THE FUTURE OF SURFING: SURFGIRL MAGAZINE
THE FUTURE OF SURFING
SURFGIRL MAGAZINE PRINT 2023
Surfing’s huge metamorphosis in recent years has seen a raft of mindblowing developments, achievements, progression and more. From the feats of surfers themselves, whether that’s boosting new airs and tricks, to scoring the biggest waves ever surfed, incredible creative flow and flair, to the support behind developing the sport, from pay parity’s introduction, to women now being present at all key stops in waves consequence on the World Tour, and increased representation from diverse backgrounds. We get our Mystic Meg on and with the help of some of surfing’s most positive proponents and stalwarts of the industry to imagine what’s going to come next, from inclusivity to the rise of a new guard, the environment and wave pools.
Words: Sophie Everard
Surfing’s meteoric trajectory of change and development in recent years is pretty mind boggling. In such a short space of time, it feels like we’ve seen monumental, nay, colossal developments. From the actual act of surfing itself, we are seeing surfers accomplishing even more incredible feats in surfing on the daily. Whether that’s groms like Sierra Kerr tearing apart the Mentawais like it’s chest high chill or being the first to boost a backside rodeo in a wave pool, to big wave surfers like Keala Kennelly, who 8 years ago dropped into a wave at Teahupoʻo that seemed unfathomable, and recently led the charge at The Eddie where women paddled out for the first time ever. Brazil’s Maya Gabeira scored the biggest wave ever surfed by a woman at Nazaré at 73 feet in 2020, and Justine DuPont’s envelope-pushing progressions (if you haven’t seen her barrel at Jaws in 2021 at Jaws, high-tail it over to YouTube pronto). That takes us to the legalities and developments in women’s surfing including pay parity’s introduction and the recent law passed in Hawaii (pushed by Keala) making it illegal to hold surfing events without inviting women. All vital changes which ensure fairness and representation, which have been amplifying through the years. It’s almost hard to imagine where we could be in the next 10, 20, 50 years, but there are still areas for growth.
If we look deeper into the integration of women into surfing, much-loved lady logger Kassia Meador, who has been a positive influence on surfing from her time as a pro going back to the ‘90s and starting her own industry-shattering women’s wetsuit brand, told us “I feel like the integration piece is the opportunity”. With a series of events in Hawaii recently including women being invited to Pipe Masters for the first time ever in December 2022, yes, an amazing moment, but one Kassia feels still had further opportunities. “They had women surfing in the event which was awesome, and I still felt that the women weren't fully represented in the best way possible…as an observer it still felt a bit separate. When the women were out in their heats the men were commentating about them and it just felt like something was missing….I wanted to hear some of the epic female surfers who blazed the paths speaking about the current generation. Women like Rochelle Ballard, Keala, Megan Abubo and Lisa Anderson talking about the women out at Pipe, and how pumped she is to see girls like Moana, Carissa, and all the girls that are just freaking charging finally having this opportunity. You know, like it's an evolution. Everything's an evolution. And still surfing is in its infancy stage, really. Surfing is kind of like a teenager. If we're thinking about it in that way, there's still emotions and raw feelings and trying to figure yourself out…I think there is just so much progression across the board when it comes to women and inclusivity, and I think it's the true integration that doesn't make it feel like we're trying to be inclusive. We just innately are.”
In the future, now we are seeing women invited to waves of consequence, demonstrating they are more than capable, its tokenism could develop into more solid participation. Kassia suggests that she feels “there's still tokenising…it shouldn't be like oh, we need to include the ladies. As like a token. I think integration is the point across the board about everything. Like, oh man, she's surfing amazing…It's not about women surfing amazing because they're a woman. it shouldn't be an afterthought. It should be at the forefront. I think that still, we're sometimes seeing, depending on the separation of things, sometimes we still see the guys get the better conditions…it should be like, hey, maybe, give the girls the best waves, the actual best window. Just like level the stage.” We only have to watch the tooth-and-nail fight women like Jodie Cooper, Rochelle Ballard and Pauline Menzer went through in the 80s and 90s to even be invited to surf, let alone score good waves of any kind. Thinking deeper into Kassia’s point, in the future, that truly could level the playing field, finally having women on equal footing, able to showcase their abilities. Kassia adds that athletes like Justine DuPont who are pushing the envelope massively can “still have a guy burn her at Jaws” (caught on camera at the start of 2023)...”So it's like, those kinds of things that I think that integration piece needs to really come in. Are people really seeing people as equals, is that actually happening across the board out there? Or are we still kind of putting people into gender boxes? Let's dissolve all that.”
When we break into the integration piece and shine a light on diversity, we’ve seen huge change, and a hugely vital acceleration towards supporting athletes of colour, mainly through grassroots organisations like Black Girls Surf, who work tirelessly to support women of colour chase their dreams of turning pro, and the UK’s Wave Wahines, Founder Yvette Curtis’ powerful work questioning where diversity exists in key decision makers positions within surfing. Still, it has been coming down to self-funded organisations, and the funds required for an athlete to make it are often staggering. Many athletes in the past, like Brazil’s Silvana Lima, had a tough struggle to make it to the tour, only to face having zero sponsors because it was suggested she didn’t fit the “marketable” cookie-cutter-esque mold of what was “sell-able” to surf brands. Today, athletes and surf ambassadors have shake the mould and it’s awesome to see inspiring athletes charging on the world stage, from Mikey February to Nique Miller, para-athletes like multi-world champion Britain’s Melissa Reid, and profoundly impactful communities led by changemakers like Jamaica’s Imani Wilmot and India’s Ishita Malaviya. Will it finally get to a point where it isn’t down to grassroots organisations, where across-the-board, implemented by surfing bodies and organisations and brands, support for wider talent is supported? So many athletes have fallen through the net facing sexism, homophobia and misogyny previously, and looking into the future, we hope that the hard work done by groups like Black Girls Surf and individuals like Keala Kennelly becomes widespread across the board.
