John Florence, Pacific poise, Tahiti

You can bet this is the last thing John Florence’s competitors wanna to see heading into the Volcom Fiji Pro with two thumper swells forecasted for the event. Shot during a recent trip to Tahiti, the Hawaiian grom’s performance in his preferred long period juice was nothing short of startling, according to witnesses. “What I saw from John on that trip was some freakish shit,” says photographer, Jimmicane Wilson, ”A command of the waves he rode that I’d never witnessed before. Just baffling to watch in person.” For John, the Fiji event is shoring up as a pivotal moment in his title ambitions. Front-runner, Joel Parkinson has a less than an impressive record here while Kelly, arguably the best at Cloudbreak, will carry the pressure of having missed the Brazil event. Sitting at fifth in the world with a last start win and having still yet to surf in any of the tour’s waves of consequence, John Florence is in a commanding position, at least mentally. Photo: Jimmicane