet on him and raced him to land.
The nearest hospital was more than 45 minutes away by boat and by land. Jones did not survive.
Friends said Jones loved going to secret spots in Indonesia, and was always searching for the perfect wave and barrel.
Jones grew up on Oahu and lived at Rocky Point where he began surfing with some of the world’s best waves in his backyard.
“His dad lived at Rocky’s, he could go to Pipe to the left of his yard, or Rocky’s in front of his house, or ride his bike to V-land, he developed a skill for waves of consequence,” said surf photographer and Freesurf Magazine publisher Mike Latronic.
“From day one he was a good friend of our family, my dad shaped his boards when we surfed for Blue Hawaii, so I knew him since he was a little baby,” remembers friend Jason Magallanes.
“I told him he was going to be the next big thing out of Hawaii because he was so good,” Magallanes added. “He was a surf-stoked grom always smiling, always positive, he was the first one out in the water every day every time, and he’d be the last one in, he was always so dark from the sun.”
Magallanes said of the Mentawai’s, “it’s pretty rural out there, very desolate, it’s just islands in the middle of the ocean.”
“He was very loved, he was just the most humble, giving guy, he was always smiling, always there for people, and everybody loved him, there’s no way you couldn’t love him, he barely talked, and when he spoke it was meaningful, he had the best soul and heart and he didn’t care about shots in the magazine, or the contests, he was a true soul surfer and went on gnarly missions.” Jason Magallanes, friend of Mikala Jones
Ryan Moss started filming and shooting with Jones in 2010 and went on about one dozen surf trips with him which would take days to reach the destination.
Moss said they would travel two to three days to reach a wave, and wait for the swell to arrive in areas with no cell service or bathrooms.
“He just loved surfing these waves and he did it really well,” Moss said. “He would be glowing every time we’d be out there.”
Moss said Jones was up there with the best barrel riders in the world.
Jones’ sudden and unexpected death is another huge loss to the tight-knit surfing community, especially on Oahu’s North Shore.
Larry Haynes tragically passed away earlier this year, and everyone was stunned when Kalani David, 24, drowned after suffering a seizure while surfing in Costa Rica in Sept. 2022.
Year after year, we’re just losing all these great people and I guess we all accept the risk while surfing these waves, and that death is always in the cards, but you never really think it’s gonna be that person or that person because you see so much reckless stuff happen every day to people who are like, way less qualified and way less prepared than these guys. And yeah, just hearing about Mikala, it was really shocking.” Ryan Moss, friend of Mikala Jones
“Mikala was probably even quieter than his father John, he was a quiet achiever,” said Latronic.
He added that Jones was known for being creative with a GoPro and trying to get unique angles when waterhousing cameras were first released.
“He was an innovator with GoPro’s, he would take pictures and video of himself back before everyone else did it and he was getting some amazing footage,” said Latronic.
When Jones wasn’t on Oahu’s North Shore surfing the waves in the winter, he would be in Indonesia.
“He lived an amazing life of free surfing and he documented it but he didn’t disclose where he was or blow any big secret spots because he was that kind of guy, a gentleman surfer and he was such a well-loved kid, and a humble gentleman,” Latronic added.
Mikala went out doing what he loved, he was doing what he loved and doing what he always did, you know there’s not a lot you can control when you’re getting rag dolled and somersaulting under the whitewash. The waves he liked to surf were powerful, intense, and explosive, so his board must have got caught under his leg and the impact and you know something like that but it’s just really unfortunate.” Mike Latronic, Surf photographer and Freesurf Magazine publisher
Jones leaves behind a wife and three children.
Source: KTLA Los Angeles
