Karen Allison is beautiful in the water. She looks so dainty, lightly stepping across her board. She's graceful with a womanly style of her own. Karen will patiently wait for just the right wave. She's thoughtful and to her the timing must be just right. Karen is a joy to watch in the water. She's usually laughing and having more fun than anyone else.

Karen Allison has become a true and helpful friend to me. She stepped in to help out with the East Coast Wahine Championships when I was in way over my head. At first she only wanted to help "a little bit." She soon felt the energy and was full force, organizing, offering advice, running a thousand errands, she's lucky she didn't lose her real job as a real estate agent.

Karen has often stayed one step behind the spotlight, you see, her husband is Will Allison, a well known surfer/shaper in the southeast. So Karen, this time the spotlight is on you!

  When and where did you start surfing and how did you get started? I tried to surf in 1980 and got hurt pretty bad.  The boards were so short that it made it difficult to learn.  This may have really hurt womens surfing in the 80s.  I started bodyboarding and competed in a few contests. In 1984 I purchased a custom 6'4" from Allison Surfboards and started surfing.  It was wide and round on the nose and the tail a real egg.  After four years of constant bodyboarding I was ready to stand up and go.  In 1989 my husband Will Allison gave me a longboard for our first wedding anniversary.  I loved it!!

  What was the atmosphere like in the water the first few years surfing? Has it changed, gotten more crowded/competitive/? The atmosphere in the water was not easy.  The short board 80s were very competitive.  Most of the guys were very aggressive.   Today it is more crowded than ever but the crowd is mixed with older men and women and younger surfers. It seems to be turning into a fun not so serious atmosphere.

You have a beautiful daughter. Did you surf while you were pregnant, and how long after you had Bonny til' you went surfing again? Of course I surfed when I was pregnant! We were in Hawaii when I was five months along.  I just surfed the small waves on the south shore.  I was showing and it really was no big deal over there.  I was back out in the surf 13 says after Bonny was born.

Do you plan to get your daughter into surfing? When? I am preparing my daughter for surfing with dancing and swimming lessons. I have decided to make her beg to surf.  Surfing will not be something she is forced to do. It will be a reward when she is ready.

What do you think of all the young girls surfing these days? It helps me so much. I just want to paddle up to them and thank them for coming.  Like some little tea party or something.

When you first volunteered to help with the Wahine contest, I don't think you realized just how much you were going to give. You dove in head first and gave it everything and more. Why do you think we let this once a year contest consume us?! I just want it to be the best contest in the world.  We need to give back a little of what surfing has given us.

Did you ever compete? Why do you suppose some people compete and some people just surf? I never had enough time to compete. I did a few events here and there and really enjoyed them. I am a longboarder most of the time and there are very few longboard contest for women.

Tell me about your quiver of surfboards. What sizes, what shapes? 7' Allison - My move back to a shorter board. 7'7" Allison, my Masonboro board, easy to paddle the inlet and has safety fins for the fast top to bottom waves. 8' Allison, my first longboard from 1989. 9' Allison  new - My Christmas present from my husband (shaper), three fins fast fun.

What if anything intimidates you or makes you shy or scared when it comes to surfing? It really scares me when I see people paddle out in conditions that they are not ready for.  When I see girls just learning to surf go out in top tp bottom waves I panic.

Oh yeah, tell me about some killer places youv'e surfed!! Ecuador, Costa Rica, Barbados, California, New York (a real  surprise), Hawaii (always the best by far).  North Carolina (my home).