Mercedes Maidana: Big Wave Surfer & City Girl

Growing up, I associated the company Patagonia primarily with their Snap-T pullover fleeces. All my friends had them and I desperately wanted one too. Little did I know that Patagonia was involved in more than just hiking, camping and climbing gear and supplies. It's also a great surf company.

Last week, I had the chance to hear one of Patagonia's Surf Ambassadors share her story at the Patagonia store in Soho. I love that Patagonia's Surf Ambassadors outnumber the number of Ambassadors in any one of the other sport categories.

Mercedes Maidana was a city girl from Buenos Aires who first tried surfing in her early 20s after a bad break-up. On a trip to Brazil with a friend, she borrowed a surf board and headed out into the line-up. As she lay on the board, she felt all the balled up anger and energy release from her body and she experienced pure joy - her first glimpse of happiness in 7 months. A one-week holiday turned into a three-month adventure. She fell in love with surfing and there was nothing else.

Since then, she hasn't stopped. She's traveled the world, chasing swells and catching waves. Ultimately, she settled on the North Shore of Oahu and her home overlooks one of the most storied breaks in the world - Sunset. She has been pursuing her dream of being a professional big wave surfer. She's been nominated for the Billabong XXL Girl's Performance Award - which honors to biggest ride on a wave - in 2009, 2010 and 2011 and won third place in the Women's Big Wave Exhibition at Nelscott Reef in 2010.

Mercedes is a super sweet, bubbly and gracious woman - not exactly what you would imagine as a big wave surfer. Surfing big waves has been a male-dominated pursuit - searching out the biggest and baddest waves out there. We're talking about 10-20 feet on the face of the wave. It takes a lot of a guts and nerves of steel as well as a hard exterior to take the beating by the waves. 

But really, I love the fact that Mercedes started surfing later in life (See??! It is possible!). She shared some great stories and humbling experiences, like being stuck underwater in a reef cave at Sunset, on the way to achieving her dreams. She trains hard - favoring high intensity interval training like Insanity and Asylum workouts, yoga, swimming - and generally tries to stay as active as possible. 

The biggest message that I took away from her story is the power of visioning and articulating your goals. Once you find your joy and it's something that's in your heart to do, there's no denying it. Eventually the right doors will open but it's on us to move towards those doors and to be prepared for that day but also provide the space to allow it to happen.

I had a chance to ask Mercedes a couple of questions about surfing and her outlook on life.

Are you seeing more women out there surfing big waves? Do you encounter much resistance as a woman? 

There are more women surfing big waves each year, at least that's what I witness in Hawaii! I encountered some resistance in my beginning years in the big wave lineups, but as the men who surfed there saw me over and over again, and they saw that I wasn't a weak surfer in the water, they totally embraced me and most of them helped me progress in the sport. When men see that you are so focused and you put so much effort in what you do, they appreciate that and they open up. I think that it's mostly the fear that they have that if you are not well prepared, you may become a hazard in the water or put someone in a risky situation. But if you can prove that you are just as strong as they are (or at least try), they know they don't have to worry about you and they don't have to take care of you in big waves.

How do you handle it when someone says to you "You can't or shouldn't be doing this" or, when you were starting out, "You're too old"? 

I kept myself focused and I tried not to give my power away to other people. There are many voices outside of us and inside of us that tell us that we are not good enough and not ready enough. And we may always have those voices speaking to us. What matters is how much attention we give to these voices and how we let them influence us in our day-to-day lives. If we have a desire coming from our heart, those voices might hurt for a little bit. But eventually, the desire is stronger and it is is on us to follow it and honor it, whatever our calling may be.

Who are your role models and/or mentors? 

So many people influence my life in positive ways: a lot of Waimea and Sunset Beach surfers that helped me grow as a surfer and set a high example of respect for the Ocean and others. I could mention Clark Abbey, Darrick Doerner, Greg Long, Jamie Sterling, and the amazing ladies that charge big waves such as Maya Gabeira, Keala Kennelly, and Savannah Shaughnnessy. There's also Yvon Chouinard who sets a great example of how to do business in the world while giving back and respecting nature and others (and go surfing in the meantime!).

Many of my readers are new surfers or those wanting to give it a try. What advice do you have for someone just starting out? 

I would tell them to persevere, as the beginning is always the hardest part! Once you figure out how to catch the waves and turn your board, it just gets easier and more fun all the time! I would also suggest that they take a few lessons at a surf school as they will learn the basics and get to practice in the right equipment for beginners.

What's one piece of advice that has stuck with you through the years? 

My meditation teacher once told me: "Live in the loving, live in the now, live one day at a time, one breath at a time." If we could do that we live in heaven on earth.

Where are you off to for your next adventure? 

I am growing my business in the self-development industry, working as an Abundance Coach, writer and motivational speaker. My bliss is to help people live their dreams and I share with them the tools and principles that I applied in my life to live my dreams. I want to spread a message of living an abundant, joyful, fulfilling life! I am now in Hawaii, working and keeping an eye on the storm models, because when some big perfect swell pops up somewhere in the world, I would love to go and keep improving myself in big waves! Thanks to Patagonia I am able to live my dream and grow as as surfer and as a person.

