Portugal Stoke Mission–Blog 1 of 3

This blog is written by Kelly Kingston, STSF founder.

Our Portugal stoke mission has been on the books since February. That was a good amount of time to plan something amazing. Once a year we try to take a “bigger” trip (somewhere other than Central or South America) so this year it was Europe, our first European stoke mission. One of my partners for this trip was Joan Bergmans, an epic human I met in Bocas del Toro on a stoke mission in 2013. Since then we have done several trips together stoking out kids. Through her, Kim Hanskamp, an Amsterdam based photographer and surfer jumped on board to document the journey.

Trips like these would not be possible without the help from the community, our friends and family. For this project we have Surfr App, a West Palm Beach based crew that have created an app that allows you to log your surf sessions and find cool food and lodging options while you are on the road.  You can download the app HERE.  Nomad Surf Shop has been a great support in many of our stoke missions including this one to Portugal.  They are as local as they come.   East Coast Customs jumped on to donate some skateboards to give out to the kids we met on our journey.  They make the coolest boards on the planet.  Our other sponsors include Casual Starfish, Corey Hudson Artworks, Moana Surf,  TomTom Bandit and The Spot Beachclub along with the other usual suspects Firewire Surfboards, FCS and Sticky Bumps Wax.

Like our Peru project, we decided to ship 15 surfboards to make getting to Portugal much easier not having to lug all those boardbags. We shipped the boards in plenty of time for them to clear customs and get them to where we needed to have them by a certain time. They did make it…not quite on time…but we managed to get them in time for what mattered which was the events with the kids.

Our first project was one I had set up with Nuno Azul, founder of Janga Wetsuits (wetsuits that I have been crazy about for a few years now because of their crazy colors and good vibe about them). Nuno put me in contact with Nuno Travao, leader of the Association of Bodyboarding in Figueira da Foz. Nuno T. was the one in charge of getting the right kids to us for the surf event. And that he did.

The day I arrived I headed straight for Figueria da Foz in a taxi to meet Joan and Kim at the camp spot. We had rented an RV to make driving and sleeping super easy and also to use it as a moving billboard so that we can use it to advertise who we are and who are sponsors are. It seems to work well.Photo by Kim Hanskamp

It rained the whole way to the campsite. I was super bummed because our event would be taking place just a couple hours after I got there. But after I arrived and unpacked a few things the sky started to clear. We were stoked! Nuno A. from Janga came over and picked us up and took us to the event spot. Right away we started stickering up the surfboards with our sponsor stickers and suited up. Kids started showing up one by one and we were introduced to them all by Nuno T. Soon enough we were down on the sand with the kids stretching and getting ready for some good vibes in the water. Photo by Kim HanskampPhoto by Kim Hanskamp

Only a few of the kids who showed knew how to surf already so it was really fun introducing this sport to some newbies. The kids took to the water like fishes and instantly started popping up and riding waves. You could literally see the lightbulbs turn on for them. It is the best part of the job!Photo by Kim Hanskamp Photo by Kim Hanskamp

After our time in the water was done we donated two boards to individual kids. The kids that had already been surfing for a little bit. We donated five Firewire Surfboards for the school so that more kids can use the boards. Also donated were Janga Wetsuits and tons of Janga swag. It was a great day!Photo by Kim Hanskamp Photo by Kim Hanskamp Photo by Kim HanskampPhoto by Kim Hanskamp

Huge thanks go out to Nuno Azul and Nuno Trovao for organizing the day so that the kids would have a great time.

Pumped Up For Peru

This blog is written by Kelly Kingston, STSF Founder

This was such a busy trip that it has taken me a week to recover and get this thing going. This trip kind of started off on the wrong foot…you could say. Two weeks before the trip my buddy and travel partner for this trip, Missy, also a Jetblue employee, called to tell me that Jetblue doesn’t allow surfboards to and from Lima now. At first I thought no way so I did the researching and calling and found this information to be true. For you surfers out there…they also don’t allow them to Haiti and some places in the D.R. Needless to say I was pretty devastated by this fact. Now with the new information I saw only three choices. 1. Ship the boards directly to Peru and keep the same flights. 2. Buy new tickets on another airline and take the boards OR 3. Just say screw the kids in Peru and go and do the events we have planned but without making our usual donation to the surf clubs. Of course option three was out so I crunched the numbers of two airline tickets and three board bags which came out to be around $2,200 so I decided to ship them.

I was excited to hear that the boards had arrived and that my guy was going to pick them up. I was relieved…until I got a message from him saying that we owe $1,800 in order for them to release the boards. My original thought was no way, there must be some kind of huge mistake. We were confident that we could talk to the officials and tell them the boards were to be donated and they would free them up. This didn’t happen. We have now been in communication with an NGO about the possibility of them helping us get them out at a drastically reduced rate. This has been going on now for two weeks. My hope was that we would be able to get them out in time to donate them to the kids while we were there. I know when we do get them there will be a big celebration here and in Peru as well. Once I let go of the results of what would happen I was able to become present and be with the kids in Peru whole-heartedly.

So my travel companions were Logan Kamen and Missy Diamond, both very impactful humans for the foundation and the kids we work with. We all met at the Fort Lauderdale airport and then headed off to Lima where we would sleep on the floor that evening before our 6 am flight to Trujillo. We had all been to Chicama before so we were all excited to see our friends and catch up with what has been going on with the kids. Eventually we made our way to Puerto Malabrigo and as soon as we could see the beach those picture perfect lefts kept on coming one after the other. We were stoked to say the least. We grabbed some coffee and then paddled out for a sesh. Sets were a little over head high which was perfect for Chicama. This place really is hard to wrap your brain around. You can get rides that are literally two and a half minutes long.

That night we had a meeting at 7pm with the Chicama Surf Team. We were excited to see the girls and meet the new chicas they had recruited. First, we met Reesy, a Peace Corp volunteer who would be helping us make the event happen. She came highly recommended by Carlhey Bolz, the heart and soul and creator of the Chicama Surf Team. When we rolled up the girls had created the best welcome ever. Each chica held up a letter for their welcome sign. I have never felt so much love and knew for a fact right then and there that the work we are doing there really matters. When we continue to keep showing up for these girls they know they matter and they mean something to us.

Our meeting with them was to chat with them about having them be a large part of executing our event that weekend for all the local kids. We wanted to empower them by having them take ownership and play vital roles in it. We all divied up tasks for everyone and decided for Saturday’s events that the chicas would be in charge of the beach cleanup by passing out the bags and escorting groups of children down the beach to help facilitate picking up proper garbage as opposed to things that are natural. We also decided that they would help out with the surf lessons when it came time for that.

