Girls Who Surf™ highlights rad female surfers all over the world – exploring their passion for surfing and what it means to them. Meet Sophie Spanehl, a surfer originally from Berlin, Germany who is now based in Costa Rica & listen to her story here.
Hello, my name is Sophie and I’m a Girl Who Surfs.
Where are you from and how long have you been surfing?
I’m from Berlin, Germany. I started surfing quite late around four years ago when I started traveling, and for the last three years, I lived in Costa Rica to improve my surfing.
Why do you surf and what does it mean you?
When I sit in the ocean on my surfboard, everything else in my mind gets so silent and they just focus on the next wave. It’s such a challenging sport. Every time I learn something new, it also helps me a lot to practice patience and to trust myself because especially if you didn’t grow up with this beautiful spot, I feel the ocean sometimes can be intimidating and scary. In these moments, it always helps me to focus on my breathing and to control my fear. That also helps me in my day to day life when I’m not in Costa Rica.
Describe your hometown and what it is like being a surfer there.
Back in my hometown, sometimes it can be frustrating because I don’t have the waves nearby. I also really love to surf skate with my friends here and to go to the city wave. You also always can improve your surfing even if you don’t have the ocean around.
What do you love about your local female surf community?
What I love about the female surfer community is that I always feel so inspired, empowered, and strong, seeing a girl in the water who catches a wave. It makes me so happy to see it because it’s still such a male-dominated sport. I think more girls should go out there and shred it. It’s never too late to start.
Watch Sophie’s full episode below!
