ALL AROUND SURF WATERMEN

The True Aqua Athletes

by Corky Carroll

​Through the years there have been many great surfers that more than less were specialists in a certain aspect.  Some have been expert big wave riders, others expert small wave riders and some expert middle size wave riders.  For instance, you have  guys like Greg Noll, who was famous for fearlessly riding giant waves yet was pretty much an average small wave rider.  One the other hand there was the great East Coast Champion Gary Proper, the dude could ride tiny waves better than just about anybody ever could.  But didn’t like the big ones.  
 
There have also been many surfers remembered for certain parts of surfing that they were really good at.  Like David Nuuhiwa, who was the greatest “noserider” of the great noseriding era of the 1960’s.  Barry Kanaiaupuni was well known for his monster bottom turns at Sunset Beach, on the North Shore.  Mike Purpus was well known to have “the best Cutback in the business.”  Billy Hamilton and Skip Frye were both respected to have extremely beautiful surfing styles.  Gerry Lopez was the man when it came to “tube riding,” and in fact was dubed “Mr Pipeline,” taking the title from the great Butch Van Artsdalen.  
 
There have been some that have been able to ride anything thrown at them well.  These are special human beings.  Kelly Slater would be one that immediately comes to mind.  From tiny Cocoa Beach, Florida ankle snappers to giant Waimea Bay on the North Shore, no problemos.  Also on the dance card in this category would be guys like Peter Townend, Jock Sutherland, John Peck, Michael Ho, Reno Abellira, Rolf Aurness and Jeff Hackman.  There’s more but my space is limited here.  

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Watch Blue Mango Surf's Augusto Olinto compete for WSL World Longboard title next week

Taking this a step further there is an even rarer breed of surfer that could be classified as “All Around Watermen.”  These are guys who not only excel in all types of surfing conditions but also are able to do other stuff.  The first ones that come to mind would be George Downing and Mike Doyle.  Both of these guys were not only great surfers in all kinds of conditions but they were also world class paddle racers.  Doyle was known as the “Iron Man,” or “Iron Mike,” for his prowess in Surfing, paddling, Dory racing, body surfing and swimming.  All the lifeguard stuff.  In the mid 1960’s it was my opinion that he was the greatest big wave surfer going, along with probably Eddie Aikau.  He also invented the “mono ski,” which later evolved into the “snowboard.”  
 
And then came Laird Hamilton.  This is the guy who took the whole thing into a totally different world.  He is pretty much directly responsible for bringing us “tow in” surfing.  This opened up the ability to ride waves much bigger than ever before.  Waves too big to be able to paddle a board into.  He also led us into both Stand Up Paddleboard surfing and “Foil” surfing.  Laird boldly went where no one had gone before.  When they had vocabulary in school they never gave him the word fear.  He had none of that.  

​And the latest surftronaut is the astonishing Kai Lenny.  At only 29 years old this guy has taken up where Laird left off and is going to whole new extremes in all phases of surfing.  He is a total expert as a surfer, stand up paddle surfer, stand up paddle racer, wind-surfer, kite surfer, foil surfer and probably any and all other kinds of surfer that there are.  I am in awe of the dude.  I see video of him just shredding all kinds of waves on all kinds of equipment and it just blows me away.
 
It’s one thing to be good at one thing, but it’s amazing to be not only good but expert in multiple things all at the same time.  People like Downing, Doyle, Hamilton and Kai Lenny are great examples of all around watermen who in their own time and own way took things to new levels.  I give them huge respect