After the meeting we were exhausted. I was up waaay past my bedtime. Now that I have a 9 month old I make sure I go to bed early so I can party with her at 6 am☺ The next morning we had set up a surf session with the girls so we met them down at “El Hombre”, a section of the point break known for its super fast section and hollowness. When we got there they were all down on the beach stretching. We joined them and then paddled out. We were stoked to see that the girls had improved. Each time we come they get better and better. This is no surprise because now the team is meeting three days a week for practice. After shredding we headed back to the hotel to get geared up for the beach cleanup and surf lessons.

In the past we have had 75-100 kids show up for our event, which is definitely one of our biggest events of the year. Before we knew it there were 85 kids running around waiting for directions for the cleanup. We kicked it off and the girls were awesome little leaders. All the kids worked so hard and picked up so much trash. The work ethic of these little groms was something for us to take note of.

After about an hour we started circling all the kids up for the surf lessons. A circle of 85 kids is a giant circle. Luis, coach of the Chicama Girls Surf Team led the instruction. It is pretty funny to watch all the kids pop up at once. Soon enough we had five instructors in the water, the Chicama Girls Surf Team instructing the surfers when and which instructor to go to. Each kid got three waves then the next kid would go. I think it probably took two hours to get all the kids surfing, including a few of them going more than once. After the lessons were done we all headed up the hill to Zorro’s place for the epic BBQ for our participants and volunteers.

After everyone got their food we got ours and holy moly was it delicious. Later that night all the surf school coaches met and formed the heats for the contest the following day. By the time we finished it was 10pm.

The next morning we met over at a beached boat down by the contest site. Part of our impact with the girls was to have an art project with them and create a piece that they would be proud of. Gabriela, one of the girls on the team, had made a present for me that was a super cool image she drew of the Chicama Point. I was stoked to receive it and even more stoked that it would be going on the boat!! We prepped the boat by covering up a section with white paint. You would think that would be easy but sometimes in other countries they use other means than what we are used to. In Peru the paint comes in bags. So we had to mix it in a bucket with water to dilute it then spread it on. Eventually the boys painted the boat with their hands because the paint roller was taking off sections of wood off the old boat. It was a pretty messy gig.

We finished up and headed back to the hotel to sort out the prizes for the contest. Grom Social really pulled through and ended up donating enough gear for us to stoke out all the kids. There were a bunch of other folks who also sent us with cool gear for the groms. Thank you!

I knew this event was going to be crazy. There were so many things we were trying to accomplish while the event was going on like motivational talks with the girls and getting the painting finished. The contest had four divisions, two boys and two girls. All of the participants had to be part of one of the three surf schools in order to compete, which was different and cool too because all of the kids were super supportive of each other. The feeling for the day was team work for sure.

Reesy and I were in charge of heats while Logan, Angel (Reesy’s boyfriend) and Missy were part of the judges corner. Reesy and I killed it getting all the groms ready with their jerseys on while the other heat was in the water. We were like a well oiled machine but there is no way we could have pulled this event off without her. She is an epic human!

When all of the girl heats were over we decided to facilitate the motivational talks for the girls. First off, we awarded two of the girls framed plaques acknowledging them for their improving skills in the water as well as being with the team since its inception since 2013. I said a few words to them before presenting them. They seemed stoked for sure. Sometimes it is hard to tell if they are excited because their culture it to be humble and I find they show very little emotion. One of the other things I wanted to relay to them was something that I never received as a kid, which was that no one told me that I could be anything I wanted or that I could go anywhere or do anything. I grew up in a small mindset kind of family who never saw very far past what was right in front of us. Fortunately, for me along the way I found confidence that I could go anywhere and do anything. So I told the girls how proud I was of them and that they can be anyone they choose and that they can go anywhere they just have to have a passion and a desire. They looked at me straight faced. I hope that they really heard my words.

Reesy took over the talk about how we portray ourselves and self confidence while I headed back over to the contest to get the next heat going. One of the biggest bummers about this talk was that some of the girls from the other surf teams declined our invitation to sit in on the talks. Initially there was only the Chicama Girls Surf Team. Then for whatever reason some of the girls decided to go off and be part of new surf teams. There are lots of politics within each of the surf teams there, which I find to be silly. All I can think is gosh it is surfing…why can’t we just all get along, but I suppose life outside of surfing is like this as well. So because of politics, the other girls missed something that could have benefitted them, which is a total bummer.

After the chats the chicas took to the painting of the boat and by dark it was finished just at last light. The contest too finished just as the sun had sunk. We literally did the awards while the light from the sun was turning to black. All in all it was a great day. We packed in so much into this one day. The best part of the events were all of the families that came down to the beach and hung out all day watching the kids surf. These are people that turn their backs to the ocean except for these two days a year that we put on the event. One of our core values are community and this weekend we created community through surfing. What could be better?

The rest of the trip was spent surfing and spending time with the surf team. Missy had the cool idea to meet with them over dinner and talk about pearls and how each one is formed over time, rare and very precious…like them! She had brought some pearls, string and clasps and we all spent the evening talking about how each one of us is important and creating cool necklaces for ourselves and anyone else we wanted to give one to. It was so much fun hanging with them.

Our other highlight other than riding epic waves together happened about 20 minutes before it was time for us to leave.

One of the security guards at Chicama came to get us and tell us some of the girls were there to see us. I was stoked because I had thought we had said out last goodbyes the night before☺ Yaricsa, Luis and David showed up. Yaricsa is one of the new recruits who we had just gotten to know. She had some gifts for us. She gave each one of a special gift. I got an epic piece of art with a long heart-felt writing about what surfing has given her so far. I was so touched that she took the time to create something so epic for me. She also gave some gifts that Belen, another one of the new girls, had sent with her to give. My gift was another piece of art. It was a surfer on a wave. I made up in my mind that it was me surfing. I loved it. Then Randa showed up with gifts too. I got a cool feather earring which I put in right away as well as a stuffed animal that said Te Amo ( I love you) on it. I knew instantly of the perfect 9 month old who was going to love it. Then Luis gave us his gifts. It was an epic goodbye. We all hugged and I told them all that I loved them. We all packed up the van and said goodbye to all the Chicama staff. Soon enough we were headed out. On the way I saw Randa and David sitting on a bench. I frantically waved and felt this sadness. A sadness that only came from the epic goodbye we just had and knowing how important we are to them and them to us. A little farther down the road on the way out-of-town I saw Luis on a motorcycle with Yaricsa on the back. Again, I was waving frantically and putting my hand up to the window trying to send a message that said my heart is full and it is all because of you. They kept getting closer and closer and honking and finally our driver pulled over and Yaricsa pulls out one last stuffed animal for Missy. This was by far the most eventful goodbye we have ever seen. It was that moment when I realized how significant they are to me. Thank you Chicama for providing a love that is unique and keeps on getting stronger with time.

