10. Kainoa McGee
Hawaiian
to the core. Kainoa buckled boards with pure power and takes off on the biggest
Pipe waves to dare unload on the famed reef. It’s a shame he never won a Pipe
comp but riding 15 ft. second reef bombs on dropknee and dropping in on
unmakeable waves only to come out of the barrel with a claim… well that’s
Kainoa. He’s in his element in the barrel and he’s a complete water man,
manhandling huge barrels on his belly, on his knee, standing up or with a
paddle. I met Kainoa once and I remember three things super clear: 1.) he looks
like someone you’d NEVER want to mess with, 2.) he’s a super cool and nice guy
and 3.) I reminded him physically of Alex Kinimaka. Not too bad a day for a
stoked grom if I do say so myself.
9. Neymara Carvalho
While
many women are super worthy of admiration for their skills, courage and power,
Neymara was the first female bodyboarder I can remember of that busted more
hardcore than guys. Her airs at Backdoor commanded the respect of all the
people and she’s a hell woman if I’ve ever seen one. The funny thing is that if
she were any more bubbly she’d be a friggin champagne. Seeing her go from land
to water was like watching a hello kitty doll transform into the Tasmanian
Devil and to me, she’s always been a super standout on any wave where you can
boost being one of my favorite riders to watch… without gender distinction.
8. Andre Botha
At
17 I was finishing high school, at 18 I was starting college… At those same ages,
Andre Botha was winning back-to-back world titles. Like other Zaffas, Andre has
a tendency to take off on bigger waves than you’d want to even try to imagine
yourself on. To make matters more intense, his style was classic Zaffa… smooth,
powerful and pretty much damn perfect. Any young grom looking to make a mark
has his benchmark to strive for…
7. Ben Severson
Mike’s
nemesis in the 80’s, he was the first guy to establish a rivalry in the sport.
Super quick, great spinners, deep tubes, and the most vocal advocate for
hitting a roll as you came out of a barrel, Ben was a guy who excelled at fast
waves. His BZ models were some of my first, with the classic T-10 Channel being
one of my favorite boards in my life and he got so good shaping, he decided to
make his own company. Think about it, channels, transition rails, wide points…
these things we casually analyze nowadays were probably brought to the light
thanks to Ben. Now say thank you.
6. Ryan Hardy
Hardballs…
Want one wave to express how good Ryan is? Look for his spinner in the barrel at
Teahupoo in the Tahiti Skins Competition. Want one session to express how good
he can be in one session, look at him at the Box. Hardy charges and he’s one of
the most emotional guys you’ll ever meet when it comes to competition making me
suspect that he’s at least 1/8 Brazilian. When you think Ryan, you think precision
and power. Where’s the best place to hit the lip? He’s there. What’s the most
critical part of the wave to pull a move? He’s there. Like Mitch Rawlins, Ryan
has a tendency to execute moves so perfect you wonder how the hell they do it.
That’s because they have vision. While people focus on just hitting the lip and
boosting, Ryan and Mitch both share that innate super power to already think
about how they’re going to cross their legs while they’re boosting five feet
above the lip.
No comments:
Post a Comment