You know Kelly Slater, a surfing king and living legend. You know Jamie O’Brien, the North Shore master of fun and free-surfing videography. And you know John John Florence, the Prince Charming of Pipeline. But have you heard of Evan Geiselman?
Well now you have, and it’s a name to remember for 2014. Twenty-year-old Geiselman, known as Golden Boy and EG, stole the show during Day 2 of Volcom’s Pipe Pro. After three consecutive “lei days,” Pipeline came back to life during the second day of the competition; it surged 8-12 foot waves. With scores higher than big name Pipeline veterans, Geiselman triumphed in a huge upset and knocked Florence out of the competition.
Seeded in Heat 9 were Florence, Geiselman, Michael February, and Parker Coffin. Right from the start, Geiselman caught his first wave for the competition and is close to perfection with a score of 9.63. With that fire and confidence, Geiselman launched into his second wave with a strong take–off and pulled another solid score of 8.90. Geiselman showed the best scores of the day before his competition showed scores worth keeping at all. Florence was only able to total a score of 7.07, which lost him the heat and knocked him completely out of the competition.
Although Geiselman did not grow up surfing Pipe like Florence, he has been riding waves since the ripe age of seven. Born in Mew Smyrna Beach, Florida, Geiselman is arguably the best surfer to come from the East Coast. His goofy-footed rides impress fans while his signature air-reovs launch him into the air as he grabs the board with his left hand and spins in style.
In 2010 Geiselman was named ASP North America Pro Junior Champion. He holds a record of 15 National Scholastic Surfing Association (NSSA) title wins and has won 40 amateur surf contests.
With an impressive background and amazing performance at Volcom Pipe Pro, Geiselman’s potential will have you looking for more to come. We’ll just have to wait and see if Geiselman’s great start foreshadows even more success.