6|  Leilani Gryde
Birthday:May 1, 1987
Hometown: Kailua, Hawaii

A surfer from the Big Island with good experience in sizable waves, Gryde is on a mission to make the WCT. Last year she narrowly missed the cut, falling short by one place, but this year, as of press time, she’s rebounded from that disappointment and has started her season on the WQS with results that have landed her in the top 25. “I know how to separate contest time and friend time,” she says, “even though it sucks.” It’s a mature and somewhat Andy Irons–esque implication that when the horn blows, Gryde’s out for the kill. Look for her realist mentality, raw ability, and drive to usher her onto the ’CT sometime very soon.

Bethany Hamilton has been busy lately. Books, TV appearances, and now a feature film are just a few of the things on her plate. And it doesn’t sound like she’s going to slow down. “On my schedule in 2007,” she gushes, “are a lot of surf contests, special appearances, my documentary release and premieres, a new website launch, new books, and a feature film production.” The only real question is whether she can remain focused on what made her who she was before the shark attack, before her miraculous NSSA comeback, and before the mass-media swarm: simply surfing.