Join Brad Wells from Thank You Surfing as he chats with Amanda and Erika in El Salvador, for Season 3, Episode 3. The trio dives into the local surf culture, the impact of international competitions, and the increasing popularity of surfing among both locals and tourists. They discuss their personal journeys, the unique surf scenes of their hometowns in Canada, and the broader implications of surfing in different communities. Special thanks to intern Sacha!
Salty Souls: https://www.instagram.com/thesaltysouls
Salty Club: https://www.instagram.com/thesalty.club
Amanda: https://www.instagram.com/thisisaaamanda/
Erika: https://www.instagram.com/erika_drolet/
Transcript
Talk Story – S3E03 edited interview video
[00:00:00] Brad: Hello, everybody. I’m Brad Wells from Thank You Surfing. This is Talk Story season three, episode three. I’m not entirely sure, but I’m pretty sure it’s episode three. We’ve had some numbering issues. We’ll get those files worked out. Um, I am really happy to be joined by my friends here. I’ve got [00:00:21] Amanda: Amanda [00:00:22] Brad: and [00:00:23] Erika: Erika, uh, any affiliations that you’d like to mention at this point. [00:00:28] Erika: Shameless plugs, no one? [00:00:30] Erika: Well, I can. I am the founder of Salty Souls and the Salty Club, uh, which are all female surf and yoga empowerment trips and a surf focused fitness app as well. [00:00:46] Brad: There you go. So you can check those things out. We’ll probably put those in the show notes. You can look them up. What [00:00:53] Amanda: about my Instagram? [00:00:54] Brad: Yeah, all that stuff. Uh huh. Amanda’s Instagram. [00:00:58] Amanda: No, no. This is Amanda. Three A’s at the beginning. Is it? This is A A A. Oh, that’s right. That is your handle. [00:01:06] Brad: Yeah. I thought you were just being clever. [00:01:08] Amanda: No. Triple A. Yeah. Ah, hey. [00:01:13] Brad: Wow. This podcast is off to a great start. Uh, lovely, lovely, lovely. Um, We are in El Zonte, El Salvador, and we are, uh, currently sitting on, I guess you call this a porch, a veranda of, uh, Eric and Amanda’s house. [00:01:31] Amanda: El Rancho de Oasis. Yeah, the Oasis. That’s what [00:01:34] Brad: it’s [00:01:34] Amanda: called? That’s our home, yes, the Oasis. [00:01:37] Brad: The Oasis. Yeah. So we’re at the Oasis and we started late because we’re in El Zonte and everything starts late here. And then I had a few minor mishaps this morning, including car rentals. Um, I was shvitzing on the way over here and I had to change shirts. [00:01:56] Brad: A lot of, a lot of stuff happens here in El Zonte. And we are here to talk about it. Um, so you may remember Thank You Surfing podcast, uh, when my friend Chris was alive, Chris from First Shop, and we used to get together pretty much once a week and talk about surfing. Um, we did this before we started recording those things, and as a surf shop is a sort of like epicenter or mecca for the surf community, um, other people would stop by and they’d join in. [00:02:23] Brad: And next thing you knew, we were doing a podcast. Uh, Chris died suddenly and, and, and quite tragically, and I really couldn’t do this shit anymore. Um, and then I started again. Uh, it’s a little hard. But, uh, The thing was that we’re like, we were just like looking at our own little community and what it meant to be a surfer there and talk about all the things that happened in Miami. [00:02:49] Brad: And then we realized like, Oh shit, there’s like this whole other world of surfing that happens in other little communities. And so why don’t we take the show on the road? And we did, we went up to nomad surf shop and we did a podcast there and got a feeling of like, what was it like to live up in Palm beach and like be a surfer there? [00:03:04] Brad: And I mean, check that episode. It’s hilarious. And then there’s another one that we did in North Miami, which is part of, you know, the Miami surf scene, but it’s sort of like halved and like the North County guys and the South County guys, South beach, North beach, like kind of like quarrel and fight. And it’s hilarious because we’re in the same little zone. [00:03:22] Brad: And now I’m in like a whole other country and meeting all these different people. And I’m realizing, you know, like, We’ve been talking about surf culture as a whole this whole time on this podcast. And, and now I just want to do it with different people in different places and, and, and understand like, what is your surfing experience? [00:03:39] Brad: What is surfing and what does the surf culture mean to you? And over time, I guess we’ll just like have a whole investigation of what the hell that means, um, to all of you guys and everyone else around it. Um, so with that, um, Erika, Amanda, what’s the latest in surfing? What are you seeing happening? What’s happening in your surfing? [00:04:01] Brad: What’s happening in your surf community? [00:04:04] Erika: Well, here we’re seeing an increase in the number of people in the water. All over the world. Yeah, but, um, definitely noticeable this high season. A lot of friends in the water, but I guess that I’m always trying to remind myself that, uh, it’s not as, uh, Dance as other places. [00:04:25] Erika: We’re still pretty lucky, but I think it’s, um, something I’ve observed a lot here. Surfing has gotten more popular and more people are visiting El Salvador for sure, which is good and bad. We’ll see good mainly. [00:04:43] Amanda: I mean, I think you hit it with lots of friends in the water. So, um, yeah, for me, there’s lots of friends in the water here, which is nice. [00:04:51] Amanda: There’s more people too, but the friends are key. The friends make it. [00:04:56] Brad: That’s an interesting idea. Um, I mean, all the outdoor sports really exploded, um, during COVID times. Um, skiing, golfing, hiking, fishing. I mean, you couldn’t buy a pair of roller skates. Every store was sold out. And so surfing hit that same sort of I don’t know, surge, and now we’re seeing it globally, but again, like in here and like our little place. [00:05:18] Brad: Um, but it is a tourist town, and so those tourists bring an economy with it. Um, yeah. And it’s kind of funny because, you know, like none of us are from here, you know? And so we’re like, well, there’s lots of people showing up and it’s like, well, we [00:05:32] Amanda: included, we are the [00:05:33] Brad: problem. And so you look around and you’re like, damn, this place is so crowded. [00:05:36] Brad: It’s like, well, why don’t you paddle in, you know? And, uh, I guess it’s sort of like, how do you, how do you think that, um, that’ll impact your surfing and, and, and will you go out and at different times of the day where the waves are crappier because of that? Or do you think you’re going to go on? Trips to the middle of the jungle or maybe go where it’s freezing cold. [00:05:58] Erika: That’s a good question. Um, well, one for sure, it forces you to kind of look for different windows, time windows to serve. Like, I feel I’m lucky enough to have full on freedom of schedule as it comes to work. So I can surf in different hours. So why not? And honestly, sometimes here it’s going to be really good at midday and almost nobody out. [00:06:22] Erika: So. Yeah. Um, and then forces you to also maybe think of going to explore other breaks around, like the truth is that there’s so many different little breaks here, especially right now it’s summer and it’s break beach break season. There’s a lot of beach break that are probably super uncrowded. So why not go check them out and you can surf only with your friends still. [00:06:45] Erika: And, um, and also I think that I’ve gotten interested in other sports. I’ve been running a lot then. Partly by partly because I love running, but also partly because when I feel the surf is very crowded or yeah, the condition and the optimal, I’m like, Oh, I also love something else. So I’ll go do a little bit more of that. [00:07:06] Erika: Well, that’s [00:07:07] Brad: fun. Not being completely surf focused and psycho about it all the time. What’s that like? [00:07:12] Erika: It sounds good. It sounds fun. I think the audience would [00:07:16] Brad: all