Hawaii is more likely to spring to mind when thinking of a surfing breeding ground than the Inner Hebrides.
And while the US island remains a surfing hotspot, it’s the Scottish island of Tiree from which one of the brightest prospects in international surfing has emerged.
Ben Larg is just 20 years old but already, is making more than a few waves in the surfing world.
His global recognition is a far cry from his early days in the water, when he was often the only surfer for miles around off the coast of Tiree.
Which is why, in those early days, while he had dreams of becoming a professional surfer, in reality, it seemed an impossibility.
“Growing up in Tiree, there weren't any other surfers and I often had the sea to myself,” Larg recalls.
“There were kite surfers and wind surfers but in terms of normal surfers, there just weren't any others and especially in the winter, there would be nobody else in the water.
“Which is why, when I was younger, I really never realised that I any good. Being in Tiree, we were so isolated from other surfers and so while I knew I was surfing quite well, I had no idea what that was like in comparison to other people.”
(Image: Red Bull/ markusbergerphotography.com) Larg’s introduction to surfing at the age of only two came courtesy of his dad, who having begun windsurfing earlier in his life, had relocated to Tiree and started up a surf school.
As a teenager, Larg began competing and quickly made a name for himself - Red Bull signed him at the age of only 17 - but it was last month that the Scot hit a real career high.
Larg finished in third place in the Nazaré Big Wave Challenge in Portugal, a result which really made the surfing community and beyond sit up and take notice.
His inclusion in one of the world’s most prestigious surfing competitions came only at the very last minute, though. The surfing legend, Garrett McNamara, had withdrawn from the event and the Hawaiian native called Larg himself to ask if the Scot would like to take his place, with Larg barely hesitating before he accepted.
(Image: Red Bull) The event in Nazaré is designed to showcase tow-in surfing, in which surfers are slingshotted into waves on ropes attached to the back of jet skis, with Larg paired with Englishman, fellow Red Bull surfer and friend, Andrew Cotton.
Despite the late call-up, the pair excelled amongst the 30 feet-high waves, finishing third in the team competition, with Larg also finishing third in the individual standings.
His impressive results were the most significant of his career so far, and for it to come alongside his training partner, mentor and someone who he grew up idolising, Cotton, could not have been more fitting.
For Cotton, Larg’s emergence onto the international scene has come as little surprise, with the Englishman having spotted his teammate’s potential some time ago.
“Ben was part of a documentary which I watched and I remember seeing him do a 30ft wave in Ireland when he was only 14. That's a serious wave - he was the youngest person ever to do it and I remember thinking, wow, that kid is amazing,” says Cotton.
“Ben obviously has some real talent. He started coming to Nazaré to do some training at the Red Bull base so we began training together.
“It was a real breath of fresh air for me to see a young lad who was so talented, not just at surfing but also as a waterman. That's really unusual because normally water knowledge comes much later in life but Ben had that really young.”
And with Cotton having accumulated such a wealth of experience, he’s in no doubt as to what his primary piece of advice to Larg would be.
“My advice is that big wave surfing is a marathon, it’s not a sprint. Sometimes there's a lot of pressure to do everything very quickly because you can feel like you're running out of time,” he says.
“You don’t need to rush, though, because the most beautiful thing about this sport is that there's always another big wave so just take your time and enjoy it.”
Larg, who splits his time between Tiree, Nazaré and Lanzarote is hopeful he has a lengthy career ahead of him and despite knowing there’s no need to rush his career progression, he’s already got several goals in mind for the near future.
“I'd like to win the Nazaré Surf Challenge with Cotty maybe next year or the year after because we were so close this year so it'd be amazing to actually win it,” he says.
“There's also talk of new big waves that haven't been found in Scotland yet so I'm intrigued to try and find those.
“And ultimately, the dream would be to still be surfing into my 60s.”