Barbados With The Burke’s

Written by Kelly, STSF founder.

My partner for this trip was Tim Frater, a good friend and STSF supporter. Tim is the brains behind the Putt & Strut charity event that we put on yearly to help raise funds and awareness. He was also on the Barbados trip last year so he was excited to come back and see what the kids had accomplished.

Traveling in and out of Miami is always a bit hectic but we got there and all checked in with no problems. When we were on the runway the pilot got on the speaker and said over on the right side of the plane we would be able to see Air Force One. I had seen it before but isn’t everyday you get to see the plane. People were super excited! The flight was super mellow. The view from the plane flying over the Caribbean is unreal. It must be the bluest water on the planet. Before we knew it we had touched down in Barbados. Soon enough we had our bags, exchanged our money and signed the paperwork for the rental car. I convinced Tim to drive since you have to drive on the other side of the road here. He usually does pretty well but I get a little too stressed. So I just sit back and chill. It’s about a 10-minute drive to the Burke’s house, which is where we stayed. The Burke’s are a surfing family. The Dad, Alan used to compete professionally and now the boys are following in his foot steps. Josh is now 18 and is a professional surfer who travels the world competing and doing freesurf trips. He absolutely shreds. Check out this wave!!!!!!!!! Jacob who is 14 is following right behind Josh competing and progressing with the sport very quickly. He will also blow your mind with how well he surfs. They have a nice two-bedroom rental called Cheez Don Bread in case you ever need a clean place to stay. We pretty much threw our bags inside, unpacked the boards and waxed up for our first surf sesh. The waves were pretty small but we didn’t care. Later on that night we joined the Burke’s for dinner. I had my first chance to try flying fish. It was exciting and the fish was great, especially with some of the spicy Bajan sauce I added. It would be the last of the good meals we had:( We chose to cook our own food to save money which resulted in a lot of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and egg sandwiches.

The next days were spent tooling around the island checking it out and surfing.

Our sponsor for this trip was Surfr so we spent some time checking out cool spots to add to the app as a tool for surfers to use to find good spots to eat and stay. It is similar to Yelp but it is for surfers and designed by surfers.

Sunday was the day that the kids were to show up for our event. It is always exciting to meet new kids who want to surf. Rumor was that some of the kids from last year were going to “try” to come to this event. Usually when I hear the word try I chalk it off as a no but I was wrong☺. There were three kids who showed up from last years event. It is so cool to talk to them and see what has happened in a year. I was able to catch an interview from one of the kids named Jason. He is a super great kid with aspirations of becoming a firefighter.

One by one the new kids trickled in and soon enough Alan was introducing who Share The Stoke Foundation is and Tim went on to talk about the work we do and why it is important. It is always very thrilling to hear other people talk about the work we do. It is even more awesome to see other people be ambassadors for STSF and give the boards to deserving kids like Josh has for the past two years. This is Josh pictured with our Barbados themed Going Coastal Project board.

I imagine when a younger kid receives a board from a pro surfer like Josh it is exciting for them. After the boards were handed out Josh and Jacob worked with the kids showing them how to put on a leash, put on traction pads and put fins in. Even the kids from last year were sharing the stoke and helping out the younger kids with all the surf gear. When I think about surfing and how it brings people together I am so greatful. This sport continues to fill my soul on a daily basis. For me, through surfing, anything is possible and I hope that the kids we impact can have that experience too. I was speaking with one of the surfboard recipients, Lydia about surfing. I was telling her about all the opportunity that is out there with surfing, so many gifts but you have to be open to them. How exciting for her at such a young age to have surfing.

After all the festivities we had about an hour before we headed off to the airport. We drove down to Oistins, a happening area of town with restaurants and a fish market. We spent a few minutes there filming and checking out what the local fishermen brought in for their catch.

I couldn’t believe my eyes at all the fish and other sea creatures they had gathered. Barbados is abundant with fish. There are also a happy island and ready to share their bounty with the tourists. See you next year Barbados!

Mexico 3.0

This post is written by Kelly, STSF founder.

Well Mexcico started out on the wrong foot☺ I got all the way to the airport when I realized I had forgotten my cell phone. I quickly checked in my bags and sped back home to grab it. I was stoked to have made it back to the airport with time to spare. I boarded the plane and was ready to fall asleep as I had been up since 3:45 am to get ready for the flight. As it was time to take off the pilot came on the speaker and announced that our plane had mechanical problems. My initial thought was oh no…I do not want this flight to take off. As I have gotten older I have started to develop a fear of flying. It is so not cool based on what I do with the foundation. Minutes went by which turned into hours of delay and when I realized there was no way to make my connection flight to Zihuatanejo I decided to rebook for the following morning. I was bummed the flight got cancelled but I was also stoked to get another day with my family.

The following morning was way smoother. Ultimately I made my way to Mexico where I met up with surf sisters Megan, Nicole and Missy who had been on holiday for a week or so. Prior to my arrival they had set up an event in Saladita and worked with a local to help us select kids who meet our board recipient criteria. Saladita is in the state of Guerrero, located pretty far south on the western coast of Mexico.

The girls met me at the airport and we strapped down the five boards and sped off to Saladita, stopping on the way for some coco frios to quench our thirst. As soon as we arrived at the spot we grabbed some long boards and paddled out for a quick sesh while we waited for the kids to arrive. We all caught a few and were hooting and hollering for each other as we glided down the faces of the waves.

Soon enough it was time to head back to the casita and get the boards ready for the groms. The kids were starting to arrive as well as some adults who wanted to see firsthand when we hand over the boards to the kids. All the kids were from the next town over called La Boca. La Boca is not touristy and there is a lack of travelers who leave behind boards for the kids so this was an ideal set up for us. We had placed all the boards down on the ground and the kids just gravitated towards them and suddenly each of the five kids had a new Firewire Surfboards in their hands.

They were all happy and stoked on their selections. At first I wasn’t sure how we would choose which kid to select their board first but it all just happened naturally which was perfect. One of the boards we brought on this trip is part of our Going Coastal Project collection. The Going Coastal Project is an initiative with artist Brittney Noelle of Ocean Minded Treasures. We are bringing one board with her art on it to each of the locations we impact this year. Not only is her art epic, we support kids getting involved in art or any other form of expression that is a positive outlet.

Before I knew it the kids were waxing up their boards and bee lining for the waves. I paddled out on a longboard with my GoPro to capture some of the kids ripping. I was impressed with their level of surfing. The kids were definitely not beginners. One kid was doing airs and all the others were surfing down the line and doing turns. It was fun getting some shots while getting smashed on the inside on the longboard with waves☺

That night my buddy Missy made us a nice dinner consisting of beans, potatoes, mac and cheese and tomato-cucumber salad. It was epic and well needed after a long day of travel and stoking out the grommies. The following day we headed to surf a wave called the Ranch, which was a nice left hand point break. We all got tons of waves and had some super long rides.

