Nate Lawrence: “There’s so much talk of the next generation. Kids are getting sponsored at a younger age every year. They are learning faster than previous generations. Surfing is changing into something that is very thought out and calculated. No more do kids grab any surfboard and paddle out not knowing how many cubic liters their surfboard is or what fins work best for the conditions that day. And this is even more true for 2nd and 3rd generation surfers. Kolohe Andino. Noah Beschen. Varun Tanjung, pictured here paddling with his pops Rizal Tanjung, the prince of Bali — or more appropriately now the king of Bali. The knowledge that Rizal has accumulated over the years is being passed onto Varun everyday. Will this affect the surfing skills of the heir to the thrown? Who knows. But paddling out to Padang Padang and having your dad tell you where to sit and what waves to choose can’t be a bad thing.
You can watch Rizal surf the Padang Cup live at http://live.ripcurl.com which started Tuesday morning in Bali.