I'm grateful for the opportunity to meet Mercedes and hear her story. I loved hear her absolute enthusiasm and passion for surfing and the euphoria she describes from being out on the water. Thank you Mercedes! You can follow Mercedes on Facebook, Twitter or on her blog.

{P.S. This isn't a sponsored post or anything. I was invited to attend the event and ask Mercedes some questions. I just really loved Mercedes' story and love Patagonia.}

Back on the water: Stand Up Paddleboard (SUP)

Asheville, North Carolina is known as one of the premier outdoor adventure destinations in the U.S. With rivers criss-crossing the area, including the Nantahala River which is known for its Class II-III rapids, it's also a great place for paddling - everything from whitewater rafting to tubing to kayaking. Naturally, as stand-up paddleboarding has gained in popularity, it also has made its way to the Asheville area.

I was so excited to try SUP. Not only is SUP on my Fitness Bucket List, but it was a great way to combine my interests with my friend's interests. You see, I'm a surfer and my friend is a sea kayaker. Surfing + kayaking = SUP. Best of all, SUP offered a less intense way for me to get back out on the water while I'm still rehabbing my knee. 

On Saturday morning, we drove from our hotel in downtown Asheville out towards the French Broad River. We were scheduled to take lessons with Dave, the owner of Asheville Outdoor Center. Dave started this business 20 years ago. He's originally from the Northeast but you wouldn't know it from his relaxed demeanor and Southern charm. He's been leading SUP lessons and trips for the past three years.

Before we headed down to the river, he told us a bit about the boards, fins and paddles we would be using. Our boards were 11-foot foam-topped boards. He also showed up some inflatable SUPs which appeared just as solid and sturdy but are a great option for those of us who may not go paddling all the time or may not have storage space for a 11-foot SUP. When deflated, the inflatable boards fit into a what looks like a medium-to-large duffle bag.

Our boards had a three-fin set-up with short flexible fins that would bend in case we came into contact with rocks or the bottom of the river bed rather than causing a hard collision (and potentially throwing us from the board and into the water). If we were going out on the ocean, the boards would probably have a single long fin attached so as to allow for carving turns on waves.

Lastly, SUP paddles look like single blade kayak paddles except that the blade is turned at 15 degree. As you pull the paddle through the water from front to back, the slight turn in the blade provides more leverage to your stroke, allowing you to generate more power. 

After our lesson, we hopped on some bikes and pedaled a mile to our launch site. Dave took us out on the water for about 2 hours. A big part of paddling on a river is learning how to read the river - the currents, ripples, and eddys - so that you could work with the river's mechanics. We first paddled upstream up to the Biltmore Bridge before heading back downstream. In total, we paddled about 2.5 miles. 

It wasn't as hard to balance on the board as I expected. Once you are standing up, you're pretty stable when your legs are shoulder-width apart and you bend your knees to absorb any movements of the board. I will admit, there were a few times when I almost bit it and fell into the water. It was challenging trying to get the paddle technique right and to figure out how to maneuver the board in the direction that I wanted to go.

At the end of our lesson, Dave let us play around a bit on our boards. I tried to do some yoga poses but could only manage to lift one foot up a few inches. It was super hard to balance on one leg on the water! He then showed us how to do a pirouette - basically spinning your board around in a circle. Of course we both had to give it a try, which is what I'm doing in the picture above. You scoot back to the back of the board so that the nose lifts up out of the water. Then you paddle hard on one side and spin your board around. It was so.much.fun. Needless to say, I fell into the water at the end of this move.

It was super fun to try something new. It challenges me mentally and physically and I'm learning to embrace being a newbie. I know that I'm going to feel uncomfortable and make a fool of myself at times but I'm learning to be OK because these opportunities offer me a chance to experience new things and learn about something that I would typically shy away from. 

Thanks Dave and Asheville Outdoor Center for a super fun morning out on the water! This is seriously making me consider working SUP into my life somehow. It's a great workout but more than anything, an amazing way to spend time out on the water.

Have you tried SUP? Have you been paddling (e.g. kayaking, rafting) before?

WAX Magazine

Back in March, someone forwarded me a link to a new magazine about surfing, art and culture in New York City that was development. I was excited to check out WAX Magazine and see what they were all about.

As some of you may know, one of the reasons that I started this blog was because I had a hard time finding surf-related resources, blogs, websites, and magazines that I could relate too both in terms of my experience level as well as location and community. I didn't surf those pristine waves in California, Hawaii, Indonesia, Central America, Fiji, etc. so I loved the idea that WAX was focused on the surfing community in New York City.

Each issue is organized around a specific theme. The theme for Issue #1 is Dialogues which sums up what the Editors aim to achieve with their publication - to start and create an on-going conversation about and between surfers and artists and ultimately New York City at large. Yes, surfing is becoming more and more popular both here in NYC and elsewhere. But there is a sense that there's something special going on too, something more than just surfing.

Last night, WAX hosted a launch party at The Wooly to celebrate its first issue. I was curious to see what kind of crowd would show up. And boy, did a crowd show up. It was jam packed. Who knew there were that many surfers or people interested in surfing in NYC?

