Meet the Amigas

Meet the Amigas

Each one of us has a unique story. This is a safe place to share stories of what drew us to surfing, how surfing kept us sane, helped us heal, brought us back to life, changed our perspective, helped us find community, learn life lessons, and reconnect to joy.

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Meet the Amigas
  • Meet SWA Founder Holly Beck

    Holly grew up the oldest of five sisters with a mother that believed in traditional gender roles. A "repressed tomboy", she eventually got a surfboard and wetsuit and never looked back. Holly shares stories of her path to being a pro surfer, a bit about what that life was like, how she transition...

  • Meet Fitness Contributor Gabrielle Cahoon

    Meet Gabrielle Cahoon, a dedicated educator in the fitness industry with nearly two decades of experience. Gabrielle discovered her passion for Pilates in 2007, transforming her training approach and reducing injury risks as an avid runner. She solidified her commitment by earning her full STOTT ...

  • Meet Costa Rican Surf Coach Angie Medina

    Angie is an SWA surf instructor who was born and raised, wild and in the sea, in Costa Rica. She is one of nine siblings who grew up in a remote part of southern Costa Rica and shares her story that starts with her birth in a boat out to sea, losing her father at age 19, and how finding out she w...

  • Meet Surf Therapist Natalie Small

    Natalie Small is a licensed therapist who can attest to the benefits of surf therapy. She is also a SWA surf instructor and the founder of the Groundswell Community Project. Here she shares her own story of learning to surf, using the ocean for healing, and her philosophy of surf. For more inform...

  • Meet Mexican Surf Coach Alexia Ceballos

    Alexia was told surfing is not a sport for girls. On a surf trip to Puerto Escondido, her aunt facilitated her learning to surf, then her dad got her a board behind her mom's back. She fell in love with the feeling of riding a wave and never looked back. In this video she shares some stories of b...

  • Meet Moroccan Surfer Israe

    Israe manages the villas at the Surf With Amigas Retreat location in Morocco and is one of the only female Moroccan in Imsouane. Israe always wanted to learn how to surf. After riding her first wave two years ago, she uprooted her life, moved to Imsouane and never looked back. She talks about her...

  • Overcoming Post-Partum Depression in the Tube with Alexis

    Alexis Obrien is a 40 year old, stay-at-home, mother of two. She's only been surfing for about 10 years, but she absolutely charges, particularly in backside tube-riding. In this visual excerpt from a Second Breakfast podcast episode, Alexis talks about her journey of learning to surf, the parall...

  • Applying A Growth Mindset To Surfing With Liz Xiao

    Liz didn't grow up surfing, but once she learned about the growth mindset in college and first applied it to her studies, she eventually chose to approach all aspects of life through a lens of hard work leads to improvement. On a recent Surf With Amigas Advanced Tube Riding Retreat, she was one o...

  • The Importance of Persistence in a Male-Dominated World - Angela's Story

    Angela got the idea to found Mamala wetsuits during Covid when she suddenly had the time and realized there wasn't a company making 2mm wetsuits for women. Angela shares a bit of her story of learning to surf in her 30s, some of the difficulties she's faced in starting a company in a male-dominat...

  • Meet Nutritionist Lisa Hoopes

    Lisa is a nutritionist and founder of Hoopes Health. She's also an amiga. She will be offering educational and empowering nutritional education for the collective. Here she introduces herself and shares a bit about her background and philosophy.

    To learn more about Lisa and her philosophy on nu...

  • Meet Amy Khoo: The Good Life After Menopause

    Amy is 52 years old and has been living in Pavones for about 30 of those years. She is incredibly fit due to a life focused on sustainability. To her, sustainability means taking care of herself and her community, keeping her joints moving, a doing a lot of fishing. Amy also leads some workouts f...