JettyGirl: A one million
dollar check arrives in your mailbox with a
note that reads, "Half of this amount is
yours and the other half is to benefit the world
around you." How would you spend the money?
Carla Rowland:
A portion of my $500K would go to paying off
all my credit, medical, and school debt. The
other portion I would put toward property on
the south side of Kauai.
I
really want to see the future of mainstream
surfing go in a philanthropic direction. So,
with the other $500K I would start an organization
that would encourage surfers to be positive,
proactive members of our unique aquatic culture
by giving back to others, both related and not
related to surfing. A cross between the YMCA
and "Surf for Life." I'd like to start
something where surfers can travel abroad and
participate in local activities that assist
in the betterment of communities worldwide.
JG: Describe the best surfboard
you've ever ridden and why it was special to
you.
Carla: I rode surfboards
built by Scott Anderson for over ten years.
His boards helped me progress to be the surfer
I am today. Yet nothing can compare to having
a surfboard handcrafted especially for me by
the man who holds my heart - Ian Zamora. I feel
so blessed to have the best of both worlds readily
available when I desire: love and surfboards.
What else can a girl want?
JG: If you could travel
back to any time in history and hang with one
person while they go about their daily activities,
who would it be and why?
Carla: It would
be the ultimate dream come true to go back in
time when the Chumash ruled the Santa Monica
and Santa Barbara bays. I often daydream about
what it must have been like to live off the
abundance that the Malibu Creek and Lagoon offered.
Imagine the waves breaking how God intended
- clean, long, empty lines running from the
top of Third Point through First Point, past
where the pier currently stands. To live off
the land and breathe in the pure air would be
the ultimate fantasy made reality.
Oh,
if only...
JG: For thirty days you're
stuck on a desert island with one book, one
song, one surf movie and one snack food. Which
ones would you choose?
Carla: To Kill
a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. Black
by Pearl Jam. The Endless Summer. Vegan
Chocolate Chip Cookies from Trader Joe's.
JG: What is your best surf-related
memory of 2009?
Carla: Many "pro"
surfers spend endless hours doing what they
can to maintain their own self-promotion. I
decided years ago that, for me, happiness in
surfing lies in sharing my expertise with others.
Nothing compares to the ear-to-ear smile on
the face of a student who just got their first
ride! Or watching my self-proclaimed protegé,
Taylor Nelson, follow all the advice I could
never adhere to myself and make final after
final in local longboard surf competitions.
The
older I get, the more I realize - it's not about
me and what I am doing for myself. It's about
the future and what I am proactively doing to
make it better.
