By Chelsea Johns

There is no disputing that the Valley Isle is producing some of the hottest young talent around. While rippers like Dusty Payne, Ola Eleogram, Hank Gaskell and Granger Larsen haven’t broken the WCT barrier, they’re knocking hard on that door. Young Mauians have been turning heads at amateur events and making their presence felt on the WQS. They’re finding their way into your latest surf vid and infusing the pages of surf mags across the globe. Nine Maui hotshots were featured in Surfer Magazine’s “Hot 100” surfers of 2008. When you consider the size of the entire international surfing community, that’s a pretty impressive figure.

Despite the fact that Maui’s neighboring islands block swell better than the UH Warrior’s offensive line, Valley Isle surfers always have a pupu platter of waves and conditions to choose from. Between the XXL beasts rolling through Pe‘ahi, the fastest tubes in the world pumping through Ma‘alaea Freight Trains, the consistent, rippable peaks at Ho‘okipa, and the long, hollow rights at Honolua Bay, the Valley Isle delivers.
 
Cover boy Clay Marzo takes advantage of his meaty selection of waves at home to excel abroad. “I tried to get in early, but ended up a little late and almost ate it, but came through,” says Clay of this wave. “It is a sick feeling when you pull out there. On a day when it's that big you feel lucky to just not eat it on the reef.” While Clay didn’t score the sweet spot into the 2008 Billabong Pro Tahiti, he still snuck into a few impressive tube rides (suffering a few neck-jarring wipeouts in the process). Marzo’s not sweating it though. The 18-year-old goofyfoot has plenty of years ahead to dominate the contest scene and lead this progressive assemblage of Maui surfers.  


On the Cover: Clay Marzo
Photo: Steve Robertson