Thursday, Aug. 13, 2009
A Wave of their Own:
Local Female Surfers Make Their Mark
Think of surfer girls, and one usually summons up images of babes in little bikinis, blond hair and suntans. Old Hollywood stereotypes like Gidget might also come to mind. The sport of surfing has, until recently, been portrayed mostly as a male-dominated pastime. But the scene is changing, and fast. Gone are the days when only a handful of serious women wave riders dotted the surfing landscape. Women are now taking their rightful place at surf breaks along coastlines worldwide and enjoying surfing as not only a sport, but a lifestyle.
The Grand Strand is not blessed in the wave category. In fact, the waves we see here are usually thought of as small and gutless. It is, however, very much home to a thriving local surf scene. With more than 10 surf shops in the area, there is no shortage of activity. The region is not one usually thought of when speaking of surf destinations, but here on the Strand we’ve had a long history of providing the surf world with real talent. The women of our area are no exception. There are now heaps of women from Pawleys Island to North Myrtle Beach taking full advantage of living near the ocean and learning to surf, continuing to surf, and using surfing as a way to live their lives. These women are all around you, living amongst you, and you may not have even known it.
This weekend the talent of our area will be on display at the tenth annual Guy Daniels Memorial Surf-Off in Surfside Beach. The surfer girls of the Strand will be there representing. The Surf-Off has quickly become a happening in the local surf world and an event to look forward to each year. According to Mikey Pruitt, an organizer of the contest, more than 120 participants each year come to compete and of those about 30 percent are girls, most of them younger than 17. “We have quite a few divisions for women and we are definitely growing more and more with a rising number of girls each year,” says Pruitt.
But the Guy Daniels Surf-Off is not the only contest that caters to men and women alike. Pretty much every surf competition has female divisions for the ladies to surf in. There are no all-girl surf clubs in Myrtle Beach, but our neighbors to the south in Charleston have an annual contest held for girls only. The Folly Beach Wahine Classic is held at the beginning of every summer for girls 12 and older with more than 10 different divisions for women to have a day of fun and surf together. Also, the 13th annual East Coast Wahine Championships were just held in Wrightsville Beach, N.C. (about an hour and a half north of us near Wilmington) Aug. 8-9. There is also a Web site for girls dedicated to the female surfing community on the East Coast, www.eastcoastwahines.com.
HISTORY IS HER-STORY, TOO
Women have always held their place in the culture and lifestyle of surfing. History shows that in the beginning, women surfed along with men as equals with no discrimination between the genders. Ancient legends and traditional Polynesian chants tell of women surfing in Tahiti, Aotearoa (New Zealand), and Rapa Nui (Easter Island). One legend shares the story of a woman named Kelea who held such a mastery of surfing that she attracted the attention of an Oahu chief in Maui whom she ends up marrying.
There are records of women surfing in Hawaii as far back as the 1600s. A surfboard dating back to this time period was found in 1905 in the burial cave of a princess named Kaneamuna. Mark Twain even wrote of seeing girls surf during his travels to the Sandwich Islands, or Hawaii, in the 1800s.
In the 1920s, Mary Ann Hawkins was a famous surfer girl in California and along with Faye Baird Fraser, the first female believed to surf in San Diego, they typified the surfer lifestyle of the times. Isabel Letham was 15 years old the day she became the first person, along with the legendary Duke Kahanamoku, to surf in Australia when she was famously chosen to surf tandem with “The Duke” in 1914 at Freshwater Beach.
The ’50s and ’60s gave way to the “Beach Blanket Bingo” era of corny surf movies and stereotypes of women surfers as a side-act to what the men were doing. In 1959, Linda Benson won both the U.S. Championships in Huntington Beach, Calif., and the Makaha contest in Hawaii. She was the youngest surfer ever to win at Makaha at the age of 15. She was also the first woman to surf Waimea Bay on the North Shore, famous for its massive winter swells, dispelling the myth that surfing was only a man’s game.
