Strong Island Son – How Long Island, New York’s Will Skudin rose to the big-wave elite from the unlikeliest of places

But others saw something in Skudin that could account for his unlikely rise. “It’s not surprising to me that someone from the East Coast could become successful in big waves,” says Gary Linden, founder of the Big Wave World Tour. “Sometimes there’s more motivation if the waves aren’t in your backyard; it’s incredible how committed Will is.

Will Skudin earned his place among the big-wave elite the hard way: by keeping his finger on the pulse of storm systems, chasing swells around the world, and committing to the heaviest waves he can find.

Many big-wave surf fans were left scratching their heads, wondering how Skudin, a Long Island-New Yorker who grew up surfing breaks that seldom get over head high, could have become one of the best big-wave surfers in the world.

Read more here: Surfer Mag