They've put together a pretty good looking publication and I am looking forward to digging into it. You should check it out too.

Billabong Rio Pro 2012

Source: surfline.com via Christine on Pinterest

Yesterday was the final day of the Billabong Rio Pro - the third of 10 events on the ASP World Tour. The sometimes unpredictable beach break served up pumping barrels on the last day. In the end, John John Florence (16.37) came out on top, beating Joel Parkinson (11.44).

Source: wctbrasil.com via Christine on Pinterest

Sadly, I was at physical therapy this morning. I missed watching the final rounds and instead had to rely on my Twitter stream to stay updated. I may have gotten some weird looks from folks as I anxiously clutched my phone and tried to will the thing to update. I may have let out an audible gasp once or twice.

Within the first 90 seconds or so of the final, John John caught about three waves and left Parko comboed with 28 minutes left, meaning that Joel needed two new high scoring waves in order to move into first place. While Joel surfed well throughout the event, he couldn't seem to find his rhythm in the final. With his second place finish, Joel is now leading the World Title race.

Source: wctbrasil.com via Christine on Pinterest

John John Florence is only 19 years old and this is his first ASP Tour win. He joined the tour during the mid-season rotation last year and has been surfing incredibly well over the last six months or so in all kinds of conditions. Even Kelly Slater, who sat out the event due to an ankle injury and has known John John since he was little, was stoked about the win.

Here are video highlights from the final day and you can read a recap here. The next stop on the ASP World Tour is the Volcom Fiji Pro which will be held between June 3-15, 2012.

What do you think? Will John John make a run for the title this year?

Change the Conversation - Kook

I wrote a post a couple of weeks ago about the lessons that I've learned from surfing. I received incredible support here on this blog and elsewhere. However, the post was also shared by a kind reader on a local surfing forum where it wasn't so well received by those who consider themselves "hard core" surfers. After all, I'm a kook - a new surfer.

But, kook is a pejorative term. It's is often used to describe new surfers who are clueless and have no regard or respect for surfing etiquette, thereby endangering themselves and/or others out in the water. In their eyes, I was an overexcited kook who didn't have the right to be out in the water.

Source: John Robison. Surfing Illustrated: A Visual Guide to Wave Riding

At first, as I read through their responses, I was hurt. I felt attacked. I didn't feel safe in my blogging space anymore. But as I read some more, I realized something. They were attacking the image of a kook that they held in their mind and everything that label encompasses - arrogant, privileged, inexperienced, disrespectful, dumb. But that wasn't me or my story. I'm more than that label.

I am a new surfer who is trying to learn to surf the right way by learning technique and water skills; understanding the ocean, waves and currents; and learning and respecting my own limitations.

I am a new surfer who is so well aware of the unique history and culture that surrounds the sport - a mostly male-dominated culture where women often aren't treated on an equal level.

I'm a new surfer who knows that you have to earn your place in the line-up as well as respect others out in the water.

I am a new surfer who has a long way to go but I am committed to putting in the time to improve and to learn both in and out of the water.

I am also a wife, mother, sister, daughter, friend and athlete. I'm a runner, swimmer, yogi, spinner, writer, artist, and the tickle police for my kids.

When I was younger, I hated being a newbie whether it was a new school or sport or instrument. There is truth to the myth of the Tiger Mom and the notion that nothing's fun until you're good at it. I wanted to excel at everything that I did, often barreling my way through and pretending that I didn't need help.

Now, I've learned to embrace my newbie-ness whether in surfing or blogging or any other new experience that crosses my path. I'm not afraid of it anymore - not afraid to ask questions, admit that I'm wrong and just learn. To me, being new isn't about fear or failure. It's about excitement and opportunity. After all, we ALL started off new at some point. 

Labels are everywhere. They help our brains organize and sort information. For a type-A person like me, that's really helpful. We all have labels that we attach to ourselves and others. But labels are not what solely defines us. So let's change the conversation and stop judging based on labels. The conversation NEEDS to be changed.

What are your labels and who are you beyond that? How do you handle being a "newbie"? 

{Linking up with Just.Be.Enough to change the conversation}

5 Life Lessons I Learned From Surfing

Photo: Oriana Fowler/Surf Simply

A year ago, I was on a beach in Costa Rica doing something I never dreamed of doing - learning to surf. I'm not exaggerating when I say that surfing changed my life. I never would have thought that I would own two surfboards, surf in NYC, religiously check the surf forecast and obsess about anything and everything surf.

For me, surfing felt like I was coming home. Don't get me wrong. I was terrified and it was hard but there was something about being out on the water, the camaraderie, and yes, the hard work that just fit. When I read this post by MizFit, it all made sense to me.

"I am often surprised at how often the things we don't think we'd ever want to do ignite new passion in us when we simply try them with an open heart and open mind."

Photo: Oriana Fowler/Surf Simply

Though the process, I've learned some important lessons that go beyond the water.

1) Check Your Expectations
I am normally not a braggy braggy person. I believe in the idea of hard work and that if you work hard, you will make progress. At the same time, I do have high expectations for myself. I felt like I should "get" surfing and be good at it. I understood what I needed to do technically but I couldn't manage it. I was extremely frustrated. Only when I adjusted my expectations did I start having fun and, consequently, start surfing better. I learned how to be more forgiving of myself.