like to hear about it. [00:07:17] Erika: It’s, it’s fun because with, with running, like, you know, I feel like the satisfaction I’m going to get out of it is, is, um, like promise in the sense that it’s It’s surfing. [00:07:30] Erika: You never know. Sometimes you had good sessions. Sometimes not sometimes, but like serve, uh, running or any other kind of sport you do outside of the word that is not so condition dependent, you’re sure you’re going to get your fix and you’re going to be satisfied at the end of your experience. So that’s kind of like when I, I want to be sure I’m going to be like satisfied with my hour. [00:07:49] Erika: I’m like, Oh, maybe I’m going to go for a run and you know, satisfaction guaranteed. Yes, exactly. So I think there’s an always provide that. [00:07:57] Amanda: You clearly have a different experience running than I do. [00:08:02] Brad: Yeah. Yeah. I know I’m sitting here like with the most bewildered look on my face. [00:08:07] Amanda: But I did say, so I got injured a little, you know, a little while ago and I was like, wow, I really need to diversify my source sources of joy because, you know, I couldn’t get into the water and. [00:08:23] Amanda: I struggled. I really struggled. I was like, what am I going to do? I mean, granted, I couldn’t, I couldn’t run. I couldn’t do yoga. I couldn’t do a lot of other things that might have fueled the joy. Um, but I’m like, do I need to, you know, take a pottery or something that’s not so physical so that, you know, when the injuries happen, cause they will, um, how am I, how am I, how am I staying sane? [00:08:44] Brad: I think everybody knows that sort of like, uh oh, now what, sort of feeling. Yeah, when something gets taken away from you and you have an injury, or an illness, or you have to move somewhere, or whatever the case may be, it can be kind of shocking to have to replace surfing. Um, or at least, maybe a better way to say it is like, augmented, Erika. [00:09:04] Brad: You know, like, not be so focused on it. Um, well, you know, this question is really about like the latest in the happenings in surfing. Do you guys keep up on, on like surfing in the news? Like, do you know what’s happening in the contests? Are you interested in what’s happening in the Olympics? And it’s going to be in the Olympics this year. [00:09:22] Brad: Crazy. What? And does anybody care? [00:09:25] Erika: Yeah. I mean, I, I follow from, you know, on definitely on social media and I’ve seen that Carissa retired and that’s that Gilmore is taking a year off and that. [00:09:36] Brad: Yeah. So what’s up with that? You’re like making eyes. You’re like that you’re like saying something out, saying something. [00:09:41] Erika: No, but I mean, no, I’m not like, in the sense that like, you know, a lot of people are Um, saying that this might be a, um, a ripple from the new formula or like the recent change in the formula of the contest. I haven’t dug into that so much. Like, I’m just sad because I really, Carissa is my favorite surfer and I’m sad that she’s going to be off the tour, but I’m so really happy for her that she can start to free surf. [00:10:04] Erika: I can only imagine what it’s like to be like so many years on the tour. And, um, it must be a joy to now go back to surfing. That being your, your, just your work. Yeah. And, um, but yeah, I guess that like Steph also taking a year off as maybe something to do with the format of the competition, but in any case, like, it’s interesting to see how the new is definitely this new generation that is now going to have all their chances to, to shine. [00:10:32] Erika: Um, but I don’t have a strict opinion on the format of the competition. If you’re trying to make me say something [00:10:39] Brad: very diplomatic and [00:10:40] Erika: as for the Olympics, obviously we’ve all seen like all the. Controversy with the with the tower and Oh, well, [00:10:49] Brad: let’s just, you know, for historical context, in case this comes out another point, uh, yeah, they need to build a judging tower or they want to build a judging tower to judge the contest in Tahiti for the Olympics for surfing. [00:11:01] Brad: And there’s an existing tower and they’ve done a lot of contests there over the years and the new tower. Um, you know, there was sort of like a public outcry, like, Hey, this is maybe like an environmental problem, um, in terms of trying to do the construction on the reef. And then there was sort of a protest and they’re like, nah, don’t worry about it. [00:11:18] Brad: Everything’s going to be fine. And they’re like, okay. And then they like ran a barge of ground on the reef. And it was like [00:11:24] Erika: comically [00:11:25] Brad: ironic. And you’re just like, are you serious? Like that’s exactly what they said was going to happen. And it happened in a matter of like a minute. [00:11:32] Erika: Yeah. [00:11:33] Brad: And I don’t know if, has it been resolved yet? [00:11:36] Erika: No, I think they’re moving forward, honestly. And I think that like, this is definitely, this problem of the tower and breaking the reef is also something. We’re seeing here when there’s been a lot more international competition in the last few years, they’ve built a lot of temporary structures that then were taken apart. [00:11:56] Erika: Without having really a consideration on the environment and the ocean. And it’s going to keep happening. They’re building more, I mean, like sustainable places, tower or yeah, like structures for the, for the, the, the games. But, um, it’s a huge thing for me. It’s so ironic that with surf competition, we know, and like with the surf city project, we know that the waves, the ocean is like blue gold. [00:12:26] Erika: That’s what they’re really putting forward as their main resource and, uh, the joel of all of this, but then nobody’s really thinking of, of making sure it’s not getting destroyed simultaneously. And that’s absolutely wild, you know, You’re about to ruin your main resource, and if the ocean gets dirty, or the waves are getting broken, or the, yeah, the sea bottom is getting affected, then you’re killing your main resource of, you know, income in a way. [00:13:02] Erika: Or even just the water. [00:13:04] Amanda: Like, I always say, like, where’s all the shit gonna go, actually? Like, with development, you look at, uh, Taigazoute was closed for a couple of years in Morocco, like, or unsurfable because people were getting so sick. So, yeah, not just the actual, you know, structures and the, the wave itself, but the water, is it, is it so dirty that you can’t go in without, you know, Nearly dying. [00:13:29] Brad: Yeah. I mean, any development has impacts and like coastal development is like a very dynamic environment with a lot of exposure, like you’re saying as well for recreation. And like you’re saying, you’re calling it blue gold and they called it surf city for a reason, you know, like surf and then, well, city is where they make all the money. [00:13:46] Brad: Um, and it’s, it is, it’s sad and it’s something to watch over because it’s not just here in El Salvador that these things are happening. And we were talking about it happening in Tahiti and. Um, yeah, I don’t know how the decision making gets so far from the actual resource itself. Um, and I mean, maybe this is why we have oil spills, you know, like the decisions are made in, in some. [00:14:11] Brad: Corporate office, you know, on the 45th floor. And there’s some guy in the Arctic that, you know, I don’t know if drilling like this is a great idea, you know, and that never goes all the way back up to the offices, um, where the decisions are being made. And he was like, yeah, well, you, you guys are, you didn’t have a surf contest, you need to judge it, right? [00:14:27] Brad: Where are you going to judge it from that old piece of crap? That doesn’t seem safe. Yeah. Build a safer one. Great idea. I mean, you just hear it like that. It makes a lot of sense. And then if you hear it on the ground, like, what was that? That was the reef. You’re like, Oh, maybe not such a good idea. Um, and yeah, so, I mean, I guess that’s just about like communicating, um, all the way back and