I Just Competed in my First Surf Competition
Ok, I SWORE up and down that I would NEVER compete in surfing because I wanted it to be my chill outlet. Turns out, I was wrong. I saw the Sea Her Surf competition that’s for women, by women in Cocoa Beach, Florida, and thought it might be fun. So I decided to enter the women’s longboard division.
Now, I had been training for CrossFit Semifinals, so surfing was taking a bit of a backseat. Not to mention, the summer flat season was upon us. So there was little room for any kind of training. All I could do was stay in shape, surf when I could, skate when I couldn’t surf, and just rely on my instincts. When competition weekend came, I was excited but a little nervous. I wasn’t sure how waves were scored; I didn’t know any of the rules of competition, so I was kind of winging it. Luckily, the competition put out a lovely video explaining the rules and flow of the competition.
The morning of, my friends and I were up early, and we headed down to the beach to register. I was looking at the ocean and the waves. I’d never surfed Cocoa before, so I knew I wanted to get some practice waves in. My friend and I took a few fun warm-up waves, and I got my flow. After a really nice left, a little southern stingray jumped out of the ocean. Fun fact: stingrays represent grace, flow, and adaptability. I knew that those were the qualities I wanted to embody while I was surfing.
Photo: Chad Law Photos
My heat went off, and I caught as many waves as I could. I felt confident and made sure to bank some “safe” rides so that I had some points on the board. I couldn’t get my cross step going, but I only just figured that skill out, so that’s ok! Just like how skills don’t always show up on game day when I compete in CrossFit, the cross step wasn’t totally there on game day. Just something to continue to work on.
I felt amazing as the heat ended and I took my wave to the sand. My friends raced up to meet me and said, “Dude! You moved on!!” to which I immediately said, “Me?! Noooo. No way!!” Yep. I got THIRD in my heat!!! Which was WILD to me. I had made it to the finals! I’m still in shock, to be honest.
During the finals heat, the waves changed, and I wasn’t able to surf my best. I tried to take some risks with cross-stepping and ran off of my board. The girls BROUGHT the heat for the finals, and it was so awesome. It’s fun to see other women fully stoked and living it out. I ended up getting 6th, but honestly, I didn’t expect to make finals at all, so I was stoked.
Photo: Free Surf Pics
Now, after having a few days to reflect, I’m so glad I did it. I realized that I’m a better surfer than I thought, and I am so excited to get better. Not because I think I’m going to go pro or anything, but because I want to have a deeper connection to the ocean. When you surf well, you understand the ocean and the waves. You learn how to dance with the ocean because you’re familiar with it. It becomes almost a friend to you.
I also realized how much I believe in fitness for surfers. Being able to have the stamina to really surf for two or more heats was incredible. I knew how to fuel my body to compete at its best, and I knew that I had the stamina to keep up. I firmly believe in my purpose of helping surfers feel their best and most confident on land and in the lineup through fitness and nutrition.
Photo: Cassie Wegneg
Will I compete again? 100%. I don’t expect anything in return except for a deeper love of the ocean