Later on that day we headed over to a wifi spot to check in at home. After an hour or so Missy walked back to the casita and I stayed behind catching up on emails. At one point I looked up from the hammock and saw two trucks drive by full of men armed with machine guns in the back. Instantly a red flag went up and I thought hmmm that is not normal…they definitely were not police. They were dressed in regular civilian clothes with masks over their faces. Soon after that I packed up and headed back not thinking too much more about what I had seen.

When we all got back together that day Missy told us something weird had happened on her walk back. She told us about these guys with guns in the trucks who had said a few words to her and how she felt uneasy. I mentioned that I had seen them too and Megan and Nicole said that was the Mexican Cartel. Growing up I had heard the word cartel before but I never really knew what it meant to be in the cartel. As we talked I became more nervous about my surroundings and felt a little unsafe. The surf sisters had failed to mention that there was a travel warning to Guerrero, the Mexican state we were in, saying don’t travel unless you need to. As we talked more about the cartel the less I wanted to go to sleep that night. It also didn’t help that all the guys that had been staying in the nearby casita’s had left for the night. As we all laid down for sleep I pulled out my pepper spray and put it by the bed. Needless to say I got very little sleep that night.

The next day was spent surfing and filming Elmer, one of the kids who had received one of the Firewire Surfboards from us. Elmer is one stoked kid and was so excited to get a Tomo shaped board. He was always smiling and being very upbeat. Elmer had been borrowing a board from the place we stayed at in order for him to get to surf. We are so happy now that he no longer has to borrow a board and has one to call his own.

After the filming sesh one of the local guys came up to us and was telling us that last night his mechanic had been kidnapped by the cartel, one town over from us. At that point I was pretty much over the cartel stories. I had a deep sense of not feeling very safe. That is not a feeling that I experience often and I do not like it. I was keen to get home for safety reasons but also so I could research the cartel because I was intrigued by the history and current state of affairs. Here is a Wikipedia page that helps illustrate the situation in Mexico.
I think the most staggering fact I read about the Mexican sate we were in was this “ The state of Guerrero was the most violent state in Mexico in 2013, with 2,087 homicides and 207 reported cases of kidnapping, according to the Mexican Secretariado Ejecutivo Nacional de Seguridad Publica. Self-defense groups operate independently of the government in many areas of Guerrero. Armed members of these groups frequently maintain roadblocks and, although not considered hostile to foreigners or tourists, are suspicious of outsiders and should be considered volatile and unpredictable.

Soon enough it was time to head for the airport. We decided to make a stop at Troncones at a coffee shop for a bite to eat and some wifi. As we were leaving and heading back out to the main road we drove right past one of the trucks with the armed men again. Megan said she made eye contact with one of them. We drove steadily and made it to the airport in one piece. We were stoked! All in all it was a great trip and we certainly gave some kids a chance at a positive way for them to live their lives. In Mexico and especially in Guerrero, this is critical because of the cartel who are always recruiting young boys to join their way of life. I hope the boys we affected choose surfing over the alternatives available to them. This is the foundation of why we exist. Thanks for the excitement Mexico.

Check out our little edit from the trip

Posting Up In Peru

Well the official 2015 stoke season is underway. We just returned from a quick trip to Peru to drop off some equipment, give a surfboard repair clinic and meet with the Chicama Girls Surf Team for motivational talks.

My partner for this trip was Logan Kamen. Logan seemed like the ideal person to take based on his vested interest in the Chicama kids. Last year in a plea to the public on social media we asked for help with getting used wetsuits donated for the Peruvian kids. Logan stepped up and stepped up big. He reached out to all of his local surf shops in Jersey and was able to set up drop boxes for people to donate their used wetsuits. We were stoked to see what this…at the time…12 year old kid could rally his people to donate. A month or so later he and his family came to Florida to meet their family and we had the chance to meet this young man and his mom. Right off the bat we knew we loved him for his big heart. He had toted a huge suitcase chock full of kids wetsuits. We were stoked! His mom told us they had lots more wetsuits but that they would ship them later before the trip. After it was all said and done we ended up taking over 200lbs of westuits for the kids of Chicama. We had a few locals here make donations but the majority of the neoprene came from Logans’ efforts. We were impressed.

The day came for travel and Logan and I were stoked! His family dropped him off at the house about 9:30pm. Our flight wasn’t until 2:00am so we had lots of time to pack up the gear for the girls surf team. As an FYI…we will not be taking the 2:00am flights again…are we crazy:) We made the trek across the sky and eventually landed in Trujillo, a town about an hour from Chicama. I was so excited to bring this grom on the trip to meet the girls but also because I knew the waves were going to be PUMPING!

As soon as we turned the corner and saw the ocean in Chicama our eyes lit up like it was Christmas. I have never seen such long lines and they just kept coming and kept coming. It was like a dream.

Because we traveled all night I needed a little coffee to kick start the body into surf mode. Needless to say we soon ventured out with one goal in mind…getting the longest rides of our lives. And we did. The waves were dreamy walls that were never ending. By the end of the day we were beat so we had some dinner and went to sleep as soon as possible.

The next day the waves were even better than the first. So we surfed two sessions and prepared that evening for the next days event with the girls. We had agreed to meet at Luis’ house to do the surfboard repair clinic and motivational talks with the girls. One by one, the girls showed up…not quite on time. I suppose we were on Peruvian time which I think means show up about 30-45 minutes late:) This usually doesn’t bode too well back home but sometimes you just have to go with the flow:) We had brought with us ding repair kits (poly and epoxy and some sun cure). We taught them the difference in boards and when to use which kit. Logan demonstrated how to mark off the ding area, sand it, mix the materials and fix the ding. It was pretty cool to see the ingenuity they had accessed to fix all the previous dings. Luis showed us some of them and we asked what materials were used and it was rubber and super glue. It was a solid fix but now they are set with proper materials for some time to come.

After the ding repair classes we all headed to the beach for some surf. It was awesome to see how much the girls have improved in such a short time. You can certainly palpate the confidence these girls exude because of their participation in the surf team.

Getting to spend time with the girls is a blessing. They are always so thankful for our time and the gifts we bring. It is funny because we never know who is getting more out of this. For us, our time with them is precious. We do it because we want them to know that they matter and that they are important to us. And in doing this…we learn so much from them about life, culture, priorities and what family means.

After our sesh with them they requested that we come back tomorrow and eat candy on the beach with them and surf. Of course we couldn’t say no to an offer like that.