During the1970s, we saw the dawn of competitive surfing for women with names like Rell Sunn, Jericho Poppler and Linda Merrill becoming well known for their superb abilities in the water. Rell Sunn especially came to embody the spirit of aloha found in the Hawaiian Islands, and became a legendary surfer girl by anyone’s standards before her passing in 1998. By the late ’80s, women’s surfing was readily evolving into what it would eventually become today with girls like Australian Wendy Botha really ripping it up out there and pushing the surfing boundaries of the day.
This period gave us perhaps the most famous woman surfer of our era, and the archetype of the modern surfer girl: Lisa Anderson. Anderson, a four-time world champion, started a revolution in fashion and function when she began wearing board shorts with her bikini top, giving way to an entire industry devoted to surfer girls with companies such as Roxy taking the lifestyle worldwide. Surfers and non-surfers alike are wearing these fashions and sporting the surfer girl look. Girls in such land-locked places as Iowa can now get a small piece of the lifestyle. Because of this, the female surfing lifestyle is now perceived as a viable, multi-million dollar industry and a mainstream sport.
Today, an emerging crop of new talent has begun dominating the ranks of female surfing. Surfers such as Carissa Moore and Sofia Mulanovich are securing big money endorsements from major non-surfing companies including Nike and Boost Mobile. This is something never done by female surfers before. These athletes have pushed the limits of modern ability and set the mark high for what is possible for women surfers in these times. Women have started to excel in the sport, especially in big, treacherous waves like those found in Tahiti at a break known as Teahupoo. No discussion on contemporary women surfers would be complete without mentioning Layne Beachley. She is a seven- time world champion and the greatest competitive female surfer in history. Her influence is seen in the younger crew of hungry competitors that will most definitely become the future of the sport.
IT’S A LIFESTYLE
Surfing is more than just a sport to those who ride waves. It is a lifestyle with a unique culture all its own that promotes healthy living, a loving relationship with nature, and an all around positive attitude. Women have taken to living the surfing life in droves and are no longer reserved to sitting on the beach merely watching the guys have all the fun. They are showing that they are a vital part of the culture with many things to contribute.
The women who surf our area beaches are all individuals who share a love for surfing and the ocean. It is the one common thread that brings them all together. Surfing has given them each a wonderful way of life, so in return they are all giving something of themselves back to surfing. For this article, we spoke with four local females involved with area surfing – they all share a common bond, but each is called to the waves for a different reason and has found a way to personalize the experience.
In their own way, these women are weaving the very fabric that clothes the surfing culture.
THE FREE SPIRIT
Perri Runion, 20, exemplifies the full spirit of creativity and freedom of the surfer girl lifestyle. She is truly a gifted young woman who has a willingness to share her passions, and an eagerness to live soulfully. Her gifts can be seen in the art she creates and the way she patiently teaches others the art of surfing. Originally from Georgetown and a regular in the water near Pawleys Island, Runion is definitely a wonderful example of a local girl making good on the beach life. She uses art to express her inner visions while using surfing to influence and stimulate this expression. Although she is a surfer and an artist, don’t be too quick to label her solely a “surf artist.” “Not all of my art correlates to surfing, but surfing does open your mind and helps to influence ideas,” she says. Seeing other people’s art is also a big influence on her. One artist in particular, Drew Brophy (famous surf artist to date, and also originally from Myrtle Beach), has shown her what is possible for artists today. “His art doesn’t necessarily influence me as much as what he has accomplished motivates me,” she says. “He is someone who is highly respected in the surfing world, and I really look to him as proof that you can make a living as an artist, and if you try hard, a good living at that.” As well as capturing the essence of surfing through her use of vivid colors and dynamic images, Runion also teaches surfing to other girls in all-girl surf camps and private one-on-one lessons. She can be seen on the beach daily in Pawleys Island running camps for Surf The Earth Surf Shop and sharing her love of the lifestyle. “I like teaching girls and showing them that trying something new can be very rewarding,” she says, “and the surfing lifestyle has given me so many positive things, I’d like to share that with other girls.” She is a rising senior at the University of South Carolina and hopes to continue her pursuit of becoming a professional artist, and as well, to continue surfing forever.
