Interview With Rochelle Ballard

I spoke to Rochelle Ballard the day before she left her home on the North Shore of Hawaii for the 1999 ASP Women’s Tour. The first stop is Australia, then Tahiti, then Japan, South Africa, California, England, France, back to Hawaii, then Brazil, and back to Hawaii around October for the winter season. Now I call that a lot if travel! Rochelle calls it a ritual.

Here’s the best of our conversation, I thought East Coast surfer girls would want to read it. She stoked me so much all I wanted to do when I got off the phone was go surfing. And still every time I read her words I can’t help but get ancy and want to surf. Rochelle is definitely stoked and on her way to World Champion.

What’s the reality of all that traveling? Don’t you miss your home?

Sometimes you go a little crazy, you get really homesick. We (she and her husband Bill Ballard) purposefully live on the North Shore of Oahu so I am home when it’s Triple Crown Season. You get used to it. The first couple years on the tour is weird. I went through this trippy phase of wondering if this is what I really wanted to do. It’s very intimidating.

What would you like to see happen with the Women’s Pro Tour?

I’d love to see a specific person, like a woman, take the position of marketing director. Someone who can focus on the imagery and public relations of the women’s side of surfing. The guys are so focused and attentive to what they need, they haven’t paid attention to the needs and key market areas of the women.

Why do you think Australian women dominate the tour?

I think it’s because in Australia surfing is such a major sport. In America there are so many other sports you can do. Surfing has never topped the list as a career sport. There’s not a lot set up for the youth to really push and accelerate them. In Australia there are great programs in the schools. There are a billion girls that surf in Australia; girls have always been surfing there. It’s a well-respected sport. Girls like Pam Burridge, Wendy Botha, and Jodi Cooper speak at government functions!

(Here Rochelle sort of digresses into this beautiful account of the history of surfing)

In the early days of surfing in Hawaii, royalty were the only privileged people who could surf. They surfer on really heavy wooden boards and it was more like a love connection with the ocean. It moved the common people. Surfing has always been a spiritual thing to where you feel the energy in the ocean, and you tune into that energy and focus on it.

Do you feel pressured during contests with so many people watching you?

Yeah sometimes. I care what the audience thinks. I want to put on the best performance I can. When I’m in the water I’m focused on winning and that’s it, when I get out and I’m on the beach I’m thinking about my performance in front of all those people.

Do you think the atmosphere of women surfing together will change with more girls paddling out and more girls entering competitions?

No, I don’t think so. It’s like any group of girls getting together. We laugh, giggle, and do stupid things. Surfing is such a playful sport; we can easily stay silly.

Any advice for East Coast surfer girls who are trying to make the tour?

Keep on a program. Surf local contests. Get out and travel! Like the country girl going to the city, you have to travel. I was raised on Kauai, nobody knew who I was my entire amateur career. It wasn’t until I moved to the North Shore that I started getting exposure.

What can I do as a surfer girl to promote and protect the women’s surf scene?

The main thing is to never forget the love you have for the ocean, always remember that. Respect in the water is huge, always remember the silent rules of surfing. Respect the surfers around you, but also know how to be aggressive. As women we bring grace and beauty and laughter to surfing. Just being who we are brings a completely different presence to surfing.