Early Days in Hawaii

If your strong point is a solid combination of big rail turns and hunting tubes, you'll always take the opportunity to work on the other parts of your game. Ace Buchan, air guy. Photo Trevor Moran

Paradise and Forget Me Nots always seem to go together! With Ace's approach revolving around hitting the steepest, most critical part of whatever wave he surfs, the FMN's extra curve and refined rails suit perfectly. For fun to excellent conditions, some of his go-to dimensions are 5'11" x 18 5/8" x 2 5/16" x 26L (he's 5'9" / 76kg).

Our young gun Caleb, laying a whole lot of rail into Rocky Rights. At 5'2" / 45kg, he rides a 5'1" x 16 3/4" x 2 1/16" Monsta 6 Youth. Photo Trevor Moran

Joel, slicing small Backdoor in half. Our world champ's 6'0" / 83kg, and rides a 6'2" x 18 7/8" x 2 3/8" x 28.1L Forget Me Not round pin. Photo Ryan Miller

Functional and pretty damn easy on the eye - rock 'n' roll floaters never go out of style. 6'0" x 18 7/8" x 2 3/8" x 28.1L Monsta 6. Photo Ryan Miller

Ryan Callinan and a good example of what happens when 100% commitment collides with a big section. Even when he's not surfing perfect tubes, ones of Ryan's go-to boards is the Forget Me Not, as long as the waves have decent shape (something you don't often have to worry about in Hawaii!). At 6'0" / 80kg, he rides a 6'2" x 18 7/8" x 2 3/8" x 28.1L. Photo Ryan Miller

Hiroto Ohhara, staying fast and loose between contests. At 5'4" / 64kg, he rides a 5'8" x 18 1/8" x 2 1/4" x 24L Monsta 6. Photo Trevor Moran

Hawaiian trade winds aren't only good for grooming big scary tubes. Riley Laing, boosting into the breeze with an equally scary backside rotor. Some of Riles' favourite everyday dims in the Air 17 are 5'11" x 18 5/8" x 2 5/16" x 27L. Photo Trevor Moran