Hilton Head People

WANT TO TRY SOMETHING DIFFERENT? TRY HOVERBOARDING ABOVE BROAD CREEK.

Marty McFly would be pleased.

Once just wishfully imagined in the 1980s classic movie “Back To The Future II,” the dream of the hoverboard is now alive and well on the waters around Hilton Head Island.

BLINK, AND YOU MAY MISS IT. “IT’S A REALLY FAST TRICK,” SAYS BRANDON ATKINSON, 28, OF HIS SIGNATURE MOVE.

The skateboarder calls it a “Boneless Big Spin Rock to Fakie.” That’s when he skates uphill, drops his foot, pops up his skateboard and spins before rolling downhill.

Perhaps the biggest sign that Dominique “Niki” Antunez is a gifted artist is that she’s decided not to pursue a degree in fine art.

“I like painting too much,” said the 2015 Hilton Head High School graduate. “I want it to be something I can relax with, something I can zone out the world with. If it’s required, there’s a whole other aspect to it. It’s something you have to do instead.”

ISAIAH BURCH HAS HAD A PASSION FOR AVIATION FOR AS FAR BACK AS HE CAN REMEMBER. 

But it was the helicopter that specifically got him dreaming.

“It’s the closest thing that I could dream that I was a bird or flying on a magic carpet,” said the owner of Hilton Head Helicopter Tours.

TO INTERNATIONALLY RENOWNED SAND SCULPTOR JOHN GOWDY, HILTON HEAD’S BEACHES ARE WORKS OF ART.

As you walk along Hilton Head Island’s beaches, do you ever pause to consider the grains of sand beneath your feet, how they were formed and how they might look up close? Be honest, have you ever seen these quintillions of tiny grains as anything but sand, there to bury your toes in and shake out of your hair at the end of the day?

RETIRED VET OFFERS PHOTOGRAPHIC SALT MARSH TOURS

Larry Watts operated a popular veterinary practice on Hilton Head Island for nearly 30 years. When he wasn't busy treating the area’s animals, he could usually be found out on his boat, indulging his passion for wildlife photography. After taking an early retirement in 2005, Watts channeled his love of animals and photography into an exciting second career offering photography cruises of the local salt marshes.

Bluffton is well represented by Hannah Joy Brown, its first Miss Teen Bluffton.

If you see Hannah Joy Brown while you’re out and about in Bluffton, make sure you stop and say hi. She’ll be easy to spot — she’ll be the one in the sash and crown. And even if she’s not out in her official capacity as Miss Teen Bluffton, you’ll know her by her infectious smile and boundless enthusiasm.

So take a minute and say hello. It’s one of her favorite things about life in Bluffton.

POONA FORD COULD START FOR THE LONGHORNS AS A SOPHOMORE

The label "undersized" is not typically associated with a 5-foot-11-inch, 286-pound mass of mostly muscle like Poona Ford, who until he arrived at the University of Texas as a freshman defensive tackle couldn’t recall a time when he wasn't the biggest player on the football field.

Such is the current landscape of major college football that a mountain of a young man like Ford could stand to be a little larger. But anyone who thought that might hold him back doesn't know much about Ford.

JESSICA GELTZ NEVER IMAGINED HERSELF A CREW COXSWAIN UNTIL SHE WAS RECRUITED IN LINE AT PANERA BREAD.

Jessica Geltz never imagined herself a crew coxswain until she was recruited in line at Panera Bread. Nearly four years later, the 17-year-old Hilton Head High School senior can’t imagine life without the sport.

“I love being in the water, I love the tradition of the sport and the camaraderie that comes from giving it everything you have inside you,” Geltz said. “Crew takes the idea of teamwork to a whole next level. There has to be perfect synergy in the shell to lead to a win.”