Words.YT All Photos.Carey The competitive leader of a pack of Orange County mini groms that have grown to become junior champions, Newport Beach’s Andrew Doheny is headed down a proven path that leads to surf stardom.

Andrew’s competitive success hints at great things to come from the recent batch of OC juniors, and gives Orange County another solid shot at some ‘CT hopefuls in the 2K-teens.

Although he has been a freesurfing standout in his age group for many years, at age fourteen, Andrew took the coveted and highly competitive Open Juniors title at this year’s NSSA Nationals and regularly competes against opponents that are two and three years older.In addition to his ’07 Open Juniors crown, he has already racked up an amazing 85 NSSA wins, including 6 Western Regional Championships and 16 NSSA Titles. “I love to compete,” says Andrew. “I love getting fired up before a heat, putting yourself on the line, and trying to do your best!” This positive spirit earned Andrew the Mike Morgan Memorial Sportsmanship Award in 2005 for his stellar attitude in and out of the water. “Winning the Nationals this summer meant so much to me. I’d been so close so many times before,” he claims. “It’s the best feeling in the world and I’m super STOKED!” With such a stacked cast of peers to battle against in every contest, it’s no wonder why his Nationals battles with Jon Jon Florence in years past have become legendary on the juniors circuit. “My biggest opponents are my brother Bryan, Jon Jon, Luke Davis, Nat Young, Evan Gieselman, Keanu Asing, Zeke Lau, Ford Archbold, Dane Zaun, well, you know, the usual suspects. There are so many Gnarly kids out there right now!”

Andrew started surfing Blackies in Newport at the ripe old age of five, and has been part of Volcom’s Family since age seven! Along with strong industry support, Andrew’s dad Mike continues to be his biggest influence and inspiration in his world. But Andrew is quick to give props to everyone that has helped support his career. “My Mom and Dad, my brothers Matt and Bryan, Mike, Brad, Jack, and Wooly from Volcom, and all of my sponsors and friends that have been supportive from the get! I couldn’t do it without them.” As far as surf influences go, he admits that there are “so many good surfers out there. But I really like to watch Taj, Andy, Dean, Bruce, and Killian.”
So, what’s a typical day like in the life of a rising surf star you ask? “I wake up early and go surfing, hopefully something better than the 1 ft. close outs we’ve had lately. Then eat bagels at Al Capp (Al’s Cappuccino). And repeat 3 times daily. I usually surf with Ford, Cam Clark, Tyler Talow, Chase Wilson, and my bro Bryan.” This summer Andrew has already hit up some of the best summer destinations on the West Coast. After scoring in Cabo, he headed down South and jumped aboard the Royal Pelagic with fellow Volcom heroes Bruce Irons, Dean Morrison, and snowboard legend Terje Haakenson and sampled some Mainland Mex juice. But surf travel is nothing new to Andrew. By age twelve he had already surfed more places than most people get to surf in their lives. “I have surfed from Santa Cruz to Oaxaca, and every where in between. I have also been to Costa Rica and El Salvador, Oahu and Kauai, and Puerto Rico and Fiji!”

As with most professional surfers, Doheny’s boards are his lifeline. “I have a full quiver shaped by Dave Pearson at Ezera Surfboards,” beams Andrew. “They work insane. I try to keep the shapes consistent, but every once in a while I experiment with something different.” Just because he doesn’t experiment too much with board designs doesn’t mean that he doesn’t experiment in the water. He admits that “just having fun” gives him the most satisfaction out of surfing. “Yeah, just having fun and landing bigger and bigger moves. I’m really working on all the different airs right now because I suck at ‘em!”

It’s no doubt that Andrews talent will bring him even more competitive and freesurfing success. You know we’ll be reading his exploits in the surf media for years to come as he blazes a trail towards the ‘CT. Just another reason for the West Coast and Orange County surf scenes to be psyched for the future! Support your West Coast pros y’all!