forth. [00:14:49] Brad: And I mean, health should certainly be in the Olympics in the first place. I mean, we’re talking about serving as a culture and that is making it a sport. Oh, what do you think about pools? Like surfing in a wave pool. Why don’t they do the Olympics in a wave pool? It’s, that makes it like a sport to me. [00:15:04] Brad: It’s like gymnastics. Have you seen these kids in the pools? Mm-Hmm, . Wow. Yeah. They’re doing like 37 back flips at once with a spinny thing. [00:15:13] Erika: It’s true. I’ve never thought about it, but it, it would make it, it would make sense if Olympics were in a pool. [00:15:19] Brad: Everyone gets the same waves. Yeah. The judging is right there. [00:15:23] Erika: It takes a like many elements out of. Surfing out, though, but as in the context of the Olympics of being a judged sport, like, with so many rules, I guess, If it all of them to not destroy the reef [00:15:40] Brad: and wait, where’s the Olympics this year? Paris. Yeah. Where’s the surf contest? Tahiti. [00:15:47] Erika: Yeah, but because it belongs to France. [00:15:49] Erika: Yeah, I know. But why don’t they do like a whole other conversation? Yeah. So it’s like, why don’t they [00:15:53] Brad: have the winter Olympics in Paris too? And then go to Chamonix for the skiing part. It’s like, no, you can’t do that. Like, what do you mean? You’re just having remote events for the Olympics now. Yeah. Any of your territories? [00:16:03] Brad: Can you just jump in anywhere you’ve been a colonialist? [00:16:06] Erika: Well, that being said, I think it’s gonna be cool to watch. Yeah, well, yeah, [00:16:11] Brad: and I think this is the part where you’re like, again, are they putting surfing, uh, surfing first? Or they just, they want to see carnage. I mean, what’s better than sending people over the ledge at the end of the road? [00:16:24] Brad: I mean, my goodness, that’s a crazy way. I mean, some of these people probably They made the best in their country, but they’re not qualified to serve that wave. [00:16:32] Erika: Yeah. It’s a [00:16:33] Brad: whole other thing. [00:16:34] Erika: I know it’s kind of nuts. It’s going to be nuts. But then, you know, that the ESA send a lot of the kids to like one week all inclusive to practice in that way, Brian and a lot of, uh, Brian being a local surfer here and a lot of, surfers from developing countries or you know, one that wants to have less possibilities were sent for a week. [00:16:58] Erika: Not that you can learn to surf 2. 0 in a week, but I thought it was still a very cool opportunity that was offered to them. [00:17:06] Brad: Yeah, that’s great. Absolutely. And that’s definitely a positive. You don’t want to take away where there is positivity, but gosh, I’ll be looking at that forecast. That’s for [00:17:14] Erika: sure. Yeah. [00:17:16] Erika: I I’m looking forward because even when, uh, for me, the parallel is when the girls competed at pipe for the first time that year that there was a shark attack at the other wherever they normally can compete at sunset beach or something like anyways where the girls normally compete there was a shark attack or they’ve seen some sharks so they’re like all of a sudden like oh we’re going to move you to pipe which they didn’t get any practice they never get to surf pipe by themselves because it it has never been a thing for women and now we’re talking the best woman in the world being thrown at pipe and Holy cow, like it was it was bad. [00:17:56] Erika: It was hard That’s when I realized how hard pipe is because the boys makes it look so easy, you know, and not easy easy But like relatively easy Do a bowl at least and then the girls were getting so And I was like, okay, that really put in perspective how hard this wave is because you’ve got the best woman in the world and they’re all wiping out so bad. [00:18:22] Erika: And so I think it’s the same with with Chupu now is that, oh my God. It’s, as you say, not everybody has the level you must be a very, you might be a very, very good surfer, but if you never practice in such kind of wave, it’s like, holy, like, [00:18:37] Brad: that’s a different kind of thing. All together. It’s, it’s, I don’t know, like I grew up skiing on the east coast and we had like little icy, you know, like you can’t even call it like a mountain. [00:18:47] Brad: It’s like a hill. And then you go ski like in the French Alps and you’re like, uh, this is not the same at all. Like what sport is this? And that’s like these guys, you know, like they grew up surfing in two foot wind swell, and then you’re going to put them in. 10 to 15 foot. Yeah, [00:19:04] Erika: but I think it does apply to other sports though, snowboarding, skiing, you know, anything that is extreme and with a different, with a changing terrain. [00:19:13] Brad: I mean, yeah, the changing terrain for sure. But like giant slalom is giant slalom. And like the giant slalom run that you practice on as a kid is, I mean, maybe not like, what’s that one in Austria? That’s insane. But anyway, you know, like it’s sort of the same, [00:19:29] Erika: like, [00:19:30] Brad: The reef at Tahiti is not like the sand in San Clemente, for example. [00:19:35] Erika: Yeah. We will see. We [00:19:37] Brad: will see. All right. I got some other questions for you. Um, so the first question is, uh, what’s surfing like where you are from, but I struggled to even ask this question because I don’t think there is surfing where you’re from. I’m, I may be mistaken on that. So I guess the question is like, what’s surfing like where you learn to surf. [00:20:02] Amanda: So, uh, I grew up in Eastern Ontario in Canada. Surf City, Canada. Yeah, Surf City, Canada. Um, St. Lawrence River. Um, and, you know, then I’ve lived in Toronto for a long time. Uh, I learned, very first learned to surf in Australia. Um, and then basically my surf career, if you will, has been here in El Salvador mostly. [00:20:27] Amanda: Um, but there is actually a pretty thriving Great Lakes surfing scene in Toronto. [00:20:33] Brad: And were you part of that scene? [00:20:34] Amanda: No, so I’ve thought about doing it a bunch of times. Um, but you know, I don’t have the like, I don’t even know what, what suit they wear, 6’5 hood, booties. It’s a different board because it’s fresh water. [00:20:47] Amanda: Um, so every time I cost it all out, like, I’m like, I got to rent all this stuff. And then I may got to rent a car to get there. I’m just like, I could just buy a flight to Mexico and surf warm waves and better waves. But I mean, I do admire them [00:21:01] Brad: to them as well. [00:21:02] Amanda: Yeah. But not everybody can. Um, and the other thing is you have to be super flexible because it’s wind swell, right? [00:21:07] Amanda: So you got to be like. Oh crap. It’s here throwing everything to the side and getting in the car and driving somewhere. Um, so yeah, I haven’t done it yet, but is [00:21:18] Brad: there like a scene there? There’s there like a local bar that everyone goes to or like a surf shop. There’s a [00:21:23] Amanda: shop. Yeah, it’s called plug them. [00:21:25] Amanda: Surf the greats. Yep. There’s a show [00:21:28] Brad: with [00:21:28] Amanda: like a cafe and they do events. Um, you know, bring in surf filmmakers and surfers and uh, That’s where I, I took a, um, Carver clinic, like a surfskate clinic with them. That’s the wow. They’re like really [00:21:44] Brad: in it. [00:21:44] Amanda: Yeah. So, and lots of people, it obviously, like you said, exploded, um, during COVID, but even before that, has it been around [00:21:51] Brad: the shops? [00:21:52] Amanda: Uh, yeah, it’s been around. Yeah. Yeah. I don’t know when the shop, um, started, but, um, the couple that started like, I think it started more as. Just like a surf community and then evolved into the store and beyond. But yeah, [00:22:07] Brad: that is really Fascinating. [00:22:10] Amanda: So it does exist Um, you got to like put vaseline on your face. [00:22:14] Amanda: You don’t get you know, the icicles and all that Uh, I don’t know the waves get good up [00:22:18] Brad: there. I see this I mean, look, I lived in Miami for a long time and it’s mostly windswill, so we know the