Hamilton reveals NEAR-DEATH experience caused by a taking on a dare

Lewis Hamilton has told of how he ‘prayed’ during a potentially life-threatening surfing incident after a dare from friend and surfing legend Kelly Slater.

The seven-time world champion is also an avid surfer, and put his risk-taking nature through its paces when he couldn’t resist taking on a dare from Slater during a surf break at Hawaii’s Banzai Pipeline a couple of years ago.

The waves at the Pipeline are notorious for being some of the most dangerous on the planet, and Hamilton has recounted the 25-foot wave that he battled after Slater insisted there was ‘no way’ he would take it on.

In an interview with Robb Report, Hamilton said: “I’ve always been a risk taker. When someone says ‘You can’t climb that tree,’ I’ll climb it, even if I’ll almost certainly fall out of it.”

He continued: “Kelly was like: ‘There’s no way you’re going out there.’ And I was like: ‘Kelly, I’m going out.’”

Hamilton explained that once he had paddled to the edge of the wave, he had to ensure that he wasn’t engulfed in its depths.

He said: “This thing was massive, a huge tunnel, and I could see Kelly coming right down it in front of me. And I just had to make sure I didn’t get sucked in.

“So I dived down and grabbed the reef and prayed. I could hear the thing land behind me, like a bomb going off.

“My board got ripped off and snapped in half. I was very close to the end. But that excites me for some reason.”

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Hamilton: My limit is higher than most people

Hamilton’s daring attitude carries over to his work on track with F1, though he has conceded that he is no longer as audacious as he was earlier in his career.

He said: “When I was younger, I was reckless. I took a lot of risks and I was very fortunate not to get injured.

“Now, you can measure risk smarter. I’ve always been good at knowing my limit, and my limit is higher than most people. And I’ve always been comfortable when I’m close to the limit.”

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