Surfing is a sport that can project exclusivity. Working towards inclusivity means working on multiple fronts, including surfer body positivity.
“The ocean is the place where I find the most joy,” explains Elizabeth Sneed, best known as the leader of the Curvy Surfer Girl movement. “In my heart, I knew I wanted to learn to surf to be closer to the ocean.” That’s why in 2017 at age 26, she packed up her life and left land-locked Arizona to move to the Aloha state.
There’s something truly magical about Hawaii. Its year-round tropical climate, breathtaking scenery and aloha welcome attract over eight million tourists per year. The islands are also considered to be the birthplace of modern-day surfing, with a vibrant history of wave-riding that’s as embedded into its culture as the native Hawaiian language.
The surf conditions are unbeatable too. Hawaii is the most isolated archipelago on the planet, and enjoys a 360 degree swell exposure, which allows for prime year-round surfing conditions. It’s no wonder why so many surfers are drawn to move to the islands to build momentum in their surfing journey. Elizabeth Sneed is no different and quickly adjusted to living in paradise. But as she began taking surf lessons, she faced a challenge that she hadn’t initially anticipated.
“I started surfing when I was at my heaviest, at over 210 pounds at five feet tall,” explains Sneed. “My weight and body image took a pretty big toll on me when I first started surfing.”
Sneed turned to surf media for inspiration but only found young, slim, able-bodied and pro-level surfers. She quickly noted the lack of diversity in surf media’s representation of surfers, and couldn’t find a role model to look up to.
The bodies we see in surfing media aren’t always the same surfers we see out on the waves
“Although most surf breaks have both men and women of all ages, skills and surfing abilities — most of the time, people are beginners or intermediates. But you don’t see any representation of that in surf media,” says Sneed. “One thing that negatively affected me was the notion that if I wanted to surf, I needed to be an elite athlete. Not seeing anyone but young, slim and brilliant surfing athletes represented can prevent a lot of women from even trying in the first place. Especially if they are older, have a different body type or have had children. I started to think that because of my size, I didn’t have a place in surf culture.”
Lack of representation in surf media might have initially deterred Elizabeth Sneed, but body size doesn’t determine surfing ability. There are surfers with curvier bodies who have gone down in history as some of the best of all time. In the early