2) Slow Down
Learning to surf seemed so overwhelming at first. How was I supposed to paddle, catch a wave, stand up on the board and ride the wave at the same time? There were so many things to think about. My surf coach started from the basics and slowly added one new step at a time. He made learning to surf feel manageable and I learned to slow down. For me, this was such an important lesson. I have a tendency to rush through things in life or become overwhelmed when things start piling up (work, family, etc.). Now, instead of being overwhelmed by the big picture, I try to focus on one thing at a time and breathe.

3) Commitment
One of the most important lessons I learned was about commitment. When you paddle out in the ocean, you have to be committed to make it past the breaking waves. If you're not, you will be continually battered and pushed back to shore, exhausted. When you paddle for a wave, you have to be committed to catching the wave.  If you are wishy-washy, you can get into trouble and potentially hurt yourself or another surfer. Surfing taught me to trust my judgement and instincts and to stop second guessing myself.

Photo: Oriana Fowler/Surf Simply

4) Patience
There's a lot of waiting involved in surfing - waiting for the ocean to calm down so that you can paddle out, waiting for a set of waves to approach, waiting for the right wave. I learned to sit on my board and to appreciate the amazing gift it was to be in the ocean.

5) Learn something new
It was an incredible experience to learn something completely new in my mid-30s. How many opportunities do you have to do that? I was so far out of my comfort zone but I think that was why this experience was so rewarding. Yes, I pushed myself physically and mentally. Yes, I fell countless times, got water up my nose and earned new bruises. But, there's something about learning a new sport that made me feel incredibly alive. It made me happy. This experience has made me more open to try new things and to be uncomfortable because the reward is often so great.

Source: fromupnorth.com via Christine on Pinterest

Watching Bells Beach

Source: instagr.am via Christine on Pinterest

I have a confession. I love watching surf contests. I know that I've mentioned it before but I really do. This week was the 2012 Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach in Victoria, Australia, the second of ten events on the ASP World Championship Tour. Since the contest was held in Australia, it didn't usually start until about 5pm EST, which meant that I had most of the day to work. On the flip side, that also meant that I spent many late nights watching heat after heat of the contest.

Yesterday, they ran the Quarterfinals, Semifinals and Finals of the Men's event. The first semifinal, Kelly Slater versus Jeremy Flores, was a bit of a bummer. Jeremy never seemed to get into a groove after Kelly scored a 9.93 out of 10 points on his first wave of the heat. Then, when Jeremy finally gets a great ride, he's called for interference. Kelly had taken off on a wave but was too deep on the wave to really get past the section and make it back on the open face. Jeremy took off on the same wave but further down the line and got a good score. But the interference penalty meant that Jeremy's highest scoring wave in the heat would be cut in half, pretty much making it impossible for him to win. Kelly won the heat 15.10 to Jeremy's 7.83. In the second semifinal, Mick Fanning took on Joel Parkinson. 

Source: aspworldtour.com via Christine on Pinterest

Coming into this event, my pick to win the event was either Taj Burrow or Joel. Unfortunately, Taj was eliminated in the third round. Both Joel and Mick have been the guys to beat. Did you know that since 2009, either Mick or Joel has been in every final at Bells Beach? And, in the 13 times that these two have faced off, Joel has won 10 times? Needless to say, it was a great heat and they battled back and forth. Ultimately, Mick (15.83) defeated Joel (14.43).

By that time, it was somewhere past midnight, probably closer to 1am. They weren't going to start the finals for another hour or so and I knew that I had to go to sleep. I really really wanted to say up and watch what would no doubt be an epic final between Mick Fanning and Kelly Slater. Apparently, they didn't disappoint, exchanging wave after wave during the 35-minute heat.  Despite Kelly's full rotation aerial which resulted in a perfect 10-point score, Mick won with 18.80 to Kelly's 18.07. They say that this final is the best in Bell's history.

Source: instagr.am via Christine on Pinterest

What gets me time and time again is what a freak of nature Kelly Slater is. I mean, he turned 40 in February and continues to get better and better. But it's not only his surfing ability, it's the fact that he seems to commune with the ocean and the ocean serves him up gorgeous sets of waves right when he needs it or he lands ridiculous aerials that he seems to throw in just for the heck of it.

My favorite heat of the event was in Round 3 - Kelly vs. Nic Muscroft one of the best local surfers. In the last minutes of the heat, Nic earns a 9.5 to take the lead. Kelly needed a score of 8.07 or better to win. In the last minute, a huge set of waves comes in. Not only does Kelly takes off on one but he actually has time to paddle back out and catch another wave before the buzzer. He crushes the wave and throws a Hail Mary aerial at the end and stomps it on the beach. He wins 17.00 vs. 16.30. Freak of nature. 

You can watch videos of the heats here. Just select the round and heat you want to watch from the drop-down menu. I can't wait for the next event - the Billabong Rio Pro beginning on May 9.

Tell me, are you a sports fan? Do you get riled up watching games/matches/contests like I do?

