FUTURE SHOCK
A glimpse into the making of the 2007 Hot 100 - ISSUE ON SALE NOW!
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As forward-thinking as we surfers claim to be in our personal outlooks, we never cease to be startled by change when it arrives. With each new wave of technological and social advance, there’s a growing disconnect between future and past that impacts our lives. In 1970, sociologist Alvin Toffler coined the phrase “future shock” to describe our innate fears of aggressive change. Just a few years earlier, in 1966, around the same time Nat Young (the Australian guy, not the kid from Santa Cruz) was shocking the world at the World Championships in Oceanside with his revolutionary nine-foot shortboard, Toffler was predicting nuances of the advanced Information Age we live in today. The eminent futurologist was offering people this higher learning at a place in New York City called—yup, you guessed it—The New School.

What occurred in the surf world after Nat Young’s performance was a perfect example of Toffler’s theories. Young’s dominance on the revolutionary new equipment marked the end of the previous era. In a matter of months, the vast majority of surfers changed the way they rode, adopting the progressive new “shortboards” and, eventually, whole new attitudes to go with them. Meanwhile, a small minority rejected the change and clung to the past. For the first time, there were notable fault lines in the surf tribe, but they wouldn’t be the last. Since then, each new design advance has had similar impacts on performances and attitudes, and each has led to further separation between those seeking the possible and probable, and those focused simply on the preferable. Surfers were constantly being fragmented into a growing list of hyphenated classes.

In recent years this separation has plagued us. As groups square off, each clings to a narrow-minded view of what surfing should be, rejecting anything that doesn’t support its views. Yet there is hope. What’s separating the generation you’re about to meet from those who came before them is, above all else, its rejection of being labeled or hyphenated. To rise above the rest these days, the best young talents are seeking, absorbing, and applying lessons learned from a variety of sources, in a variety of ways. It’s the result of a lifetime spent filtering rivers of information, and not being beholden to any sort of strict indoctrination.

So when it came time for us to sit down and assess the current crop of up-and-comers in the sport, we wanted to be sure we got a glimpse of what the future looked like from their angle, and a peek at their current map of the world. To that end, we asked many of the best and brightest for their thoughts on each other. Dozens and dozens responded; some went so far as to give us their own versions of what the rankings should look like. While no two ever were alike, in the end there were unavoidable trends and consensus opinions that proved vital when it came down to making the final calls. What’s most refreshing about this current class, however, is that, even while hell-bent on getting us to the next level, that next level looks to be a very beautiful blend of past and present. Perhaps that’s why the top two surfers on this list (go on, turn the page and you’ll see) are accomplished longboarders as well as aerial freaks. It’s OK to fear the unknown. But, in the years ahead, as you get to know these kids even better, we think you’ll be just fine with the future.
LISTED BELOW ARE ALL THE HOT 100 SURFER'S PROFILES DIVIDED, IN ORDER, INTO MEN, GROMMETS, GIRLS AND LONGBOARDERS. CLICK ON EACH PHOTO FOR A DETAILED REPORT AND RANKING OF EACH SURFER