Will Deane Packs a Lifetime of Waves Into One Dream Season in ‘Fifteen’
Will Deane is not living the life of an “ordinary” teenager. As a hyper-focused, and talented, competitive surfer, he’s enrolled in the Bridgeway Academy for homeschooling and is able to spend a good chunk of his time surfing, training, and traveling. From the looks of Fifteen, a new short put out by the Outer Banks local, this past winter featured the kind of air miles most surfers would take years to log. The film highlights free surfs at home in the Outer Banks and on the road in Hawaii, Nicaragua, Mexico, El Salvador, Costa Rica, and Barbados.
In competition alone, Deane appeared in three men’s Junior Tour events and eight QS contests as well as the ISA World Junior Surfing Games. Three of those QS appearances produced top-10 finishes. In just the first few months of 2024, he’s logged another seven contests on both circuits.
“Traveling sometimes can suck, being away from home a lot,” he admitted recently. “It’s a little hard sometimes. Competing you’re always going to lose more than you win but you just have to remember that the wins will come eventually.”
It’s all a part of the process for any young surfer who’s set his sights on the Challenger Series. And his competitive resume already looks like that of a future pro standout in the making: three NSSA East Coast Titles, one NSSA National Title, and a runner up at the 2023 US Championships in the under-16 division. It all adds up to a 25th overall ranking in the WSL’s North American QS region, so he’s knocking on the door of that Challenger Series bid.
“Watching Will year after year, setting goals, and working hard to achieve them has been awesome,” says Will’s father Shawne. “Initially, it was to get invited into the USA Surfing Prime series by doing well in other amateur surf organizations. Then, it was to make a final, win an event, make the US team, and ultimately, make the ISA team. Now, he has a new set of goals, which include ISA Medals and US Championship titles. We’re excited to follow this journey with him and could not be more proud.”
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