Equally, with more support, comes more opportunity for athletes to push the envelope. Arguably one area which is really stimulating huge developments are wave pools, which have been cropping up globally in the last 10 years. Founder of Bristol’s The Wave, Nick Hounsfield, told us that “there is no doubt in my mind that wave pools help progression of technical surfing. We have seen it first hand at The Wave, particularly with the younger surfers, such as Alys Barton, Siyanda Hewitt and Lukas Skinner. We are the training Centre of Excellence for Team England, the Adult, Junior and Adaptive Surfing teams, and we have had overwhelmingly positive feedback in terms of speed of progression for all these groups. The ability to work on one element of performance, on repeat, is a gamechanger, especially in the UK when we can’t rely on consistent and reliable surfing conditions in ocean. I see it as a way of leveling the playing field compared to other surf/wave rich nations. To have access to waves offshore and inland year-round is a big advantage.”
Perhaps we are already seeing the fruits of that consistency now when it comes to UK surfing, with UK talent making an impact globally in events like the World Surfing Games and hungrily working to make it to The Olympics. When it comes to The Olympics, surfing’s inclusion for the first time in Japan brought surfing, contentiously for some, to the world stage. The surf thankfully provided in Japan, though it looked hit and miss for a while…could wave pools be the answer? Nick suggests that “I think there is an argument for Wave Pools as part of the Olympics, and Paralympics. The consistency and controllability of the waves has real benefits for a competition environment. We have hosted the English Adaptive Surfing Open for the last 3 years and it has proven incredibly successful as an event format. If I was in control of it all, I would install a Wavepool at every Olympic host city and use it in land-locked countries with no waves, or as a back-up venue in case the conditions aren’t favourable. It would be a great asset for each host city and could create a sustainable future legacy….We would also love to see surfing included as part of the Paralympics 10 years from now.” That may indeed be on the cards, with The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) of the upcoming 2028 LA Olympics having surfing on the shortlist for additional inclusion.
Wave pools are also positive grounds for widening the participation of surfing and integration, The Wave home to many vital meet-ups across the board, and Nick also agrees when it comes to further financial support that’s needed, “I would love to see more financial support for surfing as a sport, from grass roots initiatives right up to supporting aspiring professional athletes. I really think it would supercharge the UK surf scene and if we do it responsibly, we can lead the charge in creating a sustainable, progressive sport and community. I’d love to think that in 10 years surfing will be even more inclusive as a sport. We are seeing positive steps in the right direction, with some great organisations pushing boundaries, removing barriers and driving better representation in the media. It would be amazing to think that in 10 years' time there will be a more diverse range of surfers in all line-ups, be that in terms of ethnicity, gender, sexuality, age and more. By increasing the diversity of the sport, there is a real chance to attract those talented individuals who may never have found the sport otherwise.”
Looking at the wider picture, the consideration of the effects of surfing on the natural environment, as we discuss in this issue with many of the major surf brands, is massively topical and urgently pressing. When Kassia launched her own wetsuit brand, Kassia + Surf in 2015, it was with deep-rooted consideration of the environment. As she tells us, what she deems as vital today and for the future in wetsuit development is “not only materials, but its end of life cycle. And, what are we fueling with our money? So I think really having an end of life cycle opportunity and utilising that across the board. You know, like where can people send their old wetsuits? And then what's the next phase? Well, send us those scraps and we'll upcycle it with our friends at Suga and turn it into yoga mats. But also, what's the next phase…What are different ways that we can upcycle everything that we're consuming, so it has another life, so we're not having to create raw materials. I think that that's a question and a conversation and that's gonna take time and everybody working together to create that innovation.
There's brilliant people out there! Like, maybe suits will come with a mushroom that helps dissolve 'em and fertilize them. Like who knows? I would freaking love wetsuits to come with a sprinkle pack of mushrooms that dissolve. That would be freaking epic. That's such a good idea. Can somebody do that already? We have access to so much technology and innovation and I think rather than pointing fingers at what people aren't doing, seeing what people are, and seeing how we can work together to create more opportunity, how can we use our imagination more to really imagine what's possible.”
In Nick's future for surfing, he sees that “ it represents a huge societal change. A connection between human and planetary health and how the two are interlinked - surfing being a huge vehicle for that messaging. That in the UK we have a cultural shift in terms of our relationship with the ocean and blue spaces, where everyone can swim, be confident in water and waves and has a profound connection with blue spaces - be it oceans, rivers, lakes (natural or artificial!). Many of the issues we see in the world today - division, lack of connection, environmental vandalism, lack of long-term future thinking – also exist in some areas of the Surfing industry and ‘surf culture’. If we can change these things in surfing, then I think we have a ‘Blue Print’ for a better world. Surfing can be a catalyst for a better world, I honestly believe that.