Daydreaming on Pinterest

I don't know about you but I've been daydreaming like crazy lately. With the weather warming up or rather, the continued mild weather from the winter, I've been daydreaming about travel, sandy beaches and breaking waves. A friend posted this morning that the sea temperature in NYC was in the 40s. Brrr!! Too cold to actually get in so I've been thinking about Medewi in Bali...

Source: baliwaves.com via Christine on Pinterest

Hawaii...

Source: instagr.am via Christine on Pinterest

And, of course, Playa Guiones in Costa Rica.

Source: surfsimply.com via Christine on Pinterest

At times like these, I've been turning to Pinterest - a virtual pinboard that allows you to "pin" images that you find on the Internet. I know, I know. Everyone is writing about either how Pinterest is social media's newest darling or how terrible it is. While I agree that there are several issues that the company needs to address around intellectual property, terms of use and the like, I have found that it's a great tool.

I'm a visual person and I like being able to gather images and other things and organize them in one place. Seriously, I am known to have 20+ tabs open in my browser or else a ridiculous running text file with links to articles, items, clothing, images - you name it - that I wanted to remember and revisit. Of course, that text file would be replaced by another and sit on my computer desktop only to be forgotten. Pinterest lets me keep track of them in one place. And I get to find other cool things based on what other people are pinning.

My Surf pinboard is by far my favorite. It reminds me of being back in high school when I would rip out pages from Surfer and Surfing Magazine and tape them to my bedroom walls. You can find my Pinterest boards here.

What about you? Do you use Pinterest? What are you daydreaming about lately? What's on your travel or surf bucket list?

So You Want to Learn to Surf - What Do You Wear??

Surf bikini from Desi's Bikini Boutique - a Costa Rican designer. It's a reversible suit but I'm not sure I'm brave enough to wear the animal print side!

{Note: I anticipate that this will be one of many posts in which I'm ignoring the fact that I'm having knee surgery soon and pretending that surf season and other fitness adventures are just around the corner for me.}

You've made the brilliant decision to learn to surf. Whether you have decided to take one lesson while on vacation in Hawaii, California, Costa Rica or another warm water locale or to spend a full week at a surf camp like I did, your next question undoubtably is, "What in the world do I wear?" OK, that was my first question.

If you are headed to tropical waters, you don't need much. For women, you need a bikini/swimsuit, a rash guard and possibly a pair of board short, depending on what you're comfortable with. For men, you need a pair of board shorts and a rash guard. While I used to think that rash guards were silly, they are pretty important, especially if you are a beginner surfer. Not only does a rash guard protect you from the sun, but it protects your stomach and torso from chafing as you paddle and move up and down on the board.

I feel like it's easier for men to find a pair of board shorts. There are lot of brands out there - Quiksilver, O'Neill, Billabong, Rusty, Volcom, etc. and really, they're board shorts. However, you don't want to buy a pair of bulky swim trunks that are going to chafe and/or ride up on you when you're out in the water.

For women, it's a little more complicated. I don't know about you but I've never purchased a functional swimsuit, except for the Speedos I had to wear for swim practice. For my first trip to Surf Simply, I didn't really think about what I would need from my swimsuit. I knew that I wanted it to be cute, fit well and not fall off while I was in the water. I bought a bikini top and bottom from Athleta. I mean, they show women surfing in Athleta swimsuits in their catalog so that must mean that their bikinis were good for surfing, right? I wasn't sure where else to look.

While my bikini served me well on my surf trip, I did learn that the bottoms have to fit properly i.e. don't buy it a size bigger because it's more comfortable which is what I tend to do! You want your swimsuit to stay put and not move around when you are paddling, turtle rolling, or trying to catch a wave.

Since then, I've purchased two surf bikinis that I love. One from Desi's Bikini Boutique, which is made by a Costa Rican designer, and one from Calavera Swimwear which is based in Newport Beach, CA. I love that these swimsuits are made specifically with surfing in mind and therefore meant to stay put!

Surf bikini from Calavera Swimwear - Wicked line, Graffiti pattern and Pure bottom.

Both suits are made from material that does stretch not out in the water and both are highly adjustable. As you can see from the picture above, instead of a typical halter or open back top, the straps cross in the back, creating a much more secure fit. You can cinch the straps down pretty tightly (which is what you want to do) and then tie it in the back. Again, the material is such that the tie doesn't loosen in the water. It stays put. The Calavera suit actually crosses around the bottom of your chest twice before you tie it off, again creating a more secure fit. I actually prefer the cross-back style. I find that when I wear a halter top for too long, my neck starts to hurt, especially surfing when I have to keep my head and chest up to paddle.

The bottoms are also adjustable. The Desi suit has a single tie on the side of the suit that you can tighten. The Calavera suit has ties on both sides so that you can adjust the fit to your body and again, make sure that it's tied on snuggly.

Lastly, I have a pair of Roxy board shorts that I love. I didn't want a pair of long board shorts because I thought that they would annoy me in the water with all the fabric. I found these short shorts last year and they provide an extra level of comfort and security when I'm in the water. I don't always wear them but I like having the option.

What do you wear when you surf or play in the ocean? 

Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast 2012

Source: instagr.am via Christine on Pinterest

After Kelly Slater won his 11th World Title in November and the final surf contest of 2011 at Pipe Masters ended in December, the Men's ASP World Tour took a few months off. Last week, the surfers were back, kicking off the 2012 season with the Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast at Snapper Rocks on the Gold Coast of Australia.

It's a little ridiculous how excited I was for the tour to start up again. As I've said before, I love watching sports. All kinds of sports. Surf contests have filled a gap for me that I didn't even know I had and it's helped me appreciate the sport of surfing more. Yes, it's awe inspiring to see the beautiful acrobatics, aerials and swooping turns that surfers can carve through the water. However, surf contests combine the athletic and graceful with a mental and strategic game that I think take these pros beyond the image of just being laid back surfer dudes.

In the Finals on Saturday, Australian Taj Burrow faced Brazilian Adriano de Souza. Despite the fact that the conditions were mediocre, Adriano was all over the waves during the heat, seeming to feed off the energy of the large Brazilian contingent on the beach. Right away, he started off the heat with a 8.00 ride, landing a big reverse air. Taj, on the other hand, had a slow start. It was almost ten minutes into the heat before Taj rode his first wave, a low scoring 4.60. It seemed like he wasn't going to be able to pull one out from under Adriano like he did last year. Then, Taj caught the best wave of the heat and scored a 9.43. He followed that up with another solid score of 6.43. In the final minutes of the heat, Adriano needed a score of 7.87 to overtake the lead. It came down to Adriano's last wave and it was a good one. As Taj waited on the beach and Adriano waited on the back of a jet ski, the winner was announced. Taj won with a two wave total of 15.86 to de Souza's 15.60.

You can watch a video of the final here and highlights from the event below.

The Women's ASP Tour also kicked off at Snapper Rocks with the Roxy Pro Gold Coast. Steph Gilmore won the event against Laura Enever.

Source: surfline.com via Christine on Pinterest

The World Tour heads next to Bells Beach in Victoria, Australia from April 3-14.

An Apology to My Back and Shoulder

Dear Shoulders and Back,

I'm sorry. I haven't been treating you very well. You've been abused by all those years studying hunched over books followed by years of sitting in front of a computer. You've been trying to tell me to take better care of you. You started with my posture, shoulders rolling inwards and forward while shoulder blades started drifting farther and farther apart. Then, you started developing muscle imbalances. Some muscles became over-used and tight while others became under-stretched and shortened. Finally, you threw my alignment off. The muscles in my middle back and between my shoulder blades, neglected from working all day at a computer, started to lose their mobility.  Shoulders - it became harder and harder to pull you down and away from my ears and stand tall. 

I really started to notice my neglect when I started surfing. It was hard to paddle on a surfboard. I couldn't fully lift up my chest from the board to look up and see where I was going. It was also hard to breathe. Then, when a good looking wave presented itself, popping up to ride it was a challenge because my chest wasn't open. 

I thought all that I had to do was strengthen your surrounding muscles and everything would be OK. But that didn't work, huh? It just made my already dominant chest and front shoulder muscles even more tight. I didn't realize that I needed to improve your flexibility and mobility first, especially along the mid-back. I needed to be able to stabilize and control the movement of my shoulder blades before I could build up your strength. With greater mobility around the mid-back, Shoulders, you would start falling back and away from my ears and it would be easier to maintain proper alignment and increase your range of motion.

So, I promise to treat you both better. I promise to become more aware of my posture so that I can counteract these muscular imbalances. I promise to:

• Stretch my chest muscles, for example, standing in a door frame with my arms out to either side and elbow bent up at a 90 degree angle and leaning forward into the door frame.
• Use my foam roller to gain mobility in my middle back by doing passive foam roller stretches (lying down on a foam roller in a vertical position placed at the base of my spine) as well as actively roll out my back (with the foam roller in a horizontal position just above my belly button and rolling back and forth along my spine). 
• Do scapula squeezes, pulling my shoulders back and down while squeezing my shoulder blades together and holding for a few seconds 20 times, three times a day.

Let's work together to relax, retrain and lengthen your muscles. We already had one falling out - literally you fell out of your socket - so let's stay strong and healthy so that we can surf, swim and do lots of other things together for a long long time to come, okay? 

love you

Christine

{Here are two great articles on Surfline, one keeping shoulders strong and injury free and one on paddle power advice from some of the world's best.}

Vacations Reconsidered

Beachside on the Gold Coast.

If you had asked me a few years ago what my ideal vacation was, I would probably say something about hiking in South America or exploring cities in Europe or skiing. I would not have mentioned the beach. I don't like sitting on a beach and relaxing all day and getting sandy. OK, I could probably do it for one day but then I need to do something more. Plus, I get all hot and sweaty and my sensitive, eczema-prone skin starts to flair up. Not exactly a pretty sight. However, since I've started surfing, I've started to reconsider my vacations. Vacation decisions now largely hinge on one question, "Can we surf?"

