After a stellar amateur career in the National Scholastic Surfing Association, Dane did what everyone else does after finishing at the top of the amateur ranks and dove right into the Association of Surfing Professionals World Qualifying Series. For the most part, that meant four man heats while groveling in meager conditions. That initial go-around with the tour didn’t pan out, as Dane collected a handful of unwanted first round defeats.

Feeling frustrated and slightly tired of conforming to the system, he left the QS, and put his energy into First Chapter, a Quiksilver production following Dane’s year-long odyssey around the globe; all of this at the tender age of 21.

However, with his film complete, his competitive juices have had a year to recharge, but there’s a dilemma that Dane has been battling with since he’s decided to chase the QS a second time. Without a doubt, he’s a leader of futuristic surfing, but Dane’s aware he has to tone it down a notch if the World Championship Tour comes within his reach. His surfing is electrifying, but it’s consistency that’ll get him to man on man heats.

Like his surfing, Dane doesn’t pull any punches, as we wolfed down lunch at a local eatery while discussing First Chapter and his competitive prospects.

So your first encounter on the QS wasn’t a positive one?
Traveling the QS all over the world is pretty grueling. I was traveling half way across the world and I was losing in the first round a lot. In one foot waves, it really brought me down. When I went to South Africa, I was pretty psyched but I lost in the first round for the third time. As an amateur in the U.S., you’re pretty much taught that the only way to make it as a professional is to surf the NSSA and jump on the tour. It really wasn’t working for me, so I chose a different path. It doesn’t matter how you are as a surfer but how you surf in a heat. That made it difficult for me. This time around I think I’ll do better.

How do you need to surf in heats?
Well, in four man heats with no priority, you can’t afford to take risks, airs, the stuff I’ll typically do when I’m out surfing. I’ll have to adjust when I come up on a section thinking air, double think it and work on standard surfing.

Then the movie was a good diversion for you to break away from the contest scene?
It was great! So glad I did it. First Chapter was a full year in the making. Quik was looking for a new movie project and asked me if I was interested. There’s really not a plot or a story to it. Basically the making of the movie is the movie. We tried to go to surf spots that hadn’t been played out as much. There was no Mentawais, no Indo. We went to South Africa but not J-Bay, also Morocco. Portugal, France, Maui, Australia but no Gold Coast. We did Victoria, WA (Western Australia) and Woolongong.

What makes it different from other videos?
DR: I put a lot of myself into it. I chose all the music from my own I-tunes. I sat in the editing room the entire time. The whole time we were making it, it was hard to envision what the end product would be, but it won movie of the year at the 2006 Surfer Poll. I think people will appreciate what we did. I think it has a different feeling. It’s a signature film, but I don’t put it out there like, “look at me, here I am the best in the world.” It’s hard to explain because I struggled with the concept, and we didn’t know what it would turn out like until the final edit.

How do you mean, “struggling with the concept?”
When we were in the editing room, we were trying to do voice overs. Trying to film myself saying a certain line, but it didn’t work out because I’m not an actor. I’m so stiff and uncomfortable saying something. We put that in the movie, and it almost worked out better then if it had worked.

So it had a natural feel to it?
Yeah and I think it worked out better. It was so much fun, but it wore on me. It was all made in Australia, so I was there a lot. I planned all the trips, but we never really scored the whole movie. That was one of the most frustrating things about the whole project. The entire time we wanted that one epic session, and at the very end of the film we finally got it at The Box and that finished the movie.

So, I remember the first time I saw you surf. I was running a C.I. workout, and you showed up with Geoff Brack.
Yeah, I remember.

I could tell you had talent, kind of raw, but hungry.
That’s when I was competing amongst my friends, because I had a couple of friends who surfed better than me at the time.

That was 9 years ago.
Geoff was the guy, the way into the surf industry. He was kind of picking his favorites and he’d take me one day and someone else the next.

Do you still have that hunger?
No, it’s a problem. It’s not because I feel like I’ve made it. I know I’ve got a ways to go to fulfill my goals?

What goals?
Making the WCT and potentially succeeding there. I know I’m a long way from that still. I’m doing the last few remaining events, so I can hopefully get in the main events next year. I want to qualify, that’s my ultimate goal, so I’ll be hammering away.

How many years will you give the WQS?
Maybe three max. I don’t want to be the guy on there for 10 years. It would really wreck my surfing. You really have to wobble your way to the beach to get a score. I’d be super pumped to make the CT, but I kind of dread the process.

Al (Merrick) was telling me several months ago that he thought you had the potential to be world champ someday, but he said you needed to tone it down a bit to surf a wave in a heat.
I hope I’ll do better this time around. I know I need to.

Has Bobby’s success inspired you?
Yeah! I’m psyched for him, especially someone from the area. He worked hard for it. I can’t believe how close he came so many times to making it. He surfs better than 90 percent of the guys out there. He’s as good as the best, but the QS system is hard. You really have to lose your dignity at the water’s edge. Some guys try for a lot of years and never make it. That’s the last thing I want to do. I want to make it as soon as I can because that’s the only thing the QS is good for is qualifying. I was talking to Bruce (Irons) about it and he said you have to lose your ego and do whatever it takes instead of worrying about what people are thinking on the beach.

Where are you contractually with Quiksilver?
I signed a 5-year contract six months ago.

Do they want you to do the tour?
Yeah, they won’t tell me that though, but they do. They tell me it’s more whatever I want to do. If they told me I had to do contests, then I wouldn’t want to do it. I guess that’s human nature, especially because you have to do it for yourself. If it’s for someone else you’re not going to do it properly.

What do you like to do when you’re not surfing?
Surfing consumes my life. I like spending time with friends because it’s kind of rare.

When you were a grom, who inspired you?
Taylor Knox. When his signature movie Arc came out, it was my favorite video. The Malloy brothers too. They lived down the street from me growing up, and when I’d see them with boards stacked on top of the car...Taj Burrow is my favorite now. I like the way he surfs a heat. He’ll go out there and consistently get 9s the way I would want to surf a heat. Parko is up there too.

So how does it feel now, you’re 21 and all of a sudden you have legions of groms looking up to you?
I’m a friendly guy. I’m good talking to the kids and I know they want to talk to me.