HiLevel Profile
By Brad Yates

Hawaii's Brock Little is known though out the surf world by his first name. The name BROCK is synonymous with a gutsy, all-out approach to paddling into the biggest waves imaginable. With international acclaim his for the asking this ocean athlete has never wanted or expected anything but his own personal accomplishment. Brock's performance in the recent Quicksilver's/MEN WHO RIDE MOUNTAINS, held at Mavericks Reef in Half Moon Bay, drew praise from everyone present. The waves were huge, ranging from18 to 25 feet, thick and unpredictable. The wave at Mavericks comes out of very deep water and breaks on a very shallow rock bottom close to a mile from shore. This is Northern California surfing with the conditions on this day typically ice cold, more suitable for snowboarding than surfing. Water temperatures consistently drop below 50 degrees so surfers wear heavy wet suits complete with booties, gloves and hat. Floating in what seems like the middle of the North Pacific Ocean the surfer must paddle extremely hard against strong coastal currents to get into the wave. On this day, Brock finished 7th a fraction of a point away from being in the finals. In his words, "I'm good at surfing big waves, I enjoy contests like this, I came to have a good time and I did." People who would never consider trying to surf on a bone chilling day like this should apply Brock's life philosophy to their own, and learn from his approach to creating a life built around doing what he loves to do.

The moral of Brock's story: build confidence in what you love to do, focus on the results you want to produce, accept the results of your efforts and move on. For Brock the process of building confidence took ten years. From age 11 to 21 surfing dominated his life. He pushed himself to surf big waves harder and longer, to take-off deeper and to expect more from himself on every ride. Then an event in his life changed him forever. Surfing in the Quicksilver/Eddie Aikau event at Waimea Bay, Brock caught and rode what many consider to be the wave of the day. Being able to line-up, catch and ride a wave of this volume told him that he had passed a test. From that moment and that day forward he has been confident in his ability to relax and have fun in huge surf. In the eyes of most he is no mortal man, yet he carries himself with complete humility and respect for others.

The simplicity of Brock's philosophy can be seen in every activity of his life. There is a saying that states, "Love what you do and do what you love." On this day at Mavericks, Brock refused to let the discomfort of travel; dangerous surf, hideous wipeouts, freezing temperatures and the intensity of the competition take away from his ability to give his best effort. Through his entire day of surfing and staying out at sea for over six hours, he maintained his commitment to himself and his philosophy. Two days after the event he is back home riding his dirt bike in Pupukea. When I asked him about his success he said, "People always want to know about my drive and motivation to perform. To me it's simple, my performance in everything I do is a reflection of my ability to perform at my best and have a good time doing it."