This made me think back on some of the vacations that Ed and I have taken in the past. I realized something. We have traveled quite a bit over the last ten years and we have been to some of the world's premier surf destinations but didn't even know it - weren't even interested in surfing. If we saw someone surfing, it was just another sight to see and a fact duly noted -"Oh look, someone's surfing out there." Most of the time we didn't even mention it.

Surfers in the San Jose Bay of Los Cabos

For example, a few years back, we traveled to a friend's wedding in Cabo San Lucas. The wedding was held at the Cabo Surf Hotel! As my friends got married on the beach, there was a good number of surfers in the water. As we were enjoying cocktails and snacks, surfers were coming out of the water, rinsing off and talking about the amazing surf session they just had.

Matt Wilkinson at the Rip Curl Pro Search contest in Ocean Beach, SF

We've traveled along the Gold Coast in Australia, in Mexico and around Hawaii. Ed went with a couple of friends to Nicaragua and hung out in San Juan del Sur, a popular surf destination. And California and New York!! Rockaway Beach is a 40 minute drive from our house and there are numerous surf spots on Long Island from Montauk to Long Beach. We travel to California a couple times a year. Mavericks - one of the most famous big waves - is a half mile off the coast of Half Moon Bay which is less than an hour from where my family now lives (and much closer to where I grew up). Not to mention the surf at Ocean Beach in San Francisco where the Rip Curl Pro Search contest was held last fall.

Long Beach, New York - a 40 minute train ride from Penn Station in New York City

All of this time, surfing has been right under our noses and we didn't even realize it. Isn't it funny how your perspective can change? How it can change how your view, your decision calculus and your priorities? Now, every time I catch a glimpse of the ocean, I scan the water for the beautiful, organized lines of swell in the water making their steady roll towards the shore. Every time I see a wave, I begin to wonder if it's surfable whereas before, I would look for calm ocean water. Vacation planning has definitely taken a distinctive turn. It means that I get to go back to some of these places, right?

Your Turn!
What's your ideal vacation spot? Has this changed over the years? Has your perspective on something changed in a way that's surprised you?

Ode to Kelly Slater

When I was 12 years old, my Mom and I moved to the San Francisco Bay Area. My brother and sister were attending college there and my Mom wanted to have the family closer together. As a East Coast transplant, I quickly became mesmerized by the ocean, at least the idea of the ocean. It wasn't that I hadn't spent time near the water growing up - we often spent part of our school vacations on Sanibel Island in Florida - but I guess it was the whole idea and image that's associated with California - the beaches, the bikinis, the surfers. I would often rummage through Surfer and Surfing magazines at the local bookstore and tear out pictures of waves and surfers. Oftentimes, those pictures would include Kelly Slater.

So you can imagine how excited I was when, 20+ years later I had the chance to watch Kelly surf in person at the Quiksilver Pro New York event in Long Beach, NY. Giddy would be one way to describe it.

In between heats, I went for a walk to check out the other happenings around the contest site. As I passed the main Quiksilver tent, I saw Kelly standing there, taking pictures with fans and signing autographs. I stopped dead in my tracks. I thought briefly about running back to get Ed and the boys but there was no way that I was going to miss my chance to meet Kelly and have my picture taken with him. So I stood in line with everyone else, handed my iPhone to the guy behind me, held my breath and smiled. I also gave Kelly my Yankees baseball cap to sign. It was the only thing that I had with me!

My hands were literally shaking. What was I? A 12 year old girl? It was embarrassing. I wanted to tell Kelly congratulations on winning his heat, how great it was that the surfers were in NYC, etc. but I couldn't form any words. I just smiled and chuckled. He must have thought that I was a Japanese tourist who didn't speak any English. 

As I walked back to find Ed and the boys, I was still shaking but I had the biggest grin on my face. I showed Ed the picture and he immediately gathered up the boys so that they could have their picture taken with Kelly too. It's no secret that we want our boys to surf. How cool would it be for them to look back and see that they have a picture with one of the best surfers of all time? When we got back to the tent, Kelly was still standing there even though his heat ended over an hour ago. He could have been long gone but instead, he made the time for his fans.

I said before here, what I appreciate the most is the fact that he's been doing this for 20 years professionally and has ability to adapt to basically any ocean condition and to his competitors in order to take his game to a higher level. As his competitors get younger, Kelly gets better. 

In honor of Kelly's birthday tomorrow, I've composed a silly little poem

Here's to the best and the greatest there is. 

Eleven times over - World Champion that is.

You've elevated your game when it's counted the most. 

The fiercest competitor on every coast.

Power carves and aerials in all types of break.

There isn't a trick that you cannot make.

You've kept the young ones guessing and wondering too.

Is there anything that this bald guy can't do?

You're nimble.

You're quick.

You're adaptable too.

Flying through the air like all those younger dudes

Kobe + Jordan don't have your number.

Even despite the ASP's blunder.

So here's to one of the greatest sportsman of all time.

Watching you surf is truly sublime.

Even Pro Football Players Surf

When you think of a surfer, the image that comes to mind is of a tan, lean blond guy with sinewy muscles and salt in his bleached out blond hair. You don't typically think of a football player.

