John Florence, swinging for fisheye, France

The grass is always greener. It always looks better where you ain’t. Stare at a beachie for long enough from the right angle, and you’re gonna see a moment of magic. Hope drives surfing, and it’ll be hope that sends you out there. Which has been the case for event organisers at the Quik Pro, France. Hence, the short bursts of competition (round one and round two spread across two days each).

“Today was one of those down-the-beach illusion days at the comp site,” says Ryan Miller, who saw first hand. “I got down there at first light and from half a km down the beach it looked like it was going loony. Great-looking barrels right on the beach. I couldn’t get my wetsuit on fast enough. It looked like a water photographer’s wet dream. After I raced down there it was actually far from what I’d seen from a distance. The waves were actually doubling up and there weren’t many great tubes to be had, thus why they’d put the comp on hold.”

But the beauty of having the 34 in one place is that no matter what conditions are like, there’s always gonna be someone out there lighting up. And unsurprisingly, John Florence (pictured here) was Miller’s subject this morning. “John John was out and hunting around the lineup,” continues Ryan. “He isn’t one to miss out when the waves could possibly offer up a tube or two. This is him hucking the fins to the sand on a double-up.” For an extra thrill, go watch heats on demand and marvel at John’s barrel to full-rote ‘oop combo.