The uncles notices Paishon’s talent when he was a child. They supported him with surfboards, food, clothing and advice. By the time Paishon was in his early teens, he was a regular on a competitive junior surfing circuit. But he struggled in school and was mocked by his classmates for his mildewed clothes before dropping out in the ninth grade. Paishon admits he smoked marijuana --- sometimes paying for the drug by selling one of the surfboards he had been given. His supporters began to lose patience. “I slapped his head,” one of the uncles told me. The biggest setback came when his reputation was badly damaged and potential sponsors turned away after Paishon was accused of stealing money. Later, he stopped using drugs, got a job cleaning cars and planned to use his salary to finance his dream of being a pro surfer.