Well, last week, while in town for the Pro Bowl in Hawaii, a bunch of NFL players took to the beach for some surf lessons. It's like the movie Blue Crush (yes, I admit to watching this movie) when Anne Marie (Kate Bosworth) meets Matt, a quarterback in town for the Pro Bowl and wants to surf. Except this time, it was 11-time World Champion Kelly Slater and Reed McIntosh teaching the players to surf, not Kate Bosworth. They took Drew Brees, quarterback for the New Orleans Saints, Tony Gonzalez of the Atlanta Falcons, and Doug Flutie out on the water and taught them a few things. You can see some video here.

Seems like an odd combination, right? But apparently, the friendships between the pro surfers and pro footballers is no joke. The rest of the week, members of the San Diego Chargers, including Eric Weddle, Scott Mruczkowski, Steve Gregory, and Jimmy Graham of the Saints hung out at the Quiksilver House overlooking Pipeline. I remember that some San Francisco 49ers came out to watch the Rip Curl Pro Search event in San Francisco back in November.

I am not a big football fan but with the New York Giants playing the Patriots in the Super Bowl this weekend, I'm definitely watching. Plus, I have a little wager on the line. I'm taking part in the Super Bowl Challenge, organized by Michele from NYC Running Mama and Samantha from Running and Cupcakes. Losers must run the point differential in miles. Adds a little excited to the game, no? Over 60 people are participating so come on! Join in the on the fun! 

Can you guess which team I'm rooting for? Do you have any Super Bowl wagers on the line? 

Urban Surfing with SurfSet Fitness

It's the end of January and this is what I really want to do...

Photo: Oriana Fowler/Surf Simply

But, it's the end of January (I said that already, right?) and I am a cold water wimp. So, instead, I've been trying to workout with my mind focused on the day when I will actually be able to jump back in the water and surf.  I've been swimming to build up my endurance for paddling out against the waves, doing core exercise and strength training, spinning to maintain my cardio, going to yoga to work on my balance and flexibility, and training for a half marathon to distract myself from the fact that I can't surf. But it's not quite the same. That's when I heard about SurfSET Fitness - a surf-based strength and endurance fitness class currently being offered at Chelsea Piers Sports Center. Sign me up!

It was freezing as I made my way from the subway to Chelsea Piers so I was even more excited about the prospect of warm water day dreaming. It's been years since I last stepped inside the Chelsea Piers Sports Center. It is a ridiculous fitness facility. Full 400-meter indoor track, swimming pool, rock climbing wall, indoor beach volleyball court, countless cardio and strength training equipment, and spa overlooking the Hudson River.

SurfSET Fitness was developed by Mike Hartwick, a former pro hockey player and a surfer, as a way to stay in shape when he couldn't surf. He developed the RipSurfer X to approximate the dynamic feel of riding a surfboard on the water. It is essentially a surfboard resting on three mini BOSU balls so any movement you make requires you to recruit muscles in your legs, core and arms to stay balanced. At one end of the board is a pulley system that you use to mimic the motion of paddling in the water.

I went to a SurfSET Classic class which incorporates all the core SurfSET moves. The 45-minute class was structured like a surf session. We started on the "beach" and warmed our bodies up. Then got on our boards and started padding out through the "breaking waves." With the pulleys, the focus was on the in-water portion of the paddling motion (where it counts!) and the pulleys provided a good amount of resistance which can be adjusted.

As we paddled out, we also got to do some duck-dive push-ups where you push the board under an imaginary wave and then pull yourself up on the other side - sometimes doing this movement fluidly and other times pausing at various points to increase the burn in your arms. Ouch! Once we made it past the breaking waves, we performed a series of ab exercises as we waited to catch a wave. I found this part to be super challenging and I couldn't quite get it right. 

Finally, it was time to catch a wave and "ride" it back to the beach. We started paddling again, and then paddling a bit faster as you would if you were really trying to catch a wave. The pop-up was the most fun for me, maybe because I've been trying to practice them everyday as part of my New Years resolution. I was surprised by how much popping-up on the RipSurfer X felt like it would if I were actually out on the water. Once we were up, we practiced carving rail to rail by shifting weight between our toes and our heels. For me, this was a great exercise because I have a hard time balancing my weight evenly when I surf. I often dig the toe-side rail of my surfboard into the water which makes me fall. 

We also did some other balance moves while standing on the board like walking side-step along the length of the board, lunges and single leg squats which were definitely challenging on the unstable surface. Bill, my instructor, also spiked our heart rate a couple of times by making us do "wave runners" (I think that's what they were called?) which is essentially performing mountain climbers on the RipSurfer X. It was hard to move my legs quickly. I thought I was going to fall on my face. We also did more plyometric-type exercises like hopping up and over the RipSurfer X.

The 45 minutes flew by. It was hard but also a lot of fun. I was definitely sore afterwards and felt like I worked some long neglected muscles. I appreciated that so much of the class focused on paddling because really, that's such a huge part of surfing. I look forward to going back. If only Chelsea Piers was a wee bit closer to my apartment...

SurfSET will be at Chelsea Piers until early March but they are also touring major cities across the U.S. to launch the classes. You can find book classes through their website or follow them on Twitter. They are hoping to have maintain a presence in New York City and I do too!