Snagging a wave at Desert Point without being snaked, burnt or dodging a hundred human speed bumps is near impossible these days. When Indo’s mechanical left tube machine turns on, there’s usually a pack of 100-plus hungry surfers chomping at the bit for a piece of the action.

Unless you were a Capitulo Perfeito invitee, where you got to share the lineup with three other guys at the first-ever contest held at the joint earlier this month, you’re fighting for scraps like everyone else.

Sydney goofy-footer Arch Whiteman had a different plan. On his first trip to Desert’s, he skipped the main pack entirely and posted up at the Grower section – the scariest, shallowest stretch of reef on the point – betting that fear would do the crowd control for him.

“I remember being down at the Grower section, looking up the point and watching four perfect sets drain along the dry reef with nobody on them,” he said. “Knowing that in 30 seconds they were going to double in size, and I’d get a crack at weaving through one.”

The trip itself came together fast. Arch pulled the trigger on a last-minute flight to Indo, burning through the cash he’d saved lifeguarding a season on Sydney’s Northern Beaches. Torn on where exactly to point himself, he polled his mates and, only half-joking, asked ChatGPT for advice. The AI’s answer: Desert Point.

“I was there for four days, and my goofy mind was melting from the perfection,” he said. “I spent most of my time down at the bottom of the point, doing my best to dodge the crowd.”

Judging by the footage, ChatGPT called it. Arch has cut together a short edit from the four days, and it’s impressive just how many A+ tubes he threaded in a small window.

“If I just spent the rest of my life working in order to save money to go and surf that wave all the time, I’d be pretty happy,” he said.