Well, 2023 is just about history. It was a very different year for Kai Lenny, for two big reasons: his twin daughters were born. But before he became a father, Kai’s life revolved around big waves. And while it still does to a certain degree, his priorities have shifted.
“This is what life’s all about,” he says in the first episode of the third season of Life of Kai. “It just got ten times better.”
Kai, as you know, is one of the most talented people in all of surfing. He’s doing things that no one else is doing, and those things aren’t one-offs. “I’m not sure if he’s one of the nicest guys in surfing or one of the craziest,” says Kelly Slater.
He’s the one setting the benchmark at places like Jaws and Nazaré, and although he’s a new parent, he doesn’t appear to be letting off the gas pedal. He’ll still turn and go on any wave he thinks he can surf — which is a lot of waves. “There really isn’t a wave too big to paddle into,” he says. “If I’m in the spot and everything lines up, it’s a hundred percent on.”
He’s got a certain mindset that many champions have. It’s one that pits himself against himself instead of any competitors, and that way of looking at things is serving him well. And as the episode above shows, he doesn’t just have that mindset when it comes to riding waves.
