David Rastavich, or Rasta for short, broke the mould of modern day surfing. He came up through a pretty standard route for any young Aussie surfer of club contests. He soon progressed to the Pro Juniors and looked set after a lot of success and a fat sponsorship deal with Billabong to hit the world tour.
But Rasta had other ideas, and whilst he was a fearsome competitor he wanted to plough a furrow as a free surfer. At the time others had gone before him, but he really set the standard and created a whole new genre of pro surfers. It helped that he would charge anything and had a progressive style which was up there with the best in the world.
He starred in movies, including Blue Horizon alongside Andy Irons. But he has become best known for his environmental work, specifically his fight to help protect Whales and Dolphins. Through all of this he has become one of the all round nice guys in the wave riding world, and his stylish brand of surfing just cements that.