As a gooey-eyed teenager, living at least 2 hours away from anything remotely surfable (on the correct tide, with the right swell direction and near perfect wind conditions), I just thought that she was the coolest woman on the planet and seemed to epitomise everything that appealed to me about surfing.
What I am trying to do with this blog post is to somehow put into words, why I adore this woman so much. Firstly we have:
Her Surfing...
Kassia Meador is a long boarder mainly riding single- fin logs, and for those that don't understand what the heck that means, I shall explain a little further...it basically means that she rides a longer board (well duh!) with only one fin (again duh!) which is the most traditional way to surf.
She oozes style in the water and seems to dance along the face of the wave rather than attacking it like some surfers do on the shorter, thruster (three fin) boards. It's not about getting as many manoeuvres in as you can per wave but looking good and having fun instead. If I'm not explaining myself properly just watch this magic below, taken from Nathan Oldfield's 'The Heart & The Sea', it's just stunning.
She rarely competes, preferring the lifestyle of travelling and experiencing cultures rather than spending time in highly- competitive contests, but when she does compete it's more to promote the sport of long boarding in lesser known countries rather than to win prizes (an example of this is her involvement in bringing the Swatch Pro to China).
Her Style...
Not just content with being an amazing surfer, this woman has ridiculously cool style both in and out of the water. She has been designing her own wetsuits for the past few years, initially as a range for Roxy and now under her own brand K A S S I A. It's hard to look cool in a full length, black, seal looking super tight wetsuit but Kassia's designs go a long way to combat this.
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| Taken from Kassia's Instagram |
Out of the water, she is all about the relaxed, loose layers with funky round sunglasses and a crazy collection of hats (her bf is hat designer Nick Fouquet after all), reflecting her easy going and care-free personality.
She even designs fins for the super cool Captain Fin Co once again combining her love of all things surfing with her creative flair.
And finally simply...
...Her
Speaking like some cheesy surfer, straight out of Point Break, she is the ultimate stereotype dropping terms like 'rad' and 'gnarly' in every sentence but without coming across as a try hard- it's just the way she is.
Seemingly always being positive in interviews and genuinely 'stoked' on life, her enthusiasm is infectious and it's hard not to be grinning like a cheshire cat after watching a clip or reading an article on her.
She does have her own mind however and is not afraid to speak up for she believes in. The Inertia did a series of short interviews with famous surfers last year and asked Kassia's opinion on the disappointing aspect of the women's surf scene being dominated by imagery and sexuality, rather than on ability like the men's sport.
Here is the interview:
If you want to learn any more about this fantastic woman, then follow the links below to some of my favourite articles and clips:
- Here Kassia and a fellow surfer; Colin Whitbread, appear in the music video of the song 'Kentucky' by Billie Joe Armstrong and Norah Jones.
- You know you've made it when you get into Vogue, here is an article entitled Kassia Meador's Summer Diary: What to Surf, Cook and Make in Montauk and Malibu from vogue.com.
-So many amazing photos, some really good questions & some really good answers. Great interview from Freunde Von Freunden
- Out of her usual beachy surroundings, this clip sees Kassia cruising round inner-city Brooklyn over at Vice.com on their 'Hi Shredability' series.
- Finally, this photo article gives you an insight into Kassia's abode (which is every bit as cool as her fashion sense), in a series of articles called Surf Shacks over at indoek.com.
Hello and welcome to This Ruth Is On Fire, a UK blog which is a haven for random thoughts and sarcastic observations.
I'm also into books, clothes and visiting places too.
