Jay Moriarty

"At the remarkable age of 16, Jay Moriarty paddled in on a double up Mavericks monster and suffered a wipe out for the millennium one of the most horrific ever recorded on film the picture and the boy immortalized on the cover of Surfer Magazine" (Meenaghan). Jay Moriarty a 16-year-old boy from Santa Cruz, California made his way into the surfing world by surfing Mavericks, a break 2 miles offshore of Pillar Point Harbor. In December of 1994 Jay Moriarty had one of the surfing world's worst wipeouts. Nicknamed the "Iron Cross Wipeout" Jay fell 30 feet to his back and the monster wave crashed down upon him. Jay held his breath for more than 2 minutes and finally came up for air. Courage, enthusiasm, and positivity are the most important traits for being a hero. To have courage means to be brave and confident in whatever you will do. To be enthusiastic means to always be encouraging and to always pick someone up when they are down. Last but not least, to be positive means to be open-minded or optimistic and to always look at the glass half full. Jay Moriarty possessed many traits that proved he was a hero, but three of them stand out the most: his courage, enthusiasm, and his positive attitude all contributed to his hero-like character.

Jay Moriarty had many traits that contributed to his heroic character, but his courageousness was one of his traits that stands out."That boy's going to surf that wave anyway, even if he dies trying. I mean, wouldn't you?" (Meenaghan). Jay Moriarty was so brave and courageous he was willing to die trying to surf a monster wave that could kill him instantly even without training. Frosty, Jay's mentor understands that Jay won't back down and decides to teach him. "In the surfing community "Live like Jay" means to enjoy every day and live in the moment. Take the time to appreciate the people around you. Seize opportunities presented. "Live like Jay is a saying often said by surfers that if we all lived like Jay the world would be a lot better place. Jay Moriarty's amazing courageous personality helped him overcome things that many people can't do. It takes real courage to surf a spot like Mavericks and a type of courage like that is found in heroes.

Jay Moriarty's enthusiastic personality helped him overcome his many goals in his lifetime. Jay Moriarty's remarkable amount of enthusiasm contributed to his heroic character. "Jay and I surfed Mavericks for the first time on the same day-April 1, 1994. We formed a friendship and I looked forward to surfing with him whenever we could. Jay came out wild-eyed and carefree with that smirkish grin he always had." Jay Moriarty was always an enthusiastic person. Jay Moriarty was the type of person that always had a smile on his face .Jay Moriarty knew how to always make someone else smile. Even if something bad happened he never lost his grin. Jay Moriarty also was an encouraging person who always helped out. A big smile and lots of enthusiasm is not uncommon with Jay Moriarty. He was always a happy person. "Whenever you told Jay what not to do, he'd flash that smile and do it anyway. And Jay did that smile. And instead of just getting through that section, he did something ultra radical and made it through. We were laughing on the beach because we knew he'd just do it. And he made the wave and we won, and he's walking up the beach with that big smile."Jay Moriarty never lost his enthusiasm and he never lost his contagious grin. Even on the beach Jay Moriarty's team mates could not help but laugh at his bravery and enthusiasm. Jay Moriarty was smiling in everything he did, he was easy to be happy around. That's the kind of guy he was. Jay Moriarty's enthusiasm helped him overcome many goals and also showed his friends that life is all about having a good time.

Jay Moriarty's positivity influenced a lot of people making him a hero.Jay Moriarty's positive attitude helped him overcome the challenges of life. "If everyone could be a little more like Jay, the world would be a much better place," said Mel. If everyone could live like Jay the world would be happier and have a great positive vibe. If everyone had Jay Moriarty's positive attitude we would all be happy for the rest of our lives and everyone would always be in a good mood. Jay Moriarty's positive look on life always helped in the long run of achieving his goals."He didn't carry any negativity," said Peter Mel, a friend of Moriarty's and himself a big wave charger. "He always looked at the glass half full, and that's not easy to do."Jay Moriarty was never negative about anything or anybody he never criticized or did anything to make someone feel down.Not a lot of people in the world can always look at a glass half full no matter what situation they are in.Jay Moriarty's positive look on life helped him achieve his goals and overall make him the hero people remember him as.

Jay Moriarty has many traits that prove he is a hero but three of them stand out the most: his courage, enthusiasm, and his positive attitude all contributed to his hero like character. Jay Moriarty's exceptional heroic traits all prove that he is a hero to remember. Courage, enthusiasm, and positivity over all make up a hero that has unbreakable character. Jay Moriarty inspired me because of his can do attitude and his courage. Jay Moriarty also showed me that if there is ever something you want to accomplish you must have the courage to take your goal by the horns and accomplish it! Being a hero is much more than having super powers. Its really just the little things that people do that count. Jay Moriarty's heroic attitude came from just a basic smile, and people from all over still consider him a hero. Putting other people's needs ahead of yours and living like Jay is what heroes do. Jay Moriarty also taught me to not be discouraged and always "live like Jay". Jay Moriarty died on June 15, 2001. He was 22.