Girls Who Surf™ highlights rad female surfers all over the world – exploring their passion for surfing and what it means to them. Meet Danielle Black Lyons (@danielleblacklyons), a surfer based in Oceanside, California & listen to her story here.
Hi, my name is Danielle and I’m a girl who surfs.
Where are you from and how long have you been surfing?
I’m from Oceanside, California and I’ve been surfing on and off for 20 years.
Why do you surf and what does it mean to you?
I surf because it makes me feel good, it’s incredible for my mental health, and a place where I can just reconnect with nature and be my most authentic self.
Describe your hometown and what it’s like being a surfer where you live.
Oceanside is your quintessential Southern California surf town. It is full of surfers and people who just love to be outdoors in general. Everyone here is pretty active and living an outdoor lifestyle. Being a surfer here is really fun! There’s always waves in Oceanside even if there isn’t really anything else happening along the coast. My home break usually provides something fun so I’m spoiled for choice. I can surf up and down the coast here – down to Mexico and I go as far north as San Onofre typically so those are usually my stomping grounds.
What is your favorite local surf spot and why?
It’s really hard for me to pick one spot that’s my favorite. I would probably say the Oceanside Harbor is where I frequent most often. It’s super close to my house and even if it’s tiny there’s always something fun. Sometimes that spot can get really big and kind of scary so I’ll venture to a more gentle reef break but the harbor usually puts up a challenge for me and keeps my skills sharp.
What do you love about your local female surf community?
So many things. It’s pretty much the reason I got back into surfing after taking a hiatus for a couple years. Moving to Southern California from the Pacific Northwest by way of London I didn’t really have a surf community with any women in it. Finding this pot of gold down here in Southern California of female surfers was life changing for me. I can paddle out to any break down here in Southern California and bump into somebody I know, which is pretty amazing. It’s been super cool to see the growth of the female surfing community, particularly for women of color down here, and just the camaraderie that comes with it. You don’t have to make plans, you can just show up and you’ll see somebody you know. And it’s beautiful. We all have this shared love of the ocean and riding waves, and I feel like that’s super unique.
Watch Danielle’s full episode below!
