We were proud to support the recent Wahine on Waves event in Gisborne with the goal of getting more girls out in the water and surfing. Event organiser Fiona Duncan sent us this write up of the event…
We had a fabulous day, blessed with small waves, overcast conditions and calm winds. Over 50 participants gathered at Northern Makarori to participate in this special event! From tiny young surfer girls to over 50 year old adults, everyone was keen to take up the opportunity to be in an all girls learning environment and progress their skills. We had lots of volunteer helpers keen to share the stoke of surfing and assist the wahine to learn more about surfing and feel comfortable in doing so!
This year we were a part of the Sunsplash Festival, a week long festival involving many different water sports, for the first time in Gisborne we were proud to open the event with Wahine on Waves.
The day was opened with a Karakia (Māori prayer) then we took off for a Ocean Fit Pilates warm up, from here we split into groups of abilities and age then assigned to a coach! After spending time on the beach discussing water safety, board safety, equipment and pop up techniques we headed out into the waves.
Everyone scored themselves a good wave, riding to the beach, or getting tips from some of NZ best surfers.
After a few hours in the water we headed to the beach for some delicious sausages put on my the Gisborne Boardriders Club, then into spot prizes! Everyone got a little something to take home thanks to you!
As a new edition to the day’s surfing event we showed some movies at the Dome Cinema in the evening! I wanted to show the girls more of women’s surf culture and the possibilities of riding any craft, also the travel opportunities that can come from surfing!
We showed Beyond the Surface, Chasing the Sun Tonga, Catch It, Women Who Run with the Tides & The Duette. It was a fabulous evening at the Dome Cinema and it was awesome to see such a mix of ages, men and women enjoying the films!
Everyone thoroughly enjoyed the whole day and I was overwhelmed at the response of gratitude from everyone, we received some lovely words of thanks from participants that had only dreamed to try surfing, or new comers to town wishing to find a surf crew!
Thank you for your kind support!
Please check in on our social media sites for more photos.
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