The beginnings of a conversion

Yesterday I went surfing with some friends. We were all on mals, including Bruce, who I had only just met. Bruce surfs a lot, but this was the first time he'd ever ridden a longboard! As we dried off and changed back at our cars, I asked him if he enjoyed it?

Yeah! It was fun. It was harder than I thought, but fun. Easy to paddle though. And I like that I was surfing with so many girls!

These kinds of conversations still, after so much talking and thinking about it, astound me. Even though I know they shouldn't.

Don't you usually surf with any women?

No! Never! But it was cool having so many chicks out there.

Why? So you can perve?

Yeah, a bit. Haha! But it was just nice not to only be out there with dudes. It sucks that I usually only get to surf with guys.

I've never been unlucky enough to only surf with guys in the water. Being a woman means that if I'm surfing, then there is always going to be a woman in the lineup. I don't know what that means, but apparently it means something for men like Bruce. But in some ways, I feel lucky - lucky that I don't always surf with only women or only men. Lucky that I get to have all these funny conversations and moments in and out of the water. Where I usually surf, women in the water are not an exception to the rule - in fact, they're sometimes the majority - so like I said, it's hard for me to get my head around the fact that women who surf continue to be imaginary for so many men. Like a myth.

I suppose it's good to be reminded of it every so often.

Comments

  1. Cynthia1:17 PM

    I'm often the only woman in the water. Nice that you have a female crew to surf with!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Rebecca Olive9:31 AM

    A rockin' crew!!

    But sometimes I'm the only woman in the water and I like that too. Sometimes. But I am stoked to have so many cool women surfing in this area.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Gerry Bobsien7:54 PM

    I have friends who often ask me "how does it feel to be in the water with all those blokes" and "do they give you a hard time". And it still surprises me. The answer is usually "no different" and "no".
    The only time I think it would be different is when I get away with saying something totally cheeky and I know if I was a guy I would cop a whole lot more back than a surprised bit of verbal aggro. But despite the cheek, I also try to keep a low profile and this means no bikini etc. So I don't attract too much attention. I was down the south coast recently and man did I almost cop it with some locals. I have lots more to say on this and a few silly stories to tell but I'll post these elsewhere.
    So enjoying discovering your blog....
    bestest
    Gerry

    ReplyDelete

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