This is where I have been.
27-Nov-2014
The last year and a half has been a little crazy. I sometimes need to sit down and look around me and let it all sink in.
As some of you probably noticed, I retired from the professional windsurfing scene at the end of 2012 after many years of fun, travels, competition and dreams come true.
When I started windsurfing as a kid on our beautiful lake, surrounded by mountains and rarely getting more than a couple of knots of wind, one of my dreams was to ride waves in Australia, to live out of windsurfing and travel the world following wind and waves.
It took years of hard work, dedication and stubbornness, but it paid off and I did it.
Looking back on these amazing years of freedom, adventures and unforgettable friendships makes me smile. I wouldn’t change any of it - even the less good parts.
I am sitting at home in Western Australia writing this while our beautiful, healthy and happy 4 month old daughter Isla is sleeping peacefully. And I can’t believe our luck. I am eternally grateful for our lives and for having her.
I am sleeping less, windsurfing and surfing less... spontaneous trips definitely need a little more organisation... my hair isn’t bleached by the sun like it used to be and I some days have bigger bags under my eyes than after a PWA closing ceremony in Fuerteventura... But being a Mum is the best thing in the world.
So yeah, retiring from windsurfing and becoming a Mum have been quite big changes in our lives.
But we didn’t sit around for the last 18 months. While I was working as a sports coach for children, running my windsurfing coaching and doing childcare work, Simon and his brother, Ben, have been working harder than anyone I know.
Starting from scratch on a bare piece of land, they built a mind-blowing place. Go and check for yourself, it’s worth a look: www.perthwakepark.com.au, or even better, if you are around come for a ride or a coffee. I am so proud of them and what they achieved.
