Female surfers
Sunn was dubbed “the Queen of Makaha,” and was “a champion, barrier breaker, role model and matriarch,” her exhibit reads. Not only was she an excellent surfer, she was an overall water woman,” Geria said. Tony Geria, a volunteer at SHACC, said he was especially thrilled to see Hawaiian surfer Rell Sunn among the honorees. A soon-to-be-released biographical film, titled “Trouble” after the nickname she earned in the water, reflects her life trying to fit in and be accepted in a line-up surrounded by mostly men. She teared up at the exhibit opening when talking about what it meant to be honored. It was the first women’s surf brand and still today is a strong presence in retail stores catering to surfer girls.Īndersen, who lives in San Clemente, talked about how she wanted to surf without worrying about bikini malfunctions, and she made it cool for women to wear boardshorts through the apparel brand. Gilmore is currently the face of women’s surf wear brand Roxy – which Andersen helped create with mega surf brand Quiksilver decades ago. Her first world title came her rookie year on the World Surf League Championship Tour in 2007.įor more than a decade “Gilmore has been a driving force in the evolution of women’s surfing,” according to a write up at the exhibit. Gilmore, of Australia, is currently number two in the world and aiming for her seventh world title.Īt the SHACC exhibit, photos of her tucking into a big barrel and a red jersey with her name adorn the walls. “It’s not that women haven’t excelled, its that recognition has been thin, at best.” World titles and women’s surf wear “These are the strong women who throughout history paved the way and influenced young women to excel at whatever they wanted to do. We, the surfing community, really have not recognized women in surfing the way we should have,” Brumage said. This was the right time and right place, and the right thing to do right now,” Brumage said.Ĭhoosing the women to recognize was no easy task – and there were plenty of upset calls that more women weren’t put on the list. “We really felt like women had not been recognized enough. The official name of the event is “SHACC Ohana GALA honoring Women Making Waves.” It coincides with a “Women Making Waves” summer exhibit launched at SHACC on Saturday, June 2. Glenn Brumage, executive director at the Surfing Heritage and Culture Center in San Clemente, said that during this year’s annual gala, they wanted to specially recognize women. What does it mean to be a female surfer in China?4 female surfers who paved the way for women on waves – Orange County Register They welcome more Chinese women to shake off the shackles of city life, turn away from society’s expectations and paddle into the storm. Together their conviction for their chosen life grows stronger. But here, among like-minded women of the waves, they fit right in. Bold, independent and unapologetic, they don’t conform to the traditional Chinese ideal of femininity. Their love for each other is evident as they laugh so hard, tears stream down their cheeks while they catch up on gossip from the past weekend. Inside at their table, they easily drown out the rowdy beer-swilling men across the way. They are more concerned with what they want for themselves, rather than external factors that don’t actually matter.Īfter a change of clothes, the women head to their favorite seafood restaurant just across from Houhai’s fishing pier to replenish the calories they burned out at sea. And having a passion makes you a better person. There are definitely more people in China now who want to chase their own dream rather than build someone else’s. Anything that inspires you, go and do that instead of focusing on playing the game that society built for us. How did you get so close to the other women here?ĭarci: To go chasing your own waves - whatever that means to you. Liu: And if we drink too much, we help each other get home! And every day when we’ve finished in the ocean, we come back for drinks together. You: We all like surfing, so we always have something to talk about. At Chinese New Year, everyone will bring one dish from home and we have a huge meal together. During holidays, if we don’t go home, we all get together to celebrate, so no one feels alone without their family.ĭarci: Yes, we are family. When we weren’t surfing, we’d all sunbathe and listen to music together during the day, or barbecue and drink together in the evening. Wan: The village is small, so I got to know all the other girls very quickly. Even when you couldn’t surf, you were still part of the group!
FEMALE SURFERS HOW TO
Jingya: When I first arrived, I thought I would have to learn how to surf to become part of the group.ĭarci: You think too much. We have abandoned the stresses of the city. Xiaomi: Absolutely! The people who choose to live here are all inspired by the same kind of life. We were all raised by the ocean, so we’re like sisters. Darci: Everyone here has a very similar outlook.