Great Lakes pain, like, for sure. It’s just, we don’t know the cold. And then I grew up in New York and surfed all winter, you know, up there and same thing. [00:22:32] Brad: Freezing cold, like, you know, icicles on your face cold. [00:22:35] Amanda: Yeah, which, I don’t know about that. My thing is always like, what do you do after? [00:22:39] Brad: Pour hot water into your wetsuit. Yeah, but like where’s the hot water coming? [00:22:42] Amanda: You got, you got it. Thermos. You’ve got a, Oh, okay. Okay. Yeah. I was like, there was a water surfers. [00:22:48] Amanda: If you don’t [00:22:49] Brad: know that. Yeah. Hot thermos. Wrap your towel. Okay. [00:22:53] Amanda: Okay. Cause I was like, if there was a hot tub right outside the lake, that seems cool. I want to take that. Go. And then I get, [00:23:00] Brad: I want to take the search. But otherwise, bears, whiskey, hot tubs, you know, slippery black rocks with moss on them. [00:23:09] Amanda: I feel like you’re picturing b.c more than, more than, more than Lake Ontario, just saying, just saying. [00:23:15] Brad: Yeah, I think I am. [00:23:15] Amanda: A little bit of that, maybe, certain parts of, yeah, but I’m, my vision, my, you know, when I think of Lake Ontario surfing, I think of, uh, Toronto, like, basically. Toronto, or right near Toronto. So, yeah. No bears for sure. [00:23:31] Brad: No bears. [00:23:32] Amanda: Sad to tell you that. [00:23:33] Brad: I guess I just think Canada’s full of bears and [00:23:36] Amanda: That’s it. And we live in igloos and blah blah blah. [00:23:41] Brad: You know? I didn’t say the last part. Erika, what about you? Where did you grow up surfing? [00:23:47] Erika: Um, so I’m from Montreal. Uh [00:23:49] Brad: huh. [00:23:50] Erika: And actually Montreal has a great river surfing scene. So Montreal itself is almost an island. [00:23:57] Erika: Island? But it’s kind of an island and which nobody knows if you’re not from there And so it’s surrounded by this it’s in the middle of this at Lauren River And there are different spot where you where they are static waves that have been created in the river [00:24:12] Brad: What do people like put it in stuff to make those? [00:24:15] Erika: No. Well, no, they they are natural. [00:24:18] Brad: Oh, no [00:24:18] Erika: way Yeah, and so and very accessible. I think that like now maybe they’ve You found ways to like, make them a little bit better. And I actually, I know that we just built a new bridge, uh, to reach the island. And when this new bridge project was, uh, in development, a lot of people were, uh, trying to push so that all the dirt that would be moved for the bridge would be used to create many of those static waves and that Montreal would become the capital of river surfing. [00:24:51] Erika: Project did not pass, but, uh, we still have, um, Two main, or three main static waves. And, yeah, and it’s pretty accessible, close to shore. So people, there’s always people there surfing. During summer you can even surf without a wetsuit. It’s warm. And it works like all year round. Like my, some of my friends are surfing like through the ice that is passing. [00:25:15] Erika: I find it really dangerous and crazy, but. Anyhow, uh, some people are highly motivated, I think. And, but I’ve tried it a few times there, but a little bit like Amanda said, I’ve got the chance to be living here since almost nine years and been, you know, living abroad since more than a decade. So every time I go and I see the river surfing again, I’m like, Hmm? [00:25:40] Erika: I’ll be back down south in a [00:25:42] Brad: week. Maybe I’ll just go hang out with my family. I’ll go [00:25:46] Erika: for a run. Exactly, I’ll go for a run. I’ll go for a bike ride. When I go back to Montreal, I love to do other activities that I cannot do while I’m here. But uh, yeah, huge surf culture though in Quebec. People love anything related to surf. [00:26:00] Erika: Okay, so what is [00:26:00] Brad: it like there, that culture? Like, is, is there like a, a, a scene of like short boarders and long boarders? Are there like, like, what do you call them? Like, uh, hipster kind of surfers? Is there like, like the thrash, metal, punk? You know, like put their fist through a board if they don’t land in the air. [00:26:21] Brad: No, [00:26:21] Erika: I think that you have like a mix of things, but basically like there is the people that serve the river and a lot of people that love to go down to New Hampshire when there’s a swell. So it’s a four hour drive only for us. So that’s the closest ocean surfing spot. And like, it’s very typical for people from Quebec to drive to New Hampshire. [00:26:41] Erika: Every time there’s like one foot on the, on the forecast. Um, and yeah, so lots of like, how many [00:26:51] Brad: people are we talking about? Like if you, if there’s a swell coming to New Hampshire, will you like get in the car with like, I don’t know, two or three of your friends or something? I’m imagining. And then will you like get to the spot and you’ll see like 12 other cars from [00:27:06] Erika: your home or like a [00:27:07] Brad: hundred other cars or like one other car or none? [00:27:10] Erika: Bobby, not a hundred, but not one. Somewhere in between one and a hundred. That’s it, we’re done with it. She’s [00:27:17] Amanda: precise. [00:27:18] Erika: It is popular, it’s very popular. For my generation, like, the people of my age, you like, go there for a few days, enjoy the beach, and at the same time surf, and you really have all levels. [00:27:31] Erika: Because it’s never huge there besides the, um, the winter or like, uh, fall swells, hurricane swells. So that’s very much more the, more motivated ones that go. Um, but in summer it’s really like, yeah, kind of like accessible. And at the river, you know, Surfing in Montreal, like, uh, you would be very surprised to see how many people are in the lineup because you wait on shore and then you go, you paddle. [00:27:57] Erika: It’s like a literal [00:27:58] Brad: lineup, like a line. [00:27:59] Erika: It’s a line. And then you get yourself backward. So you’re going to come in the wave like backward and you let the current take you. And at some point you paddle and then you get into it and then you can ride it like for forever unless you fall because you, it, it, it’s an endless wave. [00:28:17] Brad: Yeah. So how do you move the line forward? If someone’s just like, well, there’s kind of like, there is a surf etiquette that after [00:28:24] Erika: two minutes ish, you should get off. Really? If you haven’t fallen. Yeah. And otherwise the other people are bitching at you in the line. No, but like, otherwise someone else will just go in and kind of like dislodge you. [00:28:37] Brad: This would work great in like a real lineup. I wish like we could have that same sort of dynamic. You’d be like, and you’re gone. Yeah. See ya. [00:28:44] Erika: But there’s a camaraderie, like people were like, okay, like I acknowledge I’ve been on the way for a while. Next, you know, and [00:28:54] Brad: not sound like surfing to me, but at some [00:28:57] Erika: days you go in, there’s so many, there’s like 50 people that are there and you’re like, Oh, that’s the reason why I don’t love going in. [00:29:03] Erika: But then it’s like very social. You’re in the line of you’re chatting and you have like people, like I’ve seen women of like 55, 60 years old that are there and old dudes. And then you also have like very young, so there’s a huge. Like range of age that are there. And so, [00:29:23] Brad: all right, I got a million questions now. [00:29:24] Brad: Do these people learn to surf in the river? [00:29:27] Erika: So a lot of, [00:29:27] Brad: yes. It’s like, this is cool. First time I stood up on a surfboard was in a river. [00:29:32] Erika: Yeah. Yeah. There is a school called, uh, and they do river surfing courses and they also do like kayak and like other things, but, uh, they’ve really grew their business on teaching people out to river surf. [00:29:46] Erika: And it’s, it’s good, like, you need help at first, like, how to understand, like, the, the, you know, the, the, the good point, or to start paddling, blah, blah, blah. And