| JettyGirl:
While faltering economies, political turmoil and
energy issues dominated most of the headlines
during the past year, much of 2008's good news
slipped through the cracks. What's the best thing
that happened to you in 2008 and what are you
most hopeful for in 2009?
Holly Beck: In 2008
I officially stopped competing, spent 9 weeks
in my new favorite place in the world, built my
first little dwelling and planted a bunch of fruit
trees on some land there, and began the transition
to the next phase of my life. In 2009, I'm hopeful
for stable Latin American governments, and the
ability to spend at least a year living my next
dream.
JG: Tell us about the first
time you ever stood up on a surfboard. Where was
it and what were you riding?
HB: The first time
I ever rode the face of the wave I was at Trails
at San Onofre. I was on a camping trip with a
group of 6 girls and we all had surfboards but
none of us could surf. I had been riding whitewash
on my 5'10" x 2 1/2" thick super wide
T&C quad that I scored at a garage sale for
$25 earlier in the summer. Close to sunset, just
before we were going to head back to our tents
for the night, I borrowed my friend's Becker 7'0".
It was more of a "funshape" and definitely
caught waves earlier and glided better. I caught
a whitewash wave and kinda angled left and it
reformed into a waist high face. I was actually
really surfing for the first time and it felt
amazing! My friend was watching and immediately
ran into the shorebreak and demanded her board
back. I think she was jealous. I was already hooked
on surfing, but I'll never forget that ride that
made me finally feel like a surfer.
JG: What is your current
favorite board? In 2009 do you have any plans
to experiment with different surfboard designs,
materials or fin configurations?
HB: I don't really
have one current favorite. I just got a new Rusty
6'0" round tail that's all royal blue on
the deck that is feeling pretty good. I've been
riding 5'11" EPS squash tails all summer
and they've been feeling light and snappy but
this 6'0" PU round tail just feels smooth
and powerful. I'm over doing turns right now,
I just want to get barrelled. I have an Aviso
carbon fiber board that feels really good in the
tube. It's super fast, but I don't always like
it on turns. It's still fun to experiment.
JG: Do you have any heroes?
If so, who and why?
HB: My heroes are
people that set goals and go after them, people
that are respectful, intelligent, and open minded,
people that cherish learning, people that follow
their dreams.
JG: In 2009 we'll see the
best single maneuver ever done by a female surfer.
Who do you think will pull the move and what do
you think it will be?
HB: I don't care
at all about single maneuvers anymore. To me,
it isn't about going out and trying some radical
maneuver. It's about the total lifestyle. It's
the way you get to the beach, the way you paddle
out, the waves you choose, the way you ride them,
and the way you interact with the other surfers
in the water. I want to work on perfecting those
things. I want to tone down the aggression and
the desire to force some maneuver on a wave, but
focus on being a part of the environment, fitting
into the lineup peacefully, and surfing the wave
in a way that is flowing with it instead of dominating
it. It sounds cheesy maybe, but that's my progression.
For those of you who like to
jump around instead of going one by one, here's
the complete list of surfers...
Image
Caption: One morning during summer I received
an early morning text from Holly Beck who was
coming down to San Diego with a few of her South
Bay friends. Even though it was cloudy and a bit
onshore, it ended up being a fantastic day. I
always enjoy shooting with Holly...she's colorful,
opinionated, intelligent and very dependable.
One this day, she found the high tide lefts to
her liking...fin exposure on almost every wave.
Photo: Chris Grant / JettyGirl.com
|
