6| Ben Dunn
Birthday: January 8, 1986
Hometown: Wallabi Point, Australia The only time you'll ever see Ben Dunn lose his cool is when he's glued to a rugby match, or maybe when he shanks a bad drive on the golf course, other than that, you'll never see the kid sweat. Quiet and somewhat introverted, this regular-footer is extremely calculating. The son of Martin Dunn, one of Australia's most celebrated surf coaches, who's trained talents such as Trent Munroe, Tom Whittaker, Ace Buchan, Shaun Cansdell and Rebecca Woods to various successes, Ben may be the most disciplined, technically proficient surfer amongst all the junior ranks today. “He's a machine,” says former U.S. Champion Dino Andino, who knows a thing or two about contest strategy. “He doesn't ever seem to make bad decisions. He's a complete technician…the next Damien Hardman.” As a consequence of this ability, he has won just about everything a junior can win in Australia, as well as finishing in the top ten on the WQS in 2006. He's more accomplished than both Mick Fanning and Taj Burrow were at this age, the only rub on Dunn is he may lack the flair necessary to separate himself from the rest of the pack, but if you consider what Damien Hardman did-won two world titles-that doesn't seem like such a bad thing. 7| Dusty Payne
Birthday: December 12, 1988
Hometown: Lahaina, Hawaii Dusty Payne is quickly establishing himself as one of the premier young surfers in Hawaii, if not the world. Hailing from Lahaina, Maui, Payne possesses the most focus and drive in an extremely deep talent pool of Valley Isle surfers. He’s been fortunate enough to polish his act in the perfection of Honolua Bay, while at the same time cutting his teeth in the world of big waves at places like Jaws and other outer reefs along Maui’s exposed northern shore. “Dusty Shitstain, that kid surfs so fast.” said Bruce Irons while hovering over the light table, picking photos for SURFER’s recent Guest Editor issue. “He’s dynamic, explosive.” Inspired by Irons, driven by a steel will, motivated to be Hawaii’s next big thing, whether this nimble regular-footer is sporting a jersey, falling from the sky at Pipe or behind a tow-rope at Jaws, he’s got all the requisite attributes necessary for somebody determined to elevate the sport to the next level. 8| Dion Atkinson
Birthday: October 10, 1986
Hometown: Seaford, Australia Hailing from the wilds of South Australia, Dion Atkinson is in a good place, both geographically and professionally. Bordered by a bounty of slabby, open-ocean waves in West Oz to the east, and the seemingly endless perfection of Queensland to the west, not to mention the plethora of good waves found around his local stomping grounds, Atkinson is equally adept in anything the ocean can throw at him. A big, strong surfer, as Wade Goodall so eloquently puts it, “He’s one of the only young guys surfing with a shitload of power.” And while he could go out and make some serious coin as a free surfer, he’s got a competitive streak to him, which he demonstrated last year at the Cold Water Classic where he walked away with the Oakley Pro Junior title, considered by many to be the hottest surfer in the entire event. He also took second in a WQS contest in Japan and backed that result up with a solid 17th in the Maldives. Jersey or not, he’s bound to make some statements with his rail work alone. |
