Pete Devries, Canada

Have y’ever surfed in booties, gloves and a hood? It ain’t easy. But Canadian Pete Devries is a man who digs on it and owns the set-up. He’s a product of his surroundings – he’s down with solitude and the cold, crisp beauty of untamed forests and just-above-freezing currents. Seriously – the current water temp in Tofino is just above seven degrees. And that ain’t all you gotta worry about: “There isn’t too many dangerous animals,” says Pete. “We don’t get many sharks, and even if we do, the sightings are offshore. But there is sea-lions and orcas. Orcas are rare, but they would be the most dangerous animal out there if they mistook you for food. The sea lions come up to you and bump you. They’re just a little curious, but big – 2000 pounds, which was super daunting growing up. But I’d be more worried about sharks, for sure.” And, what about bears? “You don’t really worry about them around town getting into your garbage, more when you’re camping remotely, looking for waves. You have to keep your food pretty contained, ’cause that’s when they’ll wonder through the campsite. They’ve come through the campsites, but they are pretty scared of noise and humans. We had one pretty close once, sitting in a tree above our tent and it wouldn’t go away. It would’ve weighed 350 to 500 pounds, and probably double us in size. We ended up shooting a flare to scare it off.” Throw all these elements together – the extensive rubber, the chilled bones, the bleak isolation, the wildlife – then try and huck an air-revs with as much swagger as Pete does.