it works pretty good. And then, while you’re surfing, sometimes there’s rafts coming through because there’s rafting in this river, too. Which is always particular. [00:30:04] Erika: Ice in the [00:30:04] Amanda: winter, rafts in the summer. Yeah, the [00:30:06] Erika: other day, like, we were there, I’m in the lineup, and there’s someone surfing, and then the raft comes, and I would be like, Oh my god, oh my god, like, I need to like, You know exit. No, he stayed surfing the raft came in between both of the surfers because there’s kind of like two peaks So there was like two people. [00:30:21] Erika: It sounds like an old [00:30:22] Brad: school video game And then the fucking [00:30:24] Erika: raft came through and I was like, wow, I guess they’re used to this and then a kayak comes through and then like Yeah, it’s a lot of, there’s a lot happening and the guys that are very used to surfing there now, they also have jet skis and they go to other spots. [00:30:39] Erika: Like, I haven’t graduated enough from my river surfing that they haven’t taken me out yet. But like, they’re like, Erika, you need to surf a little bit more like the normal people spot before we take you with our jet skis to like some spot that are kind of like mid river or like not accessible from shore. [00:30:55] Brad: No, they’ve discovered like [00:30:56] Erika: a bunch of other spots. And especially when it’s spring and the water, like the snow melts. level of the river is at the highest. There’s a lot of spots that only works then. And it’s a thing like it’s really cool going with the forecast. [00:31:14] Brad: You can forecast. Is there secrets? [00:31:15] Brad: What’s the only spots that we’re going to say the only spots of the even built an [00:31:19] Erika: app for the forecast forecast of the main wave. That is the main static waves. You can see like the level of the river that day, the, the, how fast the water is flowing, blah, blah, blah. So like, they have [00:31:30] Brad: way better data than we do. [00:31:31] Brad: This, [00:31:31] Erika: this, this app is like, it’s like Montreal River Surfing, I don’t know the name, but like it’s fully developed by someone in Montreal and it only shows the, the forecast for this static wave in the river. And yeah, [00:31:44] Brad: this is so cool. [00:31:45] Amanda: Just always not sure. Like I, it terrifies me because I’m like, won’t I just end up going down the river? [00:31:53] Amanda: Yeah. When [00:31:54] Brad: you wipe out, the fact that I [00:31:57] Amanda: can’t really swim really freaks me out. Like, you [00:32:01] Brad: get pushed into shore more or less. [00:32:03] Erika: Yeah. And [00:32:04] Brad: in a river you get pushed to the ocean. [00:32:06] Erika: Yeah. No. So this one. As I said, it’s pretty close to shore. And then after the wave, there’s like a few more rapids. And then there’s kind of like some flat pools, which when you’re stuck in the pools is the worst because you’re kind of like not moving because the water comes from underneath because I guess it goes into the rapid and then under. [00:32:26] Erika: And it comes up there and you’re like on the, you’re like, Oh shit, I’m stuck in a pool. And you’re like paddling, but like nothing is happening. Um, and then I know what that feels like. And then after that, it kind of like quiets down and you get a moment that it’s really easy to exit. So like the guy, the guys or the girls that are really good, they might fall like at the exact good point. [00:32:45] Erika: And there’s a side current that takes you to shore really quickly. And if you miss this point, which I always miss, uh, you end up like further and it’s okay. Like it gets really calm and then you can just exit easily. Walk back through the forest. Cuz I go just [00:33:02] Amanda: super dramatic. I’m like, I’m stuck, then there’s rapids, then there’s a waterfall. [00:33:06] Amanda: Yeah, I got [00:33:07] Brad: the fire department, it’s on the next bridge. But there is a [00:33:09] Erika: bridge later on, and after the bridge there, apparently there is some turbines for hydroelectricity. But like, that’s what they told me at first, they’re like, make sure you don’t miss the exit because you’re gonna end up in the turbines. [00:33:21] Erika: And I was like, this is, now I know, this was always a myth. But I Paddle fast. fast Okay. Okay. Like, there’s still a chance it’s true. Yeah, I don’t want to be, I don’t want to become hydroelectricity myself, like. But that never happened. If you had to go, it’s kind of a good way. And I’ve never heard of any accident. [00:33:43] Erika: It’s really far. Honestly, it really gets quiet, the river, and it’s fine, like. [00:33:47] Amanda: Yeah. And the people that teach it. So I did um, what is it wake surfing? It’s behind a boat. And the guy who taught me had like made this helmet with a headset in it so he could be on the boat to kind of tell me when to, yeah. And I was like, this is brilliant. [00:34:07] Amanda: Like I wish I had had this with regular surfing, like [00:34:11] Erika: someone like with a headset telling me exactly what to do. They did that. They did that in the in kite, in kite surf. Ah, okay. But they don’t do that at the, at the static wave. No, he’s with you next, like by your side, basically. Okay. Okay. [00:34:24] Amanda: Well, maybe, maybe. [00:34:26] Amanda: Maybe this summer. And Toronto did not [00:34:27] Brad: have the scene like this. [00:34:29] Amanda: Uh, no river, but the lake, like I said, the lake is there. Yeah, I [00:34:32] Brad: think the lake’s gotta be a lot harder to sort of like congregate around because it’s so fleeting. There’s like, there was waves, when, like half hour ago, for ten minutes. I’m like, oh great. [00:34:40] Amanda: Yeah, I mean, I’m just not a good authority on it. There’s definitely people, you know, there’s a crew, a tight crew. There’s like photographers that I follow, you know, that are always chasing the waves and then shooting. Yeah, like, there’s a scene for sure. Um, much the same as anywhere else where there’s surf, but. [00:34:57] Amanda: I’m just not as involved in it, I would say. [00:35:01] Brad: Um, well, this brings me to the next question. So, where you came from, clearly, like, you guys travel. Um, is that normal for, and, and, what, what inspired you guys to get on the road and start looking at other places to surf? Like, for me, when I grew up surfing as a kid, I just thought, like, yeah, you surf in Long Island because that’s where you live. [00:35:19] Brad: And then I was like, wait, you can go and do this other places? It was like, never, like, really occurred to me. So, yeah. I’d see it in the magazines and stuff and I was like, yeah, well those are the guys that live in California that surf in California. And the guys in Hawaii surf in Hawaii. And I surf in New York and my waves suck. [00:35:35] Brad: That’s just how it is. And then, then I like went on a trip and I was like, Oh! [00:35:41] Amanda: Mind blown people getting on planes going all over the world surfing. [00:35:44] Brad: Yeah, I didn’t know it was a thing So how did that become a thing for you? I’m guessing maybe it wasn’t. [00:35:48] Erika: Yeah, I think it’s different for us Like I feel like even though we have this river surfing scene and this little culture that is developing around surfing It remains mainly something you do elsewhere Yeah, that you dream of going to Australia to surf. [00:36:04] Erika: And I actually feel like I’ve learned, I’ve tried surfing for the first time more in Australia than I did in the river personally. And yeah, it’s not like, especially if you look back like 15 years ago, when we, when I got interested in surfing, it wasn’t a huge thing back home. So it was the thing that you would go to Costa Rica and Australia and, uh, Try doing, you know, yeah, definitely. [00:36:32] Erika: Like we grew up more about like snowboarding and hockey. That’s the [00:36:37] Brad: thing. I don’t think I ever, [00:36:40] Amanda: like when I knew I was going to Australia, I was like, okay, well I’ll have to take one lesson when I’m there because like, no, I’m terrified of the ocean. And like really scared of you know, or not anymore, but