THE FIGHTER
As much as Runion exudes the creativity of surfing, Jordan McDonald, 28, represents the healthy, strong, and clean-living aspect of the sport. Not only is she a beautiful, healthy, well-fit model featured in regional surf magazines, she is an established and highly decorated mixed martial arts fighter.
That’s right, she’s a fighter. This is something most people wouldn’t correlate with someone of her petite stature and surfer girl looks, but McDonald is serious about bringing the pain. McDonald has been fighting for three years and practices and specializes in many different forms of combat such as: Mixed Martial Arts, Jujitsu, Muay Thai, boxing and kickboxing. And while she sees fighting and surfing as “both adrenaline rush sports,” she says surfing is mainly for relaxation. “Apart from the cardio aspect, I don’t really use my surfing to train for fights,” McDonald says. “Mainly, my time surfing is just a good way to wind down and chill,” she says.
Apart from competitive fighting, McDonald is also an aspiring model who uses her surfing lifestyle as a foot in the door for getting her photos into surf publications and magazines. She has already been a featured pin-up in Surf Carolina Magazine, a publication dedicated to the surfing lifestyle in North and South Carolina, as a “Carolina Girl” in its monthly section devoted to surfer girls of the region.
Also, McDonald has worked with local photographers such as fellow local surfer Meghan Whitney in order to build her portfolio and hopes to be in the pages of more nationally distributed surf periodicals including Eastern Surf Magazine in the future. With her lifestyle of surfing, fighting and modeling, McDonald has her hands full and is a great illustration of what modern surfer girls are capable of.
THE SHUTTERBUG
The aforementioned Meghan Whitney’s road to success as a surf photographer was a long one. It has been an arduous journey for the 35-year-old, but in the end, very rewarding and paved with triumph. She has definitely paid her dues and is now reaping the benefits.
Whitney has been shooting for 10 years and has been a published professional photographer for the last six years. Her work has been published in the pages of various major surf publications such as Eastern Surf Magazine (where she is a senior staff photographer), Surfer Magazine, Transworld Surf, Surf Carolina Magazine and Surfing Magazine to name a few.
Also, she is a contributor to Surfingthemag.com and EXPN.com. She is a major player in the local surf scene, not known because of her surfing ability, but because of her great ability to capture surfing with her lens.
Whitney is one of only a few women on the so-called “Right Coast” who has successfully delved into an occupation historically ruled by men. “There is only a small sector of women shooting surf photography right now, and I’m very glad to be a part of this group,” she says. But she is also happy to see more women are now joining the ranks and becoming successful.
Whitney began shooting surf photography when her husband, Jim Whitney, also a surf photographer, began giving her rolls of film to get shots of him and his friends while they were in the water. “At first, my husband Jim, who worked at a local photo booth, would give me film and I would practice shooting him and his friends. Guys like Shawn Clark, Jacob Stackley, Albert Singleton, and Mike Dennison were my first subjects and this is where I really learned to photograph surfing,” she says. These guys are known as some of the hottest surfers in our area, each of them sponsored athletes.
Although at first she received mixed, if not downright bad, reviews of her work from the guys, a lot has changed and now the reviews have steadily become better and better. “I got laughed at, literally laughed at by the guys when I started,” she says. “But it was this criticism that taught me to find the right angles and to learn how to get the right action shots that got me where I am,” she says proudly. The guys are no longer laughing, and now they come to her when they want good shots. “I was working with these guys, trying to get better, trying to get published when things finally happened. I was in the right place at the right time,” she says.
