Laird Hamilton

FOR OUTSIDE’S 40TH ANNIVERSARY, WE’RE FEATURING 11 PEOPLE WHO CHANGED OUR WORLD. THIS MONTH, THE CONSUMMATE WATERMAN.

Matt Skenazy

LAIRD HAMILTON’S LIFE has played out like a tall tale. Raised by a single mother on Oahu’s North Shore, he was a toddler when he approached surf legend Bill Hamilton and asked him to be his dad. Bill obliged, marrying Laird’s mom shortly thereafter. Fast-forward 15 years, and young Laird, already six foot three and 210 pounds, is plucked from a similar stretch of beach by a modeling scout. Soon he’s perched on a motorcycle, with Brooke Shields on the back, in Life magazine. After a modeling stint in Southern California, he moves back to the North Shore and quickly establishes himself as the alpha dog among a sea of alpha dogs. He’s fearless in giant surf and doesn’t mind jockeying for waves. He won’t enter contests on princi ple but…

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Outside (Digital) - 1 Issue, September 2017

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