“He’s John John, man, he’s like the original grommet,” says Dino Andino, who’s boy Kolohe is quickly developing a nice little rivalry with the new Hawaiian Superman. “If you think about it,” continues Dino, “he made it possible for all these kids to do what they’re doing today, he made it okay for an 11-year-old to surf Pipeline.” And while it may be true that John John did pave the way for all the prodigious talent exploding all over the world, those willing to hang with him in the heaviest Island conditions are few and far between. Maxed-out Haleiwa and Sunset don’t seem to even ruffle his shaggy blonde locks, and his act at Third Reef Pipe is rivaled only by the most established in the Hawaiian hierarchy. As of late, the boy with two first names also proved cold water’s hardly a deterrent as he’s been spending a bit of time staring down the bowl at Maverick’s. All this and he’s also a contest machine. He’s the youngest surfer to ever surf in the Triple Crown, he’s got a multitude of NSSA titles to his credit, as well as a host of inter-island victories. To put it bluntly: “John John’s gnarly.”