Written by Nicholas Paoni and Photographed by Nicholas Paoni and Scott Winer

Confident.  If I had to select one word to describe Hudson McKee, the Rider of the Month for August, it would be confident.  That was apparent to me by the way he handled the interview, the way he charged out into the surf when it was done, and how he rode the waves once out there.

Hudson is 13 years old and started surfing about 5 years ago, which coincides with when his family moved here from Utah.  He credits his Dad for getting him involved in the sport and teaching him how to ride. His father told me they surf together a lot.  He is also working with coaches Darrell Goodrum, Rusty Phillipy and Damien Hobgood to help him get to the next level.  Competing seems important to him.  He rides for his school surf team at Oak Crest Middle School, and competes in NSSA, WSA, and SSS events.  He tries to surf about 3 hours a day.  When I asked him what his favorite break is, he hedged and said it was secret and didn’t want to say.  Awesome surfer etiquette right?  I immediately changed the subject

Hudson is serious about his studies, and his Mom told me he especially likes Math.  He used to play soccer and surf, but decided to now focus primarily on surfing so it is easier to keep up with homework.  He may eventually want to pursue a career in competitive surfing, but reminded me that he is still pretty young and has some time before he has to make that decision. I couldn’t agree more.

Hudson also sees college in his future and currently is interested in business or economics, something that he may be able to apply to the surfing industry.  He seems pretty serious about that since he told me he was searching to see if any colleges had programs specializing in the surfing business.

He really seems to love riding.  His father told me when they first got here Hudson was sorry to have left Utah.  Now he told his Dad he couldn’t imagine living anywhere else.  There will come a time when Hudson will face the same decisions other Groms do about what role surfing will play in his life and career, but for now he is just having fun, doing what he loves and living the dream.