Heart of the Sea
Every day, Australian Damien Rider was haunted by his childhood.
From the age of 6, Damien was left with no choice but to seek refuge in rock caves, under jetties and skate parks to hide from the abusing monsters that were chipping away at his soul. He was helpless.
The police and neighborhood offered no assistance, leaving Damien with ongoing trauma and a warped view of what childhood should be.
Years into Adulthood, Damien’s life continued to suffer. The pain and flashbacks caused him to self-destruct. After seeing through many psychologists who could offer no real solutions, Damien took matters into his own hands to find his peace and face his inner demons.
He set off on what many thought to be an impossible journey: paddling 800km solo with ZERO support crew for 17 days on a paddleboard propelled by just his hands – from his home in Coolangatta to Bondi Beach in Sydney.
Damien spent months turning his body into an endurance machine. He would do 3 hour workouts, 8 hour workouts, even building up to a 24 workout, and shooting his progress.
During his feat, Damien was alone with limited food and water, suffering fatigue and severe hunger; not a soul aware of where he was at any given time.
He crossed shark breeding grounds with great fear and difficulty, having his board rocked by one and being stalked by more – in the middle of a man eating shark period where 5 people lost their lives in just 12 months to the ocean’s most feared predator.
Damien faced unexplainable physical and mental fatigue day in and day out, but never once wavered from his dream – and documented it all via an onboard camera.
On January 24 at 3:04pm, Damien Rider paddled into Bondi Beach, accomplishing his goal which left one paramedic wondering if he’s human, and why no one had set up a study on him to discover how on earth he was able to do it!
Damien also left multiple paddle boarding world champions speechless, who train for extended periods to complete the gruelling 52 kilometres required for the annual Molokai to Oahu paddle boarding competition in Hawaii.
To their astonishment, Damien was paddling this distance everyday!
Rise Above
The ‘experts’ said that it couldn’t be done. It was considered to be too great a challenge for even the most accomplished athletes.
A new chapter in Damien’s life had started. The paddle to Bondi was just the beginning. He was now, more than ever, motivated to help others, particularly those who have suffered from trauma or abuse. Extreme endurance events would be the vehicle that would help take his message to the world – and what Damien has accomplished with these events since the Bondi paddle is truly inspirational. All of these challenges are captured in this heart-warming documentary.
Damien’s endurance challenges are all unique – and all designed to grab the attention of those who most need to hear his story. Damien has skateboarded 3,796 kilometers across Route 66 in the United States, run and paddled non-stop around the Island of Phuket, ridden a 1950’s Rickshaw bicycle over 260 kilometers and pushed a 2 tonne vehicle for over 40 kilometers on Australia’s Gold Coast. Each of these events grabbed headlines with the global media and helped thrust his cause into the spotlight.
Rise Above is a powerful story about hope – and a unique man who has found a way to rise above his own challenges and traumas and in the process inspire so many others to follow in his footsteps.
