Dylan Hronec was born with cerebral palsy. One would think that might easily exclude him from becoming a surfer, but one would be wrong. Known as the Surfing Samurai, Hronec has not only become a surfer but has made surfing his whole life. “It makes it difficult to balance and affects range of motion,” he told The Inertia. “But in the water, I’m able to really not think about anything that I have to face on a daily basis. The water is always the place where I’ve been most comfortable and in control of my body. With surfing—the sport itself—it’s as close to the same playing field with everyone else as you’re going to get.”
Way back in 2016, just when the Surf Ranch had first been unveiled to the world, Hronec did an interview with Brian Adamkiewicz of A2Z Films. “When I asked him what his future goals are beyond his inspiring mission,” Adamkiewicz wrote, “Dylan explained that he one day hopes to surf at Kelly Slater’s artificial wave and represent the USA in the ISA World Adaptive Surfing Championships and the Paralympic Games.
Well, the dream of surfing at Kelly Slater’s artificial wave recently came true. Hronec, along with good friend Joe Testaverde, who, after diving into a pool in 2000, suffered a spinal cord injury that left him paralyzed, joined up with Will and Cliff Skudin’s non-profit Surf for All to find out exactly what the Surf Ranch had to offer. Although the Surf Ranch might make judging surf events easier, getting people like Hronec and Testaverde tubed is a much better use, don’t you think?
