Randy Laine (born Elliott Randolph Laine on July 17, 1952 in North Carolina) is an American big-wave surfer, co-pioneer of

tow-in surfing Tow-in surfing is a surfing technique which uses artificial assistance to allow the surfer to catch faster moving waves than was traditionally possible when paddling by hand. Tow-in surfing was invented by surfers who wanted to catch big waves a ...

athlete An athlete (also sportsman or sportswoman) is a person who competes in one or more sports that involve physical strength, speed, or endurance. Athletes may be professionals or amateurs. Most professional athletes have particularly well-devel ...

, celebrity-enthusiast, television personality, commercial product endorser and spokesman, and on occasion a men's fashion and action-sports model. Laine is considered to be one of the top, if not the best professional freestyle Jet Skiers to date. In October 2008, Laine will be inducted into the IJSBA's ( International Jet Sports Boating Association) Hall of Fame, where he will be honored for inventing many of the extreme aerial maneuvers used in freestyle jet ski competition today. The ceremony is to take place in

Lake Havasu Lake Havasu () is a large reservoir formed by Parker Dam on the Colorado River, on the border between San Bernardino County, California and Mohave County, Arizona, Arizona. Lake Havasu City sits on the Arizona (eastern) side of the lake with it ...

, at the conclusion of the IJSBA World Finals.

Biography

Laine, who is nicknamed "The Father of Freeride" The Adventure's of Randy Laine
Source: Carlsbad Magazine, written by Wendy Hinman in May 2007. is sponsored by

Red Bull Red Bull is a brand of energy drinks of Austria, Austrian company Red Bull GmbH. With 38% market share, it is the most popular energy drink brand as of 2019. Since its launch in 1987, more than 100 billion cans of Red Bull have been sold worldwid ...

Billabong Billabong ( ) is an Australian term for an oxbow lake, an isolated pond left behind after a river changes course. Billabongs are usually formed when the path of a creek or river changes, leaving the former branch with a dead end. As a result ...

, Jet Pilot, Pro Tec, Skat Trak, and Hydro Turf, and has appeared in and on the cover's of over two dozen magazines, including a 1970's spread in Playgirl Magazine. In January 2001, as a part of the first documented expedition to the

Cortes Bank Cortes Bank is a shallow seamount (a barely submerged island) in the North Pacific Ocean. It is 96 miles southwest of San Pedro, Los Angeles, 111 miles (166 kilometers) west of Point Loma, San Diego, and 47 miles (82 kilometers) southwest of San ...

, Laine set a world record for the biggest wave ever ridden on a

jet ski Jet Ski is the brand name of a personal watercraft (PWC) manufactured by Kawasaki, a Japanese company. The term is often used generically to refer to any type of personal watercraft used mainly for recreation, and it is also used as a verb to ...

Yamaha SuperJet The SuperJet is a stand-up type personal watercraft (PWC) made by Yamaha Motor Corporation. Part of Yamaha's WaveRunner line of watercraft, it was introduced in 1990 and has become one of the most successful stand-up personal watercraft ever made. ...

), where he conquered a 72-foot wave. Beginning in 2002, Laine joined the Billabong Odyssey as marine coordinator,Randy Laine - 70 Feet and Holding by Ken McKnight
Source: AllAboutSurf.com, posted July 24, 2005. and has been searching for an unprecedented wave to ride in an effort to set a record for

. Laine has resided primarily in San Diego, California for the last thirty-five years. He splits his time between San Diego, Baja California, Mexico, and the Northshore of Oahu, Hawaii. Laine has one daughter, fashion designer and model Michelle Laine. Randy Laine is the brother of professional surfer Wes Laine, and great nephew of

american actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a Character (arts), character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek ...

Randolph Scott George Randolph Scott (January 23, 1898 – March 2, 1987) was an American film actor whose career spanned the years from 1928 to 1962. As a leading man for all but the first three years of his cinematic career, Scott appeared in a variety of ...

, through his great grandfather Rufus Butler Scott. Both Randy and his sister Scott Laine, were named after their great uncle.

References

External links

Randy Laine, 70 Feet and Holding: Article from All About Surf
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IJSBA Website

Watercraft World interview's The Father of Freeride, Randy Laine, on Myspace TV

Website of company selling holographic sticker bracelets. Randy displayed as an endorse on website home page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Laine, Randy American surfers Living people 1952 births Sportspeople from North Carolina Place of birth missing (living people)