With an old soul and a new wave haircut, Danny Hampson, at 23, has the life experience of a much older individual. And while his insatiable passion has sometimes lent him the impression of a guy looking over the edge, it’s also given him a perspective that few of his peers possess. His dreamer’s outlook is tempered by a pragmatic commitment to reinvigorating wakeskating. Keep an eye on old Hampson — it might get crunchy.

Think of TransWorld WAKEBOARDING's Check Out department as a first look at wakeboarding's future. Here we've assembled all eight of our 2011 Check Out features, so you can take a second look at the year's best first impressions.

With a history as long as his sport, Brian Grubb is still at the front of wakeskating’s future.

Matt Raulerson has endured all of The Project's pleasantries over the past year and a half to make himself a better rider.

One classy gentleman speaks on yachts, Nokia 5160s and Taylor Swift.

It’s unfortunate that everyone who rides a wakeboard will not be able to meet and ride with Padiwat Jaemjan. That may sound kind of ridiculous, but it’s true. Why? Well, Bomb, as Padiwat is known, is one of the biggest breaths of fresh air in all of wakeboarding.

Technically speaking with the unicycling franchisee himself.

Get to know Leo Labadens, the best thing to come out of France since champagne.

Tom Fooshee is cable's biggest star. He's also one of wakeboarding's most important riders.

We talked with The Wake Park Project’s Pat Panakos to find out why this is not only the cable park company’s most important installation ever but why it might just become a milestone in wakeboarding history.

Olivier Derome may have made his name on rails, but his wake riding is redefining everyone's perception of the French-Canadian double threat.

Tigé Boats is putting its money where its mouth is this month with the Tigé $1,000 Test Drive Challenge. We spoke with Tigé Boats President Rick Correll about the ins and outs of the new promotion and found out why Tigé is so confident in its wakeboard boats.

We talked to Lyman just weeks before he shipped off to basic training to look back over his wakeboarding career and better understand his reasons for retiring from pro wakeboarding.

If there’s a recipe for going pro in wakeboarding, Clay Fletcher didn’t read the directions. In fact, he missed the main ingredient: He’s never owned a boat in his life.

One look at Trever Maur’s boned-out pokes, firm grabs and effortless landings and you’d think the 21-year-old was born on the California Delta. It’s a safe assumption.