We spent our last few hours with them shredding the waves and munching on Peru’s finest cavity makers:) No one wanted to leave. We kept stalling. Eventually we knew we had to go because our flight was later that night and we needed to pack. We hugged all the girls and told them our intention was to return in August. It was sad to say goodbye but knowing that we are headed back soon left us feeling alright.

Logan and I headed to the airport for our midnight flight. We then proceeded to sleep on the airport floor in Lima for the next six hours (again…won’t be pulling these silly stunts again. At least one of us is not 13 anymore). We made our way to Bogota and then back to Miami. It was lots of layovers but it was all worth it. To experience the Chicama Girls Surf Team love is priceless and it was all worth it.

Ciao for now sleepy little Chicama!

Colombian Dreams

Since February this year we have been chatting back and forth with a man with deep ties to Colombia. His name is Carlos and he has dedicated the last few years in helping the youth in different areas in Colombia. He told us about this cool little surf town that could use our help. They had one surfboard between all the kids to use. This sounded like the magical recipe for us to make a pilgrimage there to bring some love and hope and surfboards.

My travel partner on this trip was Jeff Biege, a friend for 10 years and a very successful photographer from Jupiter, Florida. He jumped on the trip to document the whole experience and bring the photos back to the states for us to share.

We had some expectations for the trip, like we always do but I think for sure we surpassed anything we could have imagined up.

We landed in Cartagena and met our hosts Denis, Lore, Karina and Jorge. Quickly we loaded up the three boardbags into the epic truck and off we went in the direction of Santa Marta. The ride there was long and we were super stoked when we arrived and grabbed a bite and drifted off to sleep.

The next morning we packed up and headed to our final destination, Palomino. On the way there we stopped to meet and make a plan with the kids from Tayrona. We also got a little tour of Carlos surf club that is in the process of constructing. It was neat to be on the grounds there and visualize it being done and kids running around and skating the bowl and having a blast.

From there we made another stop at Casa Grande to pick up a few kids, one was Marcelo, the indigenous indian surfer and Denis’ two kids. It was pretty much love at first sight when we saw Marcelo. He wore a traditional Wiwa (Wiwa is his tribe) shirt with shorts that were about three sizes too big tied up with a string. Plenty room for growth☺.

Finally, we were in the last stretch to Palomino. We were all amping to surf so we decided that as soon as we arrived we would drop our stuff and head straight for the surf. The place we stayed was beautiful and rustic running solely on solar.Photo by Jeff Biege

The waves were pretty small but we went anyway to wash the cobwebs off and get our blood circulating.Photo by Jeff Biege

The next two days were spent with the kids from Tayrona and the kids from Palomino. We did a big beach cleanup with them where we picked up plastic from the very clean beach and put it into used bottles that we found. There is a local project that is using filled up plastic bottles to make walls for homes and buildings. The bottles we filled will be donated to them for their projects. We also had a surf class for all the kids where I went over what Share The Stoke Foundation does to why it is important to protect our beaches and waters to every aspect of surfing that we could think of.

After all the lessons it was time to shred with the kids. Some of them were beginners while others had it dialed in and were tearing apart the waves. It was awesome to be out there with them seeing them so happy and smiling. About the time I thought I would die from hunger Jorge and Karina showed up with a nice BBQ for all of us. It was delicious. The rest of the day we hung out at the beach with the kids and eventually said goodbye to the Tayrona kids before they were driven back to their home 45 minutes away.

The next few days were spent with Marcelo surfing, visiting Tayrona National Park and taking in the whole experience. In Palomino, at the foot of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta Mountains you can feel something in the air. Something palpable. Something inexplicable that I can’t quite put words to. It is a magical place with lots of history, especially with the indigenous tribes.

Photos by Jeff Biege

Our hosts would tell us many stories about the indigenous and how they live up in the mountains and how they are not like us, how they are way more tuned into life and the earth and everything around us.Indigenous Mamo from the Kogi tribe
Photo by Jeff Biege

We loved hearing these stories. It added so much intrigue and mystic to our surroundings. I couldn’t get enough info about the indigenous and was excited to get to a good internet connection so I could learn more. Here is a decent link with more info.

Finally, the day came that we had to leave. We decided to go to the beach to check the waves. It was supposed to be flat. To our surprise, it was anything but. There were barrels all over the place and we were stoked.

Barrel shots by Jeff Biege

Lore and I surfed while Jeff shot photos in the water. It was the best waves so far of the trip, not the biggest but definitely the best shape. I got a few barrels and Jeff scored some shots of them.Photo by Jeff Biege

We were hi-fiving in the car as he looked at the photos while I drove to where Marcelo was staying so we could say our goodbyes. It was hard to leave but it was time to go back and tell our story and our experiences from an amazing stay in Palomino. Before we even got on the plane Jeff and I started planning our return. There is more to experience and a story that we want to share with you. Project Colombia 2015 is in the works. Thanks to all of our supporters for this trip, our hosts, Carlos for organizing an amazing, unforgettable experience that has left us in awe and intrigued.

The Heart of Haiti

This is written through the eyes of our favorite STSF blogger, Melissa Diamond.

One purpose of Share the Stoke Foundation is to impact the places we go for the better, and while we hope we did this in Kabik Beach, Haiti, they left our own souls transformed and affected more than we imagined possible.

This Share the Stoke project was significant because it marked many firsts for the foundation- the most obvious being it was our first trip to Haiti. Jetblue was the first airline to sponsor a trip by waiving the fee of transporting the surfboards we donated. Traveling with surfboards is cumbersome and costly, and after spending thousands of dollars over the years to get the boards to the countries they are donated, it is huge to have an airline’s support! This was also the first trip where a family of four was part of the team. The head of the family, JoAnna Alidu, played a key role as our French speaking connection and organized much of the trip. Most importantly, this trip kicked off the opening of the very first surfing school/club in Haiti, and it was an honor for Share the Stoke Foundation to be a part of history.

We arrived early on Friday, October 10th and were met by Christophe of Surf Haiti. The journey south to Jacmel, the most consistent surf spot in Haiti, commenced with twisting turns through narrow, tattered streets of Port-Au-Prince where the aftermath of the 2010 earthquake was still felt.

Wildly painted buses filled with people swerved around us and the turquoise ocean peeked between villages of black plastic bags and rubble. The two hour plus drive brought us out of busy city streets to a rollercoaster ride up and down white mountains where goats sidestepped along tethered to trees in the lush Haitian countryside.

Finally, we reached the town of Jacmel and then from there drove on to Kabik Beach, the location of the surf club. When we arrived at the Haiti Surf Guesthouse we met Joan Mamique, our host for the trip who played a large part in the opening of the surf school. He led us into town where we met many of the kids involved in the surf school. They worked tirelessly around the freshly erected surf school and cleaned up trash and cleared the beach for the grand opening that was to take place the next day.

