Chelsea Cervantes
Our next rider is from one of my favourite destinations in the world, Mexico.....
You would have recently seen lots of pictures emerging from Mexico from riders like Sammy Morretino, Tanner McDaniel, Valentina Diaz and Olivia Ramirez.
The surf has been going off and if you want to check the breaks out for yourself then hit up our boy Heriberto who runs surf trips via "The Puerto Experience" for a tailor made experience. www.thepuertoexperience.com
If you want to also check out Valentina's new website to check out the trips she has running there in 2021
"My name is Chelsea Julissa Menchaca Cervantes, I am 29 years old and I was born in Mexico City but when I was 10 years old my family and I moved to the city of Veracruz, located right on the coastline of the Gulf of Mexico.
I just moved to Puerto Escondido last year with the sole purpose of getting better at my surfing, training and feeling the joy of bigger and faster waves like the ones at the so called "Mexpipe"
I originally started surfing on a surfboard back in 2013 when I was still living in Veracruz with a small crew of friends who later on made the base of the surf culture in Veracruz.
The first time I visited Puerto Escondido I remember going to one of the most popular spots to surf some nice lefts in La Punta, I broke my leash so I asked a friend if I could have his boogie board ...I had an epic session and I think that it all started there with bodyboarding.
At the beginning I didn't have my own equipment so I used to go everyday to the beach to watch my friends surf and see if anyone would let me catch some waves with their boogie! One day my friend Gecko lent me his Versus board and and he let me keep it for 2 months, this helped me improve a lot.
My first boogie board was a gift and I felt very grateful and motivated at this point as I got to surf the whole season that year.
All my friends with whom I shared the waves at that time living in Veracruz (Saca, Quino, Tomas, kuinomo, morfin, mike, michel, antonio, esmeralda, miros, krystel, fabiola, pipe, roffiel, roberto, ciro, master, yogi, geko y azael) were a huge motivation and influence for me to continue learning this beautiful sport that keeps me connected, humble, strong and alive.
Definitely my all time heroes are my parents, I am very close to my family and I am truly blessed to have them always supporting and loving me, I actually miss them a lot ever since I got to Puerto but I’m also fueling a very important part of my life, a dream which surfing is for me.
In my first years of surfing in Veracruz I got to know lots of points and beaches to surf with my friends, it was an amazing chapter of my life, hitting the road with them in the search for waves which I now get to do here in the Pacific, my favourite beaches to surf in Veracruz when the season comes are destapador (destacaca), Marti, Caracol, La Tampi and Camaronera.
Until now, I also have surfed Playa Marti and Zicatela but it's one of my dreams to keep on travelling and surfing other spots of the world like Pipeline in Hawaii, Iquique, Chile, South Africa, Boca del Toro, panama, Tehuapoo, Indonesia, Nazare in Portugal and Peniche (Portugal).
Now living in Zicatela I notice more and more women are out there challenging themselves on bigger waves, either on a boogie or surf board, I love to get to the beach every morning to the faces of my friends when paddling out, I usually surf with Olivia, Yle, Kristel, Titi, Pablo, Wallaz, Lilly Giron, Paola, Pollo, Chire, Emilio, Burris, Chipi, Chimoy and other local friends with whom I’ve shared some epic sessions and fun times out of the water.
I didn't really consider myself as a competitive person until I competed for the first time in the 2018 National Games in Armeria Paraiso (Colima, Mex.) and got the 2nd place, this motivated me to stay longer in Puerto Escondido to continue training and polishing my surf in one of the fastest and most important waves in the world like Zicatela is.
In October 2019 I participated in the Zicatela Open Surf Contest, although on that occasion I did not pass my round it was a beautiful, challenging and unforgettable experience. Then in November 2019 I participated in my second national tournament at Zipolite beach (also in the coast of Oaxaca), this experience taught me a lot because about the uniqueness of the breaks, I had the _4th__ place of my category and that definitely motivated myself to continue training hard.
For many years I was a swimming instructor in a private school in Veracruz, ever since I remember, I consider water as my mother element as I have felt her call in many ways. Currently, in addition to surfing, I work at an incredible art gallery named “Gota de Tierra” located in La Punta Zicatela, in Puerto. In my spare time I make ceramic pottery in the gallery workshop.
I also love to snorkel and practice apnea exercises as a complement to my training I do yoga, dance and calisthenics.
Last year in Veracruz, several local brands supported me to help me go to my first competition; some of them are: El Puerto Tattoo, Coco Watter Bikini, El Huerto de Luna; The world of Sisi, Cenzontle Joyeria, and Jungle Jen. I am super grateful to them and all my family and friends who believed in me and supported me, so much love for all of them.
I want to do a shout out to the brands that will be supporting me this year to go in to the nationals and a couple more contests im looking forward this year; I feel so grateful their trust and support on my journey and dreams. @cocosmart.pxm @marandwana @invert_project @mito.sospresidente
I currently have 2 boogies that I love, a Science model Tanner Mc Daniel and a Pride (animal model); my current setup include hubbards and Colorada Surf Shop leashes. I think that especially for women who do extreme sports, clothing/water suits are very important to be comfortable and thus perform better. I wear swimsuits from brands proudly made by women like me who love water and action sports. My favourite brands now are Mundo de Sisi (Veracruz) and Amazonia Du Brasil (Puerto Escondido).
It would be an honour and I would love to be sponsored because this implies a greater commitment and evolution for me and thus I would also be able to have a broader voice to promote women's bodyboarding. My favorite BB brands are Science Boards, Ally Finns, Hubboards and Colorada Surfshop. Apart from my family and friends, the people who I admire the most in professional Body Boarding are: Patricia Setubal, Joana Schenker, Isabela Sousa, Pierre Louis Costes, Lewy Finnegan, Ryan Hard, Tanner McDaniel, Tristan Roberts, Jacob Romero, Mike Stewart, Alexandra Rinder, Jared Houston olivia ramirez, lili giron, Neymara Carvahillo and Jessica Becker to mention a few.
I love music and dancing, the music that motivates/inspires me the most to get myself to move, train and surf is reggae, hip hop, jazz and reggaeton.
My best memory in the water was in Zicatela at the magical time of sunset, I remember that I saw a wave form in the distance and felt as if we chose each other! It was a perfect right tube of about 6 feet that ended in a reverse and a roll with it’s respective big smile. The ocean gives me an incredible feeling of peace, when I am at sea there is nothing but my beloved sea and me.
Photo credits include:
Tony Hernández Espejo
Miguel Diaz West Side
Frame Your Wave
Tal Abarbanel
If you are need of a new wetsuit and want to support a brand that supports bodyboarding, click on the pic below to be directed to the SEN NO SEN store and a 10% discount....
If you are new equipment look no further than Bodyboard Depot, the worlds local bodyboard shop, just click on the image below to be directed to the store.......
Check out the new Thrash range just click on the pictures....
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