you know I was so I was like i’m gonna do one lesson to be like I didn’t go to australia and spend an entire year there and not take a surf lesson This is like this is your surfing origin story. [00:37:05] Amanda: No way. I’m gonna tick the box and then Um, I just really liked it. Um, it was like having a focus that other than not drowning was transformative. Enjoyment [00:37:18] Brad: creeped in just enough. You’re like, [00:37:20] Amanda: honestly, yeah. You know, but then it was a long time after that, that I actually, you know, progressed beyond, you know, full on beginner status took a long time because that was like, I don’t know, 2008 maybe. [00:37:34] Amanda: And then. Didn’t serve for years after I left Australia really. And then yeah, I would take these little trips. So the seed was planted for whatever reason. Um, and then, and then I got a remote job and then it was like, here we go. Here we go. Well, now I’m getting, now I can like be by a wave and like really learn how to do this and finally stop having this like progression regression thing that I always had. [00:38:02] Brad: So where did you go first? [00:38:05] Amanda: Right away, when I first got a remote job, uh, the first trip was Panama, Playa Banal, I think I was for a few weeks, but basically here, really, I came like, I think that was like sort of my second, my life is in season now, seasons now. So my second season of being a remote, you know, of having a remote job, I came here and then I just kept coming back and then it was COVID and I stayed. [00:38:33] Amanda: And finally, yeah, made it past that hump of like full on beginner to, to advanced beginner. I called myself for quite a long time. [00:38:45] Brad: Yeah. [00:38:47] Amanda: I mean, I took some other trips like through that period, but, um, yeah, I really progressed here. Yeah. [00:38:53] Erika: I [00:38:54] Brad: want to add. Yeah. So now I’m going to go back to the top of these things, because when I asked you like, you know, Well, when I developed these questions, I sort of assumed that most of the people that I’d be talking to or all of them would have grown up on a coast and learned to surf there, [00:39:07] Erika: which is, [00:39:09] Brad: which is a terrible assumption to make in terms of my questions because it, yeah, it just misses out on the point of being able to ask you now, like, okay, what’s the culture like where you really surf or where you live? [00:39:22] Brad: So like, yeah, so what is the surf culture like here for you guys? Because I mean, yeah, Toronto is one thing and Montreal is like the cool, that was fascinating. But like now you’re actually like in a place that has surfing going on and there is a culture here, right? [00:39:41] Erika: There is one. Yeah. Um, growing and evolving. [00:39:45] Erika: And like, sometimes I honestly think that like, funny enough, the culture there is in Montreal around surfing is almost bigger than, It is or it was here. Um, I could [00:39:56] Brad: totally see that. Well, it goes generations in Montreal, right here. It goes like maybe two generations. No, I don’t think it goes generation [00:40:03] Erika: in Montreal, but people are just like tripping balls on this surf concept. [00:40:08] Erika: And it’s true. You would have a t shirt written like surf and they’re like, yeah, I want it. And, um, here, I think that like the, the, the, the thing is here are developing countries, surfing or anything that is recreational It’s part of like emancipation of self, you know, and when you’re still trying to survive and like fill up more of like the basic stuff in life, you’re not, you don’t have time or the opportunity to surf. [00:40:36] Erika: And I think that as this country is evolving and there is more, uh, you know, more money and people have more possibilities, then it’s also evolving the culture. of surfing, a lot of more possibilities, more young people are getting some, um, some, you know, money of not a lot of money, but like a little bit of possibilities or some trainings or having the games and a big competition coming, like definitely did activate the local surf culture and possibilities. [00:41:07] Erika: Um, but I feel like it’s been very progressing only in terms of like how many people you see, how many girls you see in the water. You used to see like almost none. Yeah. There would be like three or four local girls that would be surfing across all La Libertad. Um, and that are like my age, you know, and now like the new generation, um, all the, the girls that are part of the selection, uh, you know, the Salvadorian surf selection, they’re all like under 20, you know, they’re like 15, 16. [00:41:41] Erika: It’s the new generation. But I feel like it’s a new, it’s. There is the OGs, you know, there’s been some people surfing for a long time, but they was, it wasn’t such recognized or it was no budget. National circuit was like, you win basically a coconut and like, you know, it was so little now only. And I kind of want to give that to surf city in a way that like they did, um, bring on huge event events. [00:42:12] Erika: And therefore there’s been some activation as like on a national level. But, um, otherwise I feel like most of the surf culture were the tourists coming here to enjoy the waves way more. And still to this day, like surfing the here where we surf on a daily basis, you and I like the river mouth. Where are the locals, you know, like it’s, it’s almost all foreigners surfing there. [00:42:40] Erika: So I think that actually foreigners are a big part of it. The surf culture here in a way we and as for girls, I want to say that I’m under the impression that them seeing friend or girls coming and surfing. I’ve inspired a lot of local girls to get into it as well and see that it is it is possible. [00:43:02] Erika: It’s like Oh, [00:43:02] Brad: wait, what are you doing? Yeah, [00:43:04] Erika: these girls are surfing and they’re not just like having babies at 16 like And I remember like some um, you know, there’s this project here Hijas del Mar which is trying to empower the young generation through surfing and skating and a few Years back we had they did one of of the meetup or like local come for girls and some Um Other surfers, there was Mimi Barona, which is a pro surfer from Ecuador. [00:43:30] Erika: And some of the girls that are in their thirties here, uh, Evelyn, that is a local from here. And they got to speak to the younger generation about, like, their professional career as surfers. It was like a huge part of the conversation is like if you want to pursue a career as a professional surfer is surfing is your thing like don’t get pregnant like you don’t need to have a kid at 16 like you there’s other possibilities, but it’s it’s going to change the course of your life if you go that direction you know and it sounds. [00:44:01] Erika: Like, whoa, to us, but that’s the reality for most women here is they start a family super early and they don’t consider that like they could just like surf and like try to make a career out of it and not consider like helping the family or building a family before 20. [00:44:21] Brad: None of these options really were apparent, I don’t think, before surfing became more popular here, really. [00:44:28] Brad: And like you said, like the, the big contest coming here, I think really only helps to show, I guess, like what is possible and putting it on the global stage. I think it would probably be nice if more of that actually got down to the community and it wasn’t just like a circus coming to town and then like, you see all the animals and then you’re like, whoa, tigers exist! [00:44:46] Brad: And then the tigers get on the train and leave and you’re like, whoa, tigers aren’t here anymore. What happened to the tigers? And you’re like, oh, now there’s just a rusty cage where the tigers used to be. And you’re like, oh shit. Well, at least we know the tigers exist. And I guess that’s like, a little bit. [00:45:00] Brad: It’s a very strange analogy, but I think, [00:45:02] Erika: yeah, no, but I get it. It’s good. We get it. I was not sure where you were going with this, but like, yeah, [00:45:09] Amanda: I think it’s