Surfer Girls Kick Ass Read online

  Surfer Girls Kick Ass

  by Tiffany Manchester

  Cover Art by Roy Ruiz

  Copyright © 2017 Tiffany Manchester

  All rights reserved. This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner.

  Printed in the United States of America

  First Edition, 2017

  ISBN (Print) 978-1-54391-194-7 (Ebook) 978-1-54391-195-4

  For more info check out: www.surfergirlskickass.com

  DEDICATION

  To all my salty sistas striving for success ~ you’ve got this!

  ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

  To Kenny baby; your unwavering support, patience, love, and trust in my process is everything. Together we make awesome awesomer, and I’m super stok-ed we’re surfing through life together. Thanks for being my Melby! To Roy Ruiz, from the moment I began writing this book I imagined your art on its cover. Thank you for drawing people in with your soulful talent and giving them the opportunity to feel the story’s vibe at first glance. To Niki Choo, who magically appeared in my life at the perfect time to help me navigate through the overwhelm. To Kris Emery, my fabulous editor who welcomed my first book into her hands and cared for it as if it were her own. To Zozo Reames, for feeling the fear but saying yes and going for it anyway. Kelsey (and Joey) Coleman, muchas gracias for jumping into this project with open arms and bringing the magic to life ~ let’s all keep winning together! To my Maderas amigos (you know who you are): thank you for receiving sessions and for joining me for ‘Breakfast at Tiffany’s’ ~ your encouragement keeps me motivated to continue with my work so thanks for playing! And of course, to my family: Mom/Claudia, Dad/Paul, and Bro/Mike/Reid for doing your best to support my unconventional lifestyle - I know I haven’t made it easy for you ;) Oh, and to the angels: yes please thank you more please!

  Table of Contents

  Introduction

  Part 1: Face the Funk Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Part 2: Find a New Flow Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Part 3: Follow the Feelgood Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

  Chapter 41

  Chapter 42

  Chapter 43

  Chapter 44

  Epilogue

  Resources

  INTRODUCTION

  When I began the writing of this book, all I knew was that it was about a pro-surfer. I honestly had no idea how it was going to unfold. But as the words landed on my screen, and as Zoe (the protagonist) embarked on her incredible journey, I realized that the story wasn’t being solely created by me. While my personal experience of heartbreak, of my adventures as a professional athlete, and of my awakening and healing in Hawaii are all weaved into the details - the angels, the fairies, mother ayahuasca, the ocean, and other beautiful energies were all there to infuse their love, support, and guidance into the process.

  Use this book to empower your mind, body, and soul… and become a better surfer!

  To get the vibes going, here is an excerpt from a poem I wrote with the angels:

  Believe in your truth

  And watch your life thrive

  Forget about the how

  Keep your eye on the why

  You were born to feel good

  Know every day drama free

  Live your life so on point

  Others can’t help but see

  All you’ve got is the present

  So let the past go

  Take care in each moment

  True love is the goal!

  xoTiff

  FACE THE FUNK

  CHAPTER

  1

  ‘Epic fail’ was all I could say to Derek as I emerged from the steep ocean trail onto the main road of Honolua Bay. He was standing at the top waiting for me.

  I stared at the ground, my head hung low, trying to avoid being spotted by the small crowd of onlookers who were mingling next to their parked cars on the edge of the hillside. I couldn’t see the disappointment in Derek’s eyes, but I could feel his sense of despair as he searched for something to say. He had no wisdom for me and, unfortunately, settled on, ‘Yeah, what happened to you out there?’

  The best I could manage was to ignore what felt like an idiotic comment. In fact, in that moment, I decided I should ignore him altogether. So that’s what I did.

  This competition was over for me. I’d been eliminated in Round Four to someone I’d thought would be a very beatable opponent. Sure, she had plenty of talent and lots of potential, but I didn’t think she’d be able to pull off an 8.53 in the last minute of our heat. I had this… I had this! I grumbled to myself.

  But I didn’t. Bailey, the fresh and enthusiastic rookie had just beaten my ass. So now I had yet another piss-poor result to add to my string of piss-poor results from this year’s World Tour – a blow to the ego for a top-ranked athlete like me. And to top it all off, it was the last event of the season. Ending on a low majorly sucked.

  In past years when I’d been eliminated early on, I was much better at dealing with it. Quick mental recovery from a loss is part of the game you have to learn to play as a professional athlete and as an ambassador of the sport. At least, it is if you want to survive. And you have to know how to survive before you can thrive. Sure, I’d still get pissed off, but I was better at masking my frustration with a smile while I brought the loss back into perspective. In the end, I knew I had to manage myself and keep it together.

  Yet this was my fourth ‘bad’ finish and I was on the verge of imploding. I’d lost confidence in so many ways this season. And right now, I just couldn’t fake it anymore. I felt like a failure and wanted to bury my head in the sand.

