During the prime of 2007’s winter on the North Shore, FSM and Board Stories TV got the chance to sit down with Leila in the frontyard of the Billabong Girls’ beachfront pad. She’d flown into Honolulu a couple days prior, and had just finished a photo shoot with teammate Monyca Bryne-Wickey. The girls were up at dawn for the shoot, but ten hours later, Leila’s still full of energy.

Friends and family of the born-and-raised Kaua‘i girl are very familiar with that energy. She seems to be constantly exuding a happy, lovable and optimistic vibe, and is the girl you wish you’d been friends with when you were 14. She’s your stereotypical teenager: bubbly, chatty, and addicted to Myspace. She loves Beyonce and Rhianna, and is rumored to have quite the collection of home movies of her singing along to her favorite songs.

Beneath the surface, however, Leila is anything but your stereotypical teen. The level of focus and determination she has towards surfing is surprising. “She takes it very seriously,” shares Billabong team manager Megan Brainard. “Even though she might not show it, ‘cause one minute she’ll be bouncing on the beach like a butterfly, she does. She really wants to have a surfing career.” When asked about competition, Leila’s face changes, her eyes focus and her answers come quick: “I look at surfing as a job.”

Coming from a 14-year-old who lives in a country where those her age aren’t legally allowed to hold jobs, you might assume she’s got someone in the wings forcing her to adopt this mature attitude. But there isn’t. “I’m super self-motivated,” she says, pulling on the gold chain around her neck. “My Dad makes [surfing] fun. He’s not one of those pressure Dads who’s always on you or yelling at you, making sure you’re surfing good. He’s super cruise about it.” Rainos Hayes, who has been coaching Leila for the past four years, is witness to her focus. “She’s very much enjoying what she’s doing, but at the same time, she’s constantly concentrating on her next move, the next step in her career, or the next opportunity to compete. She’s always thinking ahead, and she’s excited about it all.”

In many respects, Leila is your typical Kauaian surfer girl. In true small town fashion, she’s had the same group of friends her whole life, and has loved her childhood on the Garden Isle. Although she doesn’t remember her first wave, she does remember her Dad teaching her at Hanalei Bay around the same time she started kindergarten. “My Dad would take me surfing every day,” remembers Leila. “I grew up in the water.”

It becomes clear that Leila has a special connection with the ocean when you watch her on a wave. She is one of the most graceful surfers in her age group. She has a fluid, controlled and smooth style that has people likening her to Parko and Lisa Anderson. “Leila is very polished for her age,” says Rainos. “She has a very graceful style that outweighs a lot of the other girls out there. It’s not like she’s hacking it up or just trying to fit in a maneuver.”

But she’s got the maneuvers down, too, and has been successfully combining her style and technical ability to make it to the finals in some of surfing’s most important competitions. “Free surfing is fun, but it’s really exciting when you win a contest,” Leila confesses. Last year was an exciting one, and she’s had to make some room on her trophy shelves. Her proudest moments? “Going to Worlds in Portugal, making all my finals at Nationals last year, and doing good in the Billabong Junior Pro.”

Leila’s got her eyes on the prize, and doesn’t hesitate when asked about her short and long term goals. She’s hoping to be able to challenge herself in bigger waves, secure a national title at Trestles in June and to make it back to Worlds. In the long run, she’s determined to make it on to the ‘CT, and would love to get the chance to travel, especially to Fiji.

It seems like Leila Hurst is successfully walking the balance beam of focus and fun. She’s extremely motivated for a girl her age, but doesn’t seem like she’s in any danger of forgetting how fun the sport is. She’s about to embark on a journey from water baby to water woman, and it’s going to be an impressive transition to watch.