been fun. I mean, I have so much to say on the whole topic of the surfing culture here from a super selfish perspective because it’s, I feel like it’s given me so much, but one of the really fun things actually that I saw that I’ve noticed, you know, it’s been year five or six or something coming here is actually that there’s a lot more women surfers. [00:45:29] Amanda: In the water, um, like, that don’t have intentions of going pro. Are truly just enjoying their backyard, which I think is really fun, right? It’s like, They’re I mean, maybe they do have intentions. I’m not that you know, they’re not training. It doesn’t appear It’s not like they’re the younger generation that are under 20 They’re in their 20s and they’re I see them a lot more in the water now or so. [00:45:53] Amanda: I remember when they started Seeming kind of around the same time as me. It almost seems But that’s also probably selfish perspective. But anyways seeing People just taking it up recreationally and enjoying it is also really fun, you know That’s been a change and when you see [00:46:12] Brad: all them people coming into the sport Just you know in droves and if there’s gonna be more and more people Some of those people are gonna be women and across the women category you’re gonna have you know people that have aspirations to be professional or you’re gonna have people that are just like I want to go on a vacation with my girlfriends once a year and we’re all going to go surfing and that’s it. [00:46:31] Brad: And I’m fine with that. [00:46:32] Amanda: Yeah. But I’m talking low, like I’m talking Salvadorian women. [00:46:35] Brad: That’s even, you know, one, [00:46:38] Amanda: one morning I remember, um, I was sitting with a friend having a coffee and we saw, um, you know, Two couples walking up the beach and I was like this is amazing The two women are the ones with the surfboards and their boyfriends were the ones gonna be sitting on the beach I don’t know filming them or something and I was like, yeah, I love this And that has been my experience here a lot of women and super encouraging so I don’t know if that’s everyone’s experience. [00:47:08] Amanda: Um, but and maybe it’s because I like to cheer for others. So maybe people cheer for me too because of that. But, um, yeah, I feel like I’m a child sometimes, like with People being like, yeah, you’re doing so well. You’re improving. Or I saw it. I saw your wave this morning. I mean, what a rush. [00:47:29] Brad: I think it’s funny that you call it like being like a child. [00:47:31] Brad: Yeah, it is childlike, but why can’t adults act like that? You know, it doesn’t need to only be a childlike behavior to be enthusiastic and optimistic about your surroundings and your people that you’re with. Yeah. Yeah. I guess it just so happens that most people are not like that. And when you show it, I mean, I’ve got to like that too, you know, and I mean, this called thank you surfing for God’s sake. [00:47:52] Brad: So, um, you know, I, I like cheer for random people and especially like the, the guys here, like, uh, uh, some of the more, um, I dunno, contested competitive spots. And these are the guys that everyone’s kind of like nervous to be around. And I’m cheering for their waves. And they’re like, you know, like these are the same guys that don’t want me surfing there. [00:48:14] Brad: And I’m like, and they’re like, he’s like, it’s not [00:48:18] Amanda: my first time here. Not my first way, but thank you for the encouragement. [00:48:23] Brad: Like the first time. And then the second time, they’re like a third time. They’re like, wait, you don’t, you didn’t like that wave. Why didn’t you cheer for that one? And I’m like, oh, okay. [00:48:31] Brad: You got conditioned, I guess. What about the lineups here? Do you guys find the lineups intimidating? Um, I mean, like you said, there is more women, so that’s gotta be like, I’d imagine a nice thing to like paddle out and be like, Oh, there’s other people like me here. Great. [00:48:43] Amanda: Yeah. I didn’t think that it really made an impact for me that much. [00:48:48] Amanda: Um, and then after the first time I spent extended, extended period of time here, surfing where there was a ton of women in the lineup and then I went somewhere else. And I was like, Oh, this, there is just a different energy when you paddle out and you’re the only woman, especially when you’re in this kind of stage where you’re like, I’m not a beginner anymore. [00:49:13] Amanda: People are looking at you like, Oh God, here comes this girl, what is she going to do? And I’m like, no, I promise I can do this. I won’t get in your way. And uh, you know, and I can do this. Um, so yeah, it, it, it, [00:49:27] Brad: Well, lineups are exclusive like that. I don’t, I don’t even know if that’s like a gender or sex thing. [00:49:32] Brad: I think it’s just like everyone paddles out into the lineup and you’re just like [00:49:36] Erika: quickly [00:49:36] Brad: assessing, you’re like, do I want to talk to this person? Am I mad at this person? Is this person my friend? I can’t quite see yet. Oh, nope. I can tell by the way they duck dive. That’s my [00:49:46] Erika: friend. [00:49:47] Brad: And you’re like, Oh, okay, cool. [00:49:48] Brad: I’m glad they’re paddling out. Not this other person. I don’t want to see you right now. [00:49:52] Erika: It could totally affect your mood, right? Like following. I think the lineup here is. Actually very friendly Obviously depends of each spot, but here in Zante at least like both spots are super friendly. I would say and that’s why we like living here, I guess and Different spots different energy different vibes as one would imagine. [00:50:20] Erika: I think that like obviously On bigger days and in the different spots here that are more, you know, intermediate to advanced, the energy will be completely different. Um, and in that case I often find myself being the only woman in those, uh, in those more advanced spot or like there’s very little woman, but I don’t hate it. [00:50:41] Erika: I mean, it just is, you know, and yeah, I still believe that it’s more friendly than most people, most places. one would travel and I’ve traveled in a lot of different places for surfing and even in Ecuador which All of the guys would be my friend outside of the water in the in the water they were so competitive and I was like, bro, like Thought we were friend and honestly, I started I was there for a month and I started boxing instead because I was like No, this is not Okay, like nobody is giving me a single chance and the level was really high like no wave would go unwritten And they were all my friends, but they were all on the wave and I want to drop in. [00:51:27] Erika: And, and then I was like, fuck it. I’m just going to take private boxing lessons, not related. Like I didn’t want to box them, but like, also maybe a little bit, I was like, I need to like, rechannel my aggressivity. [00:51:41] Brad: Correlation is not causation. Yeah. This seems pretty close. I [00:51:44] Amanda: mean, my mind, my mind went there. [00:51:46] Amanda: I’m like, Oh, that’s a logical step. [00:51:48] Erika: Yeah. But, uh, yeah. I guess it just goes back to me being like, okay, if surfing might not give me the satisfaction I’m looking for, I’m going to go for another sport. And so that was a reflection. But yeah, I think here line up is, is really chill. It’s really welcoming, very, very foreigner based, honestly. [00:52:11] Erika: And that’s the thing, because there’s so many foreigners, we all know that none of us own this place. None of us are locals. And therefore it’s like, yeah, I guess you have the same rights as me. So, yeah, [00:52:25] Brad: yeah, it is true that there’s two lineups here. There’s a local lineup and a foreigner lineup and that’s that. [00:52:32] Erika: And [00:52:32] Brad: it’s, it’s kind of a good system. I, I kind of just slide right in there and be like, okay, let me see how high I can get into the foreigner lineup. That’s, that’s, that’s, I mean, that’s that glass ceiling is fine for me. This is not my homeland. So [00:52:45] Erika: exactly. And after a while of being here, like even I, like I’ll