Ian Walsh

International Teamrider.

Name. Ian Walsh
Height. 5’10
Weight. 170 lbs
Hometown. Haiku, Maui, Hawaii
Homespot. Ho’okipa Beach
Sponsors. Red Bull, Patagonia, KT Surfboards, MFC, Jackson Hole Mountain Resort
What makes you ride. Trust. I’ve worked closely with the KT team for years to dial in shapes and designs that are super responsive in everything from knee high surf to 60ft Jaws.
Most memorable session. January 15, 2016 at Jaws. A rare combo of perfect conditions with giant waves and little to no wind. That session reminded me why I dedicated my life to surfing waves of consequence.
Magic gear & when you realized it. A KT big wave paddle board shaped in 2020. First session on it was a late December Jaws swell and then a few days later at Mavericks. The board felt like it was reading the wave before I was. There is usually this feeling when you drop into a really steep vertical big wave and hit the transitions towards the end of the drop and sometimes it feels like those big boards want to grab the water and stop you in your tracks, but this board hit that transition and released with so much speed it it put me on my back foot. It completely changed my confidence in committing to really late steep drops on those big paddle boards. 
Dream Trip. Somewhere remote with my 3 brothers.