Taylor Knox is an American professional surfer. Knox was born in Thousand Oaks, California and began surfing at 8 years old. He moved with his family to Carlsbad at 13 and continued to pursue his dream of becoming a pro surfer. At age 15, he had to undergo back surgery after a damaged lumbar vertebra from a skateboarding accident threatened to paralyze him. He spent the next six months in a cocoon-like body cast. In 1990, Knox participated in the World Amateur Championships in Japan. He finished fourth place, ahead of fellow USA teammate Kelly Slater, who placed fifth. He began his ASP World Tour campaign in 1993. In February 1998, Knox won the inaugural K2 Big-Wave Challenge, an event that offered $50,000 to the surfer who caught the biggest wave of the winter and had photographic evidence. The winning wave was a 52-foot ride at Todos Santos during the Reef Big-Wave World Championships. In 1999 Knox took a one-year from the World Tour. He returned in 2001 and achieved his highest ASP World Tour rating of 4th place. In August 2011, Knox was inducted into the Surfers' Hall of Fame at Huntington Beach alongside George Downing and Chuck Linnen. Surfers’ Hall of Fame founder Aaron Pai said Knox had "influenced an entiregeneration of surfers". As of 2011, his total career earnings are $1,028,422.00. The 2011 season is his 18th season on tour. In addition to surfing, Knox was also involved with the video gameLeft 4 Dead released by Valve in 2008. The character Francis is modeled after him. Taylor's trademark brand of power surfing led to an uncommon surfboard design in 2012 when he worked with Al Merrick to create the Channel Islands Dagger; a surfboard with an abnormally deep double concave and downturned rail. Taylor Knox is known for his feracious frontside hacks, where he utilized his power and speed to put himself on the most critical sections of the wave. While on the winner's podium after the Hurley Pro at Lower Trestles in 1999, he thanked Costa Mesan surfer Taylor Lobdell with teaching him these "man-turns". While he was on the podium, the camera panned to the lineup, where Lobdell was seen absolutely destroying a 6' wall, top to bottom, completing a total of 12 man-hacks on one wave and finishing with a roundhouse that Slater said "was the turn heard around the world."