be surfing and be like, Hmm, Newer foreigner. [00:52:52] Erika: He doesn’t know as much, I’m getting the like old, old friend or priority, you know, you also just [00:53:00] Brad: know where to sit and you like, you know, and you know, like, who’s going to go right on the peak because you know which way they always go and who’s going to leave the left wide open for you. Exactly. By the way. [00:53:11] Erika: No, exactly. We know. And, and we, we do understand the wave quite a bit now after all this time. And it shows like, [00:53:17] Brad: I think most of the people that do show. Uh, up and stay for a while, do you learn to be respectful if they weren’t in the first place? [00:53:25] Erika: Yeah. [00:53:25] Brad: Because, yeah, I mean, I, I think you’re right. People are really friendly and, and like, it is a great place to come and surf and live and hang out, but it’s not your place and like, you have to be respectful and, um, and you’ll learn that pretty quick if you’re not, and, and it could be a foreigner telling you how to like, be respectful too, um, which is something that I have done on a number of occasions just because I don’t like to see like, You know, things go in the wrong direction anywhere, but like in your home lineups, it’s cool. [00:53:56] Erika: In the lineups that are more in the places, like let’s say like pipeline, which are more advanced break. If you, you’re cooking around, you’re going to get tell mainly because they want to conserve like the level there in a way that we don’t want to have beginners like dropping in, in a, in a way that is already a little dangerous. [00:54:15] Erika: And I think it’s a good thing. Like, I don’t always love the way it’s being done. Uh, often kills the vibe when they’re calling off someone super like in front of everybody, but I understand that like [00:54:28] Brad: something needs to happen. Yeah. [00:54:29] Erika: The idea is that like, I don’t think you’re supposed to be there. This is dangerous and you should go to the more beginner spot. [00:54:36] Erika: You know, there’s a [00:54:37] Brad: few different ways to educate people in that matter. Yeah. One is to pull them aside and explain these things and say, There’s a better way. You can learn more. Let me show you, or [00:54:49] Erika: They often go for that second option, which is like why do we have to publicly shame this person and kill everybody’s vibe? [00:54:56] Erika: But [00:54:57] Brad: it’s [00:54:57] Erika: fascinating. There’s nothing I can say because that’s the thing I’m a foreigner too, and I the last thing I want is to be in the position of the person that is getting screamed at So I’m just like We’re about [00:55:08] Amanda: to be killed by that person. [00:55:09] Erika: Yeah. Exactly. [00:55:12] Brad: Alright, one last question. Um, it’s been really nice talking to you guys about all this stuff so far, and I feel like we can do another seven episodes. [00:55:18] Brad: Um, Where do you think surfing’s going? What’s the future of surfing? For you, for the place we’re in, for surfing in general. Are we all going to have hoverboards, like in Back to the Future? [00:55:39] Amanda: I don’t know. Um, [00:55:44] Amanda: I don’t know. I mean, I can just speak for myself, but I haven’t really thought about it. Speak for yourself. I feel like there’s probably some sort of critical mass at some point, like You know, not everyone will get as addicted as we have become. Um, and you know, so they’ll kind of will balance out or there’ll be some new crazy sport that everyone wants to participate in maybe. [00:56:05] Amanda: Um, exactly. I mean, [00:56:09] Brad: sweeping. If I wasn’t here, I probably [00:56:11] Amanda: would have tried it by now. [00:56:12] Brad: I know, same. Actually, we should bring pickleball here. [00:56:15] Amanda: Pickleball court. [00:56:16] Brad: Pickleball El [00:56:17] Brad: Zonte. [00:56:18] Amanda: Yeah, it would track Yeah, probably. It [00:56:20] Brad: would go bananas. [00:56:22] Erika: Let’s talk business after this. Alright, [00:56:24] Brad: we’re starting a pickleball stadium. [00:56:26] Brad: Pickleball city. That’s what we’ll call it. That’s it. We’re in. We accept Bitcoin. [00:56:30] Amanda: Pickleball [00:56:31] Brad: City. [00:56:34] Amanda: You’re so original, Brad. Uh, yeah, so I don’t know. For me, I was just thinking, I was just thinking today, I was like, I think I’ve kind of like peaked in terms of like the kind of waves I want to surf. I just want to get more stylish. [00:56:49] Amanda: And, uh, And that’s it. Like, I don’t really, I don’t think I want to surf bigger waves or if I, if I didn’t, if I only just got, you know, microscopically better from here, I’m okay. [00:57:03] Brad: So just working on style points. [00:57:04] Amanda: I mean, I don’t even know if I’m there yet, but like just, I get so much joy from it. Um, I do think that I, you know, I’m hearing you speak and hearing other people who are definitely more advanced than me. [00:57:22] Amanda: I think I’m in this sweet spot where it’s still almost always amazingly fun. Um, Is it, is it, is that it doesn’t leave? Okay. I don’t know. Or like my, [00:57:34] Brad: I used to surf in the rain and the more, I don’t know. I don’t care about the waves so much. You know, [00:57:39] Amanda: the vibe is good. That’s like more [00:57:40] Erika: a [00:57:40] Amanda: mindset. [00:57:41] Erika: Yeah. I think that’s good. [00:57:42] Amanda: Yeah. I feel like it just, it’s brought so much to my life and I hope it continues to do so. Yeah. Thank you. Surfing truly, truly. It like, Uh, whatever, International Surfing Day or something. That was the end of my post was, Thank you, surfing. Brought me so much in my [00:58:00] Erika: life. I think that surf is going to continue to grow and become more and more popular. [00:58:05] Erika: Like, I run, you know, surf trips for women and I’ve only seen it grow and get more and more popular. And I hope it does. Obviously, like, it’s my line of business as well. So, uh, to have more and more people that are curious about the sport and trying it. I hope it does because I guess that not everybody will pick up surfing as their main sport. [00:58:30] Erika: A lot of people that come for surf travels, at least, just want to give it a shot and experience something new, face some fears in the ocean, challenge themselves in their relationship with the ocean. And then might never really touch a board again. And that’s fine. And I, I wish that like surfing allows that to like challenge yourself and unlock some, some, your relationship with, with fear and your relationship with the ocean and on a national aspect, I think that here it will continue to become more and more popular, popular as a place for athletes to come train because it’s so consistent. [00:59:11] Erika: And obviously the current development projects are definitely pushing in that direction to try to make it a very inviting place for athletes to come train and, um, for more international competition to become recurrent. So, and yeah, so I think this is the direction is going for El Salvador athletes as becoming a renowned place, both for traveling and for training for elite surfers. [00:59:38] Erika: Um, and Yeah, I hope that we still find some little spots to serve ourselves though, but that’s very personal. [00:59:52] Brad: Can’t have both sides, right? It’s like, I love when my friends surf, but not too many of [00:59:56] Erika: them. [00:59:58] Brad: Well, you guys, I think we did it. I think we did a podcast. First [01:00:05] Erika: ever [01:00:05] Brad: Erika Thank you so much. This is Brad Wells, uh, signing off talk story season. [01:00:11] Brad: Three episode [01:00:13] Amanda: three. [01:00:14] Brad: Nice. Yeah. All the help I can get. [01:00:17] Amanda: We fixed your filing system. We’re going with three. We’re going with three and that’s it. Maybe there’s two, three, two number threes. It’s fine. It [01:00:25] Brad: takes a village and I’m the idiot. Thank you guys. Uh, we’ll catch you next time. Subscribe. Do all the things, tell your friends, um, call your mom, [01:00:37] Erika: call your mom. [01:00:38] Brad: That’s it. Peace. [01:00:40] Erika: Thank you.