We were impressed with the determination in the kids who worked. I told one of the kids, Alex, how it was great to see them all working together to make the school look so nice, he responded saying, “We are proud of this, and we must take care of it and make it nice because it is for all of us.”

The next day we met the kids down at the beach near the surf school and organized a soccer game. A soccer club in Florida, Royal Palm Beach Strikers, donated soccer balls and mesh jerseys for the kids and the game was intense.

The close game went on and on and afterwards the kids laughed and cooled off in the bright Caribbean sea. They seemed to live the phrase, ‘work hard to play hard.’

We all planned meeting again later that evening for the ‘leash cutting’ ceremony for the grand opening of the new surf school and the board donations. On the way to the ceremony, a funeral procession stopped us. We pulled to the side of the road while a parade of nicely dressed people passed. A band and a man playing a huge tuba walked past, and we learned that the funeral would last 5 days! We even saw the president of the surf school, Manu walking with hundreds of others.

At the surf school locals and kids mingled in excitement. New plants were bought to decorate the school and refreshments were offered to those in attendance.

Before the ‘leash cutting’ proud leaders in the community and the surf school spoke about the significance of the new school building and what it meant to the local kids to have a place to call their own. Kelly was then invited to speak about Share the Stoke. She shared about how surfing had taught her so much and how she wanted the kids to learn valuable life lessons from the sport and share it with others as well.

Then, they selected the youngest kid in the surf club to cut the leash. Everyone standing around the surf school cheered in unison sharing the happiness and joy of the moment. Next, we awarded five Firewire surfboards to five kids.

One by one, the kids held their new boards in their grip, full of pride and excitement. Joan spoke to the kids about how to care for the boards and would even teach them ding repair over the next months with new ding repair kits from Phix Doctor.

After the ceremony, the party moved to a reggae bar down the street for a celebration of the surf school inauguration. The guys set up a projector and everyone piled around a white sheet screen to watch a film of the kids surfing. We all laughed and cheered at wipe-outs and heroic rides of the kids all around us.

The next day, Sunday, waves arrived and the celebration continued with all the kids in the water. We had never seen kids that stoked on surfing for so long. The kids were literally in the water for hours practicing and getting pushed into the surf.

The older locals helped the younger locals, and the love and encouragement they offered to each other was inspiring.

Manu, the president of the surf school, got a fresh ding on his new board when he surfed over a shallow reef and made unwelcome contact. He was upset, as anyone could understand, but would be able to use the Phix Doctor ding repair kit to mend the wound after the board dried out in a few days. Thanks Phix Doctor, those kits donated will go to good use! We all stayed in the water until the sun went down not wanting the fun to end and the week to begin.

We couldn’t help but notice in a country known for such poverty, the people in Kabik Beach were rich in so many ways. The people were so loving with open hearts to each other and to us, and the area was filled with an abundance of natural resources- the sea full of lobster and fish, the hills ripe with banana trees, passion fruit trees, mango trees, papaya trees, and hummingbirds to punctuate the red hibiscus flowers. The people of Haiti give their love so easily and accept love so easily that we are already thinking about making a return to Share the Stoke and support the future of surfing in that land of promise.

Nicaragua 2014-Follow Up Trip

Nicaragua has been one of our most favorite places in the world for years. We fell in love with southern Nicaragua many years ago. Until last year, we had never traveled to Northern Nicaragua and when we did, we fell in love all over again. Since our epic trip last year we have gotten many updates about the kids and their progress. The guys at El Coco Loco kept telling us how the kids surfing have really improved since we donated 10 new Firewire’s last year. Needless to say we were ecstatic to get there and see for ourselves.

Accompanying me on this trip is Kerri Smith, a friend of mine who was one of our sponsors for the South Africa stoke mission. She has been a supporter of STSF for several years. When my original traveling partner backed out of the trip, I knew I must get Kerri on board. I asked, she thought for about a nano second and said yes. I was stoked!

Saturday came and I picked Kerri up and we sped on off to the Miami airport. We made our flight with no problems. Even our boards made it to Nicaragua without a scratch. Our driver was waiting and soon enough all the kids boards were secured to the top of the van and we were headed towards Coco Loco. It was about a four-hour adventure full of several stops, erratic drivers and gorgeous views of the volcanoes. We were really hoping to catch a surf session before dark and between the rain squalls. Luckily, we arrived, grabbed a board and sped off to the surf.

Later that night we had our first epic meal of coconut curry, rice and vegetables accompanied by a delicious coffee cake with ice cream. Over dinner we talked a lot about how tomorrow would shake out. Because tomorrow was Sunday it forced us to have the smaller kids tournament since they would be heading to school on Monday. Once we agreed on everything and dialed in the plan we headed to our casitas and drifted off to sleep by 9:30.

Sunday morn came early. The sun is up already by 5:30am. We headed to the community area for some coffee and breakfast and soon enough the kids were here. I saw a lot of familiar faces. It is wild to see what a year can do to people. Young kids now seemed older and mature and some of the babies had turned into kids. The kids were all smiley and super stoked about the big day. After all they would be competing for a new surfboard. Most of the competitors have only been surfing for a year. They have learned to surf by using the library board system (LBS) that we set up last year. This is a program where kids can use the boards based on their performance in school and their community. Most of these kids are products of the LBS. It is awesome to know that systems and projects put into place last year are thriving and prosperous.

We all walked down to the point where the contest would go down. Kerri was chosen to be a judge while I captured the event on film. We had nine kids show up wanting to compete so we broke them up into two initial heats and then the top three and two from those heats move on to the finals where a winner would be crowned. The first heat kicked off and the kids were out of the gate ripping. You can always see a kids potential as soon as they are up and riding on a wave and there were several kids with loads of talent. During the finals I stepped away from behind the lens and grabbed the gopro and fins and swam out to get some action shots of the kids close up. It is always fun to be in the water with the kids yelling for them to GO! As the finals came to a close we all headed back up to Coco Loco for a delicious breakfast for all the kids and spectators of pancakes, fruit and passion-fruit juice. We also crowned the winner with a brand new Tomo Firewire. Luis was so stoked and the smiled proved it. Second and third place also got some boards. After the ceremony all the kids were sizing up their boards and the smiles were flowing.

As the buzz wore off we headed down for a surf to cool off.

We now had a couple of days before the next surf contest for the community. We spent those days surfing, sightseeing and relaxing. It was so awesome every time we surfed we were usually surrounded by kids on Firewire boards, some from this year and most from last year. I remember one evening in particular that everyone had gotten out of the water except me which freaks me out a bit. I saw some locals surfing the point about 500 yards away. I decided to paddle down to surf with them to keep from surfing alone. I had never met these guys before but they were eager to share their waves with me. About thirty minutes before dark I saw a kid on the beach walking down with a board under his arm. Even from so far away I could see that it was a Tomo (futuristic Firewire shaped board) and I knew instantly that it was Luis who had won the juniors event. I was stoked. He paddled out and I paddled in to where he was so I could chat with him to see if he liked his new board. Needless to say, he loved it and his enthusiasm proved it. He caught wave after wave. It seems so easy for these kids to catch waves. They just paddle and go. I got a few waves and surfed until I couldn’t see and said goodbye to my surf buddy and headed back to camp.

