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lsa, how long have you been surfi ng?
I’ve been surfi ng my whole life – my parents
were pushing me around on a board since I
was six months old. I live in San Clemente,
California and nowadays I surf mostly at San Onofre, which
is special to me because I spent so much time growing
up there.How great is life now you’re 20?
I feel so fortunate to be 20 right now. I don’t have any real
responsibilities of kids or a house, which allows me to have
a lot of fl exibility, especially when it comes to travelling – I
can just pack up and leave whenever my heart desires.On your travels where’s your favourite place to surf?
The north end of Batu Balong in Canggu, Bali. When the
crowds are mellow, it can be so much fun, and the water
temp is always around 80F, if not higher!Can you tell us a bit about your grandfather?
My grandfather was one of the early surfers in California.
Born in 1911, he quickly made his way west to California
where he began shaping boards and surfi ng them. He
ended up becoming a lifeguard in Santa Monica and
raising my mother there. They would make trips to San
Onofre multiple times a week to surf, which makes San
Onofre that much more special to me.Did he leave a legacy in the surfi ng world?
He certainly did. He was one of the pioneers of surfi ng in
California in the 30s and 40s, so I feel immense gratitude
to him for his assistance in bringing this amazing sport
overseas. He was also relatively infl uential in board design.What does it mean to you to be a surfer in 2019 and
how has it changed since your grandfather’s era?
Being a surfer in 2019 is a whole diff erent ballgame than
it was in the 30s, 40s and 50s. That being said, gliding
on waves is truly the core of what unites us all at the end
of the day. I feel so fortunate to live in California because
there’s so much importance placed on keeping the
traditional culture of surfi ng alive.PETE PETERSON COLLECTION/SHACCCRISTINA GAREAUCRISTINA GAREAU