  But no, this was the professional surfing tour, where hiding was not an option. Being in the limelight comes with the territory, which means signing autographs, cameras following me everywhere and doing post-heat interviews. I pulled down my hat and hid my eyes with a gargantuan pair of sunnies, not willing to risk anyone seeing the truth about how I felt.

  ‘Zoe, what happened out there today? The conditions seemed a little bit challenging for you.’

  Damo was an ex-pro surfer turned commentator. He held the mic to my mouth and awaited my response. I had to dig deep to find words that I wouldn’t later regret.

  ‘Um, yeah, well… I don’t think it was so much the conditions as a series of my own mistakes. There were actually some nice waves that came through, but I couldn’t seem to find my rhythm out there today. It just wasn’t my day.’

  ‘It’s the last event of the tour. Do you have any plans for the off-season?’

  ‘Um, I don’t yet, actually. I mean, I’ll head
home to Aussie and then see what happens.’

  I was trying to be chipper – but I wasn’t fooling anyone. I made barely any effort in engaging in the interview and just wanted it done.

  ‘Well, you’ve already qualified for the Tour next year, so big congrats, Zoe. Enjoy the break!’

  I was grateful that Damo let me off easy, though I probably didn’t give him much choice. I smiled, gave a thumbs-up to the camera and quietly mumbled ‘thanks’ as I walked off the interview area and made my way to where I’d left my gear, hoping desperately not to run into anyone who’d want to talk. That was a pretty unreasonable expectation when you’re in the middle of a world-class competition at one of the best beaches and most popular surfing destinations in the world… Maui, Hawaii.

  Luckily, the other competitors were busy doing their own thing. Aside from a few nods and quick hellos, people appeared to feel my vibe and get the message to leave me alone as I crossed through the VIP area and entered the locker room. I put on my headphones and cranked up the tunes as I gathered my stuff, making an effort to shake off my bad attitude.

  It worked. Well, it worked for a few minutes anyway – which was just enough time to put on a happy face, hug a few of the ladies who were moving into the Quarterfinals, and wish them good luck. The competition was to continue through to Finals and crown a champion today. Normally I’d stick around to watch, but on this occasion I just couldn’t bear it.

  I found Derek and together we headed to the car. He strapped my board bag onto the roof while I threw my other bags into the back seat. I plopped into the front and rolled down the windows to let out all the hot air. Or was it all just my hot air? Derek started the car, then glanced over at me as he pulled onto the street. Maybe glared at me would be more accurate. It was hard to know for sure.

  ‘But for real, Zoe, what happened out there?’

  In my foul mood, I’d decided that it had to be a glare. I mean, it was obvious that what he was really asking was: how idiotic can you be? I snapped at him in response – no, in defence – to his imaginary attack.

  ‘Dude, can you just drive?’

  I stared out the window and fixated on the sparkles of the ocean as the bright sun reflected off of the water. I watched it pulse unapologetically inward, towards land. We drove along the coast, passing palm tree after palm tree, the waves rumbling in from the distance and exploding onto the rocks.

  That’s pretty much how my head feels right now, I thought to myself. Like it’s about to explode...

  ‘Zoe, don’t ignore me. Please!’ Derek begged. ‘I know there’s nothing I can say, but still, what are you thinking?’

  I looked over at him and noticed his shoulders hunched. I could tell that he was desperate to get something out of me, so I gave in:

  ‘I’m thinking I’ve digressed as a surfer, which doesn’t make sense because I’m doing everything you’ve been telling me to do, so I’m freakin’ pissed, Derek!’

  I baited him. He took the bait. And here we go again…

  ‘Oh, I get it. You want to blame everyone else? You want to blame me, right?’

  Derek’s voice was calm as he spoke. He may even have been right. But can you blame me for not wanting to hear it?

  ‘Do you really want to piss me off right now?’ I threw back at him.

  ‘Well, c’mon Zoe, of course not, but you were the one out there, not me. You’ve already proven that you can win, so what happened?’

  ‘Ugh!’ was all I could say before crossing my arms and staring back out the window in frustration. We spent the rest of the drive in silence.

  We were staying in a guest house on some oceanfront property owned by a friend of Derek. It was a small, quaint, cabin-like structure about 100 yards from the main house. The land was beautifully manicured with flowerbeds, plants, and fruit trees galore. That’s one of the many amazing things about Hawaii – if you have some land, you can grow a lot of your own food without much effort. Seriously, throw some papaya seeds into the yard and voilà!

  When we arrived back at the guest house, I placed my board bag along the side of the house, kicked off my slippas (Hawaiian for flip-flops) and left them at the door. Derek followed suit, then carried the cooler of food and drinks to the kitchen counter. Without saying a word, I dropped my other bag and headed straight to the bathroom to take a shower. I was anxious to rinse off the day, but to be honest also keen to avoid more unwelcome conversation.