One of the other highlights of our trip was a trip to Telica, an active volcano. Rumor had it that you could literally walk to the edge of the crater. I was pumped. We made the hour and a half trek to Leon where we sat and had a drink and bite to eat and checked emails for the first time of the trip. After we organized pickups for when we arrive in Miami we shut down the phones and jumped in a 4×4 customized to seat 10 people in the back along each window. The first 45 minutes or so of the adventure was on a dirt road that seemed to me to be an old riverbed. As we slowly ascended the ride got bumpier and bumpy turned into super rocky and sometimes steeply inclined. All of us in the back seat were getting jostled around and were bumping into each other. It was pretty fun, especially the part like being packed in there like sardines sweating our behinds off. After an hour and a half we made it to the farm-house. When I say farm-house, my first instinct is to think of a super nice house sitting atop a large field with flowers and animals running freely. This was not that kind of setting but had a beauty in its own way. As soon as we pulled up the folks living there all came out to see us. There was probably at least 10-15 people living in what seemed to be a one or two room house of the very basic variety. There were several dogs barking loudly and a momma cat with some babies hanging around as well. We quickly made a pit stop to the out house to where on our way we noticed a large pig eating a sort of hodgepodge kind of meal in a bowl. This place was feral and I loved it. I appreciate the lack of sophistication and modernization that I find on almost all of the trips I go on. I love seeing how others live their lives. I appreciate the simplicity that I see or what I make up in my mind that life is like in Nicaragua. I wonder if they see it as simple or if life is a burden and super hard to make enough to support their basic needs. I feel a bit of envy as I see how they live with so little and they are happy. It is a reminder that things will never make me happy. For me it is experiences, fleeting moments that remind me that life is precious and to take nothing for granted. It is a reminder to seize every moment, laugh, make jokes and spend time with people who you love. Okay enough with all that☺ Our guide Freddy led the trek and we all followed suit. At times the hike was mellow and sometimes it got a little steep. We were all definitely huffing and puffing at times. As we came out of the trees and got pretty high up you could see in pretty much all directions except in the direction of the volcano because it was so high. We took some photos and oohed and ahhed. We kept on and headed up the trail towards the big plume of steam that was being emitted from inside the huge crater. Soon enough we were right at the crater and it was a super eerie feeling. We knew this volcano was active and it was producing this loud noise from within. To the bottom It was 130 meters I had heard someone say. You couldn’t really see the bottom too well because of all the steam. It was also hard to breathe from the sulfur in the air it was constantly producing. You could have literally jumped into it of you had wanted to. There were no guard rails. It was super scary. After we had our fill of the sulfuric air we trekked over to the side of it and posted up to catch the sunset. We sat around talking and laughing with our buddies from Paris, Kelly and Lorenzo, who were also staying at Coco Loco. Unfortunately, the sunrise didn’t produce anything to write home about. When it was pretty dark we walked back over to the crater to look inside to see if we could see any lava. We did!!! We were all super stoked. They had told us we probably wouldn’t see any because of the steam that is produced by water and heat combining. Because it is rainy season the volcano stays very steamy. We couldn’t see a ton of lava but we definitely saw several patches. Finally it was time to get back down to the farm-house. Freddy asked if we had flashlights with us. Ooops! We didn’t bring any which made for a tricky descent down the volcano. Funny enough the only one that fell was Freddy☺ Before we knew it we arrived at the farmhouse where the whole family was hanging around ready to serve us a traditional Nica meal of rice, beans and egg. I’m pretty sure that I was the only one who didn’t mind the meal:) It certainly wasn’t five star but it certainly filled our bellies. We made it back to Coco Loco around 9:30 pm which was the latest any of us had been up since we had arrived. It was our big night out☺

The next morning was the older boys contest. We had heard that the swell was supposed to be bigger that day so that is why we chose that day. Well, mother nature forgot to produce for the event. There were waves but it wasn’t ideal for a competition where a bunch of guys were ready to strut their stuff. We had about 25 guys compete. They were all pumped. Ben had told me they have been talking about the competition for about eight months now. I know that the competition is one of the things that is most important to them. Ben, Kerri and Earl were the judges of this event and were like old pros scoring the guys on their waves. I videoed the guys and tried to capture the moment that is so important to this community. By about noon the contest was over and we caught a ride back to Coco Loco where there was full on pancake feeding frenzy in full swing. The top four boys would get to pick which Firewire board they would receive and if any of them had won a board last year they could take a new one or keep their old one. If they took a new one they had to donate their old one to the surfboard library. Ben called out the boys starting with fourth place up to first. First place got first pick. They all grabbed the ones they wanted. They would pick them up and get a good feel before carefully selecting the perfect stick. It is awesome seeing these guys get a new board, something that we can experience over and over again in the states but they will most likely never have that experience other than when we come to town. It feels nice to be able to give the gift of surfing. It is the essence of what we do. We love to reward good kids with amazing boards. All of the guys in the contest had to volunteer at the local high school for a minimum number of hours to earn their entry into the contest. They also had to show up and support the younger boys during their event as well. After spending a week there you get to know the guys and see how they are a gentle group. I watched them all surfing just having the best time hooting and hollering us into waves. Once again, this was an amazing trip full of adventure, barrels, love and making new friends. There is never a bad trip, they are always amazing and that is because we always meet the right people and are in the right place at the right time. Thank you Nicaragua for sharing your culture, love and plentiful waves. See you in 2015!

Marveling In Mexico

Hey folks! Because we got so much positive feedback from our blogging from our South Africa trip we are super inspired to get back to it. We hope you are excited too.

We just returned from another amazing stay in Mexico. Last year we did a big impact in San Agustin but this year we wanted to do something bigger, with more kids. This year we chose the bustling town of Puerto Escondido, home of the world famous Mexican Pipeline and the most famous Mexican surfer on the planet, Coco Nogales. Coco is a larger than life kind of guy, humble, has an enormous heart and a amazing childhood story who makes him the man he is today. Check out the Surfer Magazine article here.

As we were in South Africa I realized I hadn’t organized anyone to accompany me on the trip. We always have a minimum of two people on the trip to help transport the boards, film and help out where needed during our events. I started brainstorming and thought of Nicholas Mohnacky, founder of Surfr App, an app designed to log your surf sessions and highlight areas of social need. I asked him to accompany me and he quickly responded with a yes!

