Scorpion Bay Mexico!

So after coming home from Europe, Sierra and I had two days at home and then we were off to Scorpion Bay for an "all girls" surf trip. We met up with our friends Bo Stanley (whose family owned the house) and Jaime Hannula. Also along on the trip were accomplished surfers Mary Osborne and Kira Sheppard as well as a very talented photographer from Patagonia to document the trip, Tim Davis. The flights down to Lareto weren't that bad after what we experienced coming back from Europe but the 4 hour drive through desolate desert was quite an experience. The Stanley's were nice enough to let us all stay at their humble abode which had a perfect view of the surf spots. Our days consisted of waking up at dawn and surfing for a few hours, then a little siesta back at the house, followed by lunch at the cantina and then another surf session for a few hours. It was just so fun to be able to surf pretty much all day with some good friends and spend the nights gossiping away and watching old "Sex and the City" episodes. We never scored great waves but it never fell below waist high the whole week. I have decided that besides the North Shore of Oahu, Scorpion Bay is my second favorite surf destination out of everywhere I have traveled. On the way back to the airport, one of the cars started over heating so it was quite a scene when the six of us had to bum a ride at a gas station for the remaining 2 hours to the airport. It ended up that I knew the most spanish in the whole group and using my limited skills and a little help from Tim, we got a ride from a very nice man in a brand new Hummer. It was quite an experience that taught me 2 lessons. Number 1: always expect the unexpected and be prepared when traveling! We had no idea this was going to happen! And number 2: Learn more Spanish (or another language)! Knowing another language is very beneficial when traveling. Anyways, the trip was amazing and we all decided that we should make our "all girls" surf trip and annual trip. Until next time...

(photos by Tim Davis)

Surf Academy 2008!

Hi Everyone! Sorry I have been soooo extremely busy that I have not had time to update my blog. These last three months have been a whirlwind for me, after the Jay Race Sierra and I were lucky enough to be able to be surf instructors for a second year with the Oneill Surf Academy in Holland and Spain. We spent about 3 weeks in Holland and 1 week in Spain teaching children ages 6-16 how to surf. We worked long days of sometimes 12 hours but when you're passing on the gift of surfing, it doesn't always feel like a job. We were fortunate enough to pair up with the program Out of Bounds for two days in which we taught about 20 blind and semi-sighted children how to surf. At the end of the first day I did cry a little because I saw how brave these children were and how much they trusted us, the instructors. Sierra and I were both born with cataracts, (the lenses in our eyes were clouded over) but we were both fortunate to have surgery to fix it. So teaching these children reminded me that no matter what ailment you have, you can still do anything you set your mind to.