This right time came around six years ago when local girl, and somewhat of a surfing phenom, Keenan Lineback burst on the scene. Lineback has won the Eastern Surfing Association East Coast Championships and is also an ESA All-Star. She was also prestigiously chosen to be on the PacSun USA Surf Team. Whitney and Lineback quickly formed a tight, big sister/little sister type of relationship and things took of from there, for both of them. “Keenan showed up as this 11-year- old girl who was out-surfing the boys and blowing minds, well I began shooting her and suddenly there was a niche for me,” she said.
From then on things began to fall into place and with her timing right, and her skills honed, Whitney’s career began to flourish. When asked what she thinks has changed since she entered the trade, Whitney is very insightful on the matter. “The media, especially in the local area, is paying more attention to girls now, women are now making the covers of magazines and getting more coverage,” she says. Whitney believes that the opportunities for women have also gotten better. “Girls can now make a living by going on photo trips for incentives and recognition aside from just doing contests,” Whitney adds. “You have to be the best of the best, and I hope to work as hard as I can to succeed.” To see images of her work visit www.meghanwhitneyphotography.com
THE ROOKIE
The next name in our story is one that you have probably heard before here in the Myrtle Beach area, but not because of her surfing. Kristen Van Dyke is the weekend meteorologist for WPDE News Channel 15 and a relative “newbie” to the surfing lifestyle. Being raised in the small town of Bishopville (approximately 86 miles away from the Atlantic Ocean), Van Dyke, 26, didn’t grow up surfing. It was the trips she would take throughout her life to the coast in order to visit family that gave her a glimpse into what would eventually become a new passion, as well as a new way of life.
She has taken to the surfing lifestyle with the same gusto that she took to the study of weather and plunged head first into the sport. Lucky for her, surfing and weather go hand-in-hand. “I have always had a passion for weather, but even more so now that I have started surfing,” she says. “The very same elements in weather that affect people’s everyday lives, like wind, storms, tide, and also tropical systems play a definite role in what type of surf you’ll get,” she says.
Her outlook on surfing goes way beyond the typical beginner surfer’s take on things; she knows what makes the waves and uses a scientist’s mind to her advantage. Van Dyke is already as in tune with wind, swell, tide, direction, lunar phases and any other weather condition that affect the surf as any longtime surfer usually is. “I was really surprised at how much the other surfers I talked to knew about how the weather works. I can talk about certain weather charts and models, especially when it comes to predicting hurricanes, and many surfers have looked at the very same charts that I use and they have a good grasp with what’s already going on,” she says. The big difference is that she already knew these factors and studied them profusely before learning to surf. This has given her a big advantage when it comes to predicting waves and when it will be good to get out and try to ride some. Van Dyke began surfing a little more than a year ago and has progressed quickly. She is also getting a better handle on the local area’s ocean conditions, which help her in her job as a meteorologist. So in effect, surfing has made her a better weather forecaster. “I’m starting to recognize certain patterns in the weather that mean good surfing in this area, and it’s exciting to learn this from first-hand experience not from a book,” she says. “I’m starting to see things that computer models sometimes miss and I guess I owe this knowledge to surfing,” she adds. Van Dyke’s take on the local surfing scene is one of optimism. When asked what she thinks of girls involved in surfing she plainly professes, “I can’t believe there aren’t more of us out there … it’s so relaxing, healthy, and you don’t need as much equipment as other sports, just a board and the ocean.”
BACK TO THE FUTURE
The surfing culture has changed throughout the years and women have always been a part of that change in one way or another. The role of these women in surfing has, especially in the last decade, grown by leaps and bounds and our own local contingent of surfer girls are working hard to put their personal and unique stamp on this lifestyle they all love leading. Although most will agree that surfing still remains a male-dominated enterprise, the waves clearly belong to both genders on an equal basis. This was the norm back in the days of the Polynesians who started the lifestyle, and it is again becoming the accepted way of thinking. It is a new era in women’s sports and surfing is no exception.
“Right now women’s surfing might be seen as sub-par to the men, but with so many talented girls out there, and talented coaches willing to put in their time, it will most definitely change someday,” said Whitney.
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