  As you can tell, things hadn’t been going that well for me, and placing 13th today was one of my worst competition results to date. I’d been a professional surfer since I was 15, ranked in the top 6 for the majority of those years, and a proud winner of one incredible Championship title two years ago at just 21. At 23, and with the position I took from this season’s final competition, my overall ranking would now be 9th in the world – an absolute piss-poor result for a recent champion. And certainly for me. With only the top 10 out of 17 qualifying for the next Tour, I was freaking lucky to have made the cut.

  I probably sound like a total brat, but these past two seasons since winning that world title, well, I just haven’t been able to get my shit together and I don’t know why. I’ve been on an emotional rollercoaster, and now that rollercoaster is flying off the tracks. I dunno, maybe all the pressure to do well, as in winning every single heat, has gotten to me.

  Argh! This is no bueno! I thought to myself, shaking my head in disappointment and stepping into the shower. I plunged under the showerhead and let the water gush over my back for a couple of minutes before turning up the heat. I don’t know why, but I like the water to be so hot that it’s almost at the point where it stings, like when you first step into a steaming hot tub. It’s a mixture of pain and relief at the same time. Know what I mean?

  I stood there with the water soothing and scorching my back simultaneously, wondering what I was going to do. Oddly enough, I wasn’t wondering what to do about surfing. I was wondering what to do about Derek…

  Yes, my surfing career was an issue that needed to be dealt with, but the season was over so for now thinking about that could wait. In the meantime, my relationship was weighing on me heavily, and I had to admit I’d reached my tipping point.

  I sighed, feeling bummed that it had become such a drama.

  CHAPTER

  2

  By 18, I’d already completed two years surfing at the professional level and was moving up the ranks fast when I started dating Derek seriously. To be honest, I think my success came as a bit of a surprise to the industry. It’s pretty safe to say that all of the other girls on tour had been taught to surf as early as age four. For many of them raised in a surfing family, like Clara or Marissa, the ocean was their backyard, which meant they had already logged thousands of hours on a surfboard, with mum or dad or uncle teaching them the ways of the water and encouraging them to engage in contests.

  But that’s not how I began. I didn’t even learn to surf until I was 11. This, not surprisingly, had made me the underdog. And considering where I came from, underdog was an understatement.

  Born in the mountains of Colorado, snowboarding was my thing in the winter; skateboarding the rest of the year. I loved the mountains – especially when it came to making fresh tracks with my dad, early in the morning after a big dump of snow. Equally I loved going to the skate park with my mom, who would hang out watching me for hours while I goofed around and worked on my moves. I loved my life in Colorado. I had friends, freedom, and fresh air...

  But right after my 10th birthday, my parents suddenly split. And just like that, my world was turned upside down. As it happened, my mom had been having an affair with some dirtbag from her office, and when the dirtbag moved to Florida, she decided she couldn’t live without him. So she left us. She abandoned us. Abandoned her family.

  My dad was devastated, obviously. Yet, despite his pain dealing with the situation, he always m
ade sure he was there for me… a confused little girl who missed her mom terribly. I had nightmares for months afterwards. I was scared to be left alone, and found it hard to believe that it was all really true. I kept willing her to return, and prayed every night that she’d be home when I woke up in the morning. There was a hole in my heart that left me feeling empty, depressed, and alone in this big scary world.

  I tried to sleep in my dad’s room as much as possible, but he was worried that I’d never be able to manage on my own if it became habit, so he held strong in tucking me into my own bed. Inevitably, I’d wake up in the middle of the night freaked out, and when he heard me yelling, my dad would rush into my room to soothe my wounded soul. I don’t think either of us got much sleep during that time, which, as you can imagine, made me a total pain in the butt 10-year-old and him a fairly cranky father.

  I don’t mean to depress you! There was a bright side to all of this. The excruciating experience we went through brought us much closer together. He got a job offer back in Australia, where he came from. He hadn’t been able to get excited about anything in the year since my mom had left, but with this offer, there was a change in his demeanour. I sensed a lift in his spirits, which, in turn, lifted mine. And since I’d never been anywhere outside the United States, suddenly I became an enthused kid hopeful of a new (and happy) adventure with my dad. Plus, I was excited see where he grew up.

  While I was scared to leave behind everything familiar, including my friends, I guess somewhere in my heart I was wise enough to know that this move to Australia was what we both needed.

  And it was.

  Arriving in Sydney, I was in awe of everything. We stayed in a hotel downtown near Darling Harbour while my dad got his job sorted at his corporate headquarters. He took me to the aquarium, Sydney Harbour Bridge, Taronga Zoo and loads of other places, too many for me to remember now. I felt like I was at an amusement park every day, taking in the new rides, smells, foods, and people! After a couple of weeks at the hotel, we loaded up his new company car, and drove over the renowned bridge towards northern Sydney and into the beachside suburb of Manly.