The beginning of our trip got started off on the wrong foot, so to speak. Since South Africa I had been planning around leaving for Mexico on Thursday the 7th. I had everything wired for the trip…get cash Wednesday, pack up the boards Wednesday and finish up last minute details Wednesday. When I woke up Wednesday morning at 6:15am I saw texts and calls from Nick. When I saw all of the pings my heart sunk. Before I called him I checked my ticket and quickly realized that I had the day wrong. I had missed the flight. I was devastated. This had never happened before and a sure sign that I have been juggling too many things. Nick made his way to Mexico without me while I changed tickets and car rental info so that he would be settled when he landed. I bought a new ticket to Mexico for the next day and went on with my day accordingly doing all the planning I had intended to do:)

The next morning I woke up to a text from Nicholas stating that he had misplaced the rental car key. Based on the previous days events, this was par for the course:) I was certain the key would turn up. More on that later.

After three plane rides and a shuttle later I had arrived in balmy, Puerto Escondido. I got my room for the night settled and threw the boardbags in the room and went out to the beach to see what the waves were doing and just like Puerto Escondido, it was doing it’s thing…it was pumping. Nick and I caught up, grabbed a bite to eat and contemplated the key situation hoping it would magically appear. After dinner I was exhausted from traveling and called it a day.

The next morn we woke up and grabbed a coffee and sat on the beach watching perfect cylinders roll through with riders tucked inside jumbo tubes.Last year when we were here it was pretty small so it was unreal seeing a tiny glimpse of what Puerto can do. After we finished the coffee we decided to get a locksmith (or some dude with a slim jim) and handle the car. We were hoping that the keys would be found in the car once we got in. We weren’t that lucky. The care project went on hold for a bit.

We ended up running into Coco and he drove us to his house where we would stay for the rest of the trip. We drove around running errands and finishing up the last minute details of the event. While we waited at the banner shop for the guy to finish we talked about the schedule for the event. First up was to have the AHAVA Project (the meaning of AHAVA is love and water) introduction at the Olas Altas Hotel at 5pm that night.

Finally it was time to meet the kids. We showed up and most of them were already there, eagerly awaiting kicking off the AHAVA Project. The event was started off by showing a little edit about Coco Nogales’ story. Coco had not yet arrived at this point. We showed a couple more short films of Coco surfing death defying waves. Just watching the films and the waves he would catch made my heart literally race. At last, Coco made his grand appearance and the kids were pumped to see this big-wave charger in their presence. Coco introduced himself and talked about the purpose of the event and how it will all shake out. We had 28 kids show up from various areas close to Puerto Escondido. Some from the point, some from Carizallilo and some from as far away as San Agustin, the place we impacted last year. Coco invited each kid to come up to the front of the room and tell everyone who they are, what age they are and where they are from. It was so cool to hear some of them be so loud and confident and then some kids who would barely look up and you could barely hear. After all the intro’s we all broke up and agreed to meet at the point at 7am the following day.

The next morning came super fast. Again, the kids were there and stoked when we arrived. We all walked over to the event area together and quickly got started.Coco had them all huddle up in a big arc so that they could all see and be seen. He talked mostly about what it takes in life to have what you want. For most of these kids it is to become a surf professional so all his talks were geared towards that and the discipline it takes to have that happen. The kids were intently listening.As I was standing watching I noticed two men walking up. Instantly I recognized one of them to be Bob Hurley, founder of the surfing lifestyle brand, Hurley. This was a very cool moment for many reasons but really neat because I had just watched a little edit on Surfline about Bob’s story and how his life unfolded. Check it out here( make sure to click the bottom called The Ripple Effect). It was also cool for him to be showing up at our event to get a glimpse of the good work we are doing. After I had seen the film about him I thought to myself what an amazing guy and amazing story! Bob and Coco have been friends for many years and Hurley has been one of Coco’s sponsors since the beginning. After all my excitement it was time for the kids to take a little break.

After the break Coco talked about physical fitness and the demands the waves can have on your body. For Coco it is imperative to be physically fit when tackling the monster waves he does. For him, training is constant and critical. He showed the kids some of the exercises that are optimal for surfing. They started out stretching and warming up the body before they went for a long run. After the exercising the kids were sent out for a surf session with Coco to show off their skills. Some of them were very good surfers. Some had less experience. While all the surfing was going on all the boards had been driven to the beach. We secretly went while they were in the water so they wouldn’t see us bring the boards over. We wanted it to be a surprise that they would be receiving boards. After we got the boards brought over I paddled out to tell Coco we were all set. He motioned everyone in so we paddled in.

We had the kids form a line to help facilitate an easy process to get each kid their board, wax, hat and traction pad. I would watch as each kid was told to come up front, this big smile would appear on their faces. It was hard for them to hide the excitement of getting a new board. And what could be better than getting a new board? Surfing it! Coco took all the kids out again on their new boards. Some of them stayed on the inside while some of them paddled to the outside to catch the bombs. I was out in the water with them while they were shredding their new sticks. It was so cool! There was crazy energy in the water. When you are surrounded by kids who are pursuing the sport you love so much-there is no better moment because you know exactly what is possible if they stay off the streets and drugs and make surfing a priority. It will be endless gifts for them if they follow their surfing dreams.

We finished the day off by doing interviews with all the kids and then Coco and a few of the dads said a few words about how important this day was and how important surfing is. Boom! Just like that it was a wrap. All the kids filtered out and we took off to clean up before a big lunch. We also picked up a fresh, hot off the print, new key for our car since the rental company claimed they didn’t have a spare. Yep, we had to have a new key $printed$. At least the key drama was over. The rest of the day was spent over at La Punta surfing with Bob, Bob’s brother Bill, Coco and Nick. As I was sitting inside waiting for a wave I saw Nick go for a bigger one on the outside and have a nasty wipeout. I knew there were rocks over there but I didn’t think he was that close. I saw him paddling over and when he came close enough I could see a little blood on his face. Nothing major. He said he was gonna go in and assess the damage. I kept surfing. I thought for sure he would return and join me for more waves but he never did. When I walked up to the car I saw he had taken more of a nasty wipeout than I had thought. There was a big thrashing on his chest…didn’t look too good.

The rest of the trip went by fast. We spent it surfing, filming, eating and relaxing with Coco and his crew. Our last lunch in Puerto was accompanied by none other that Bob Hurley and his brother Bill. It was an epic end to an epic trip. Thank you Mexico and Coco Nogales for always taking great care of us. And like every trip it was full of adventure, obstacles and pure stoke! Next stop-Nicaragua!

SOUTH AFRICA

Join us July 9-23 where we will blog our entire trip throughout South Africa impacting local children with brand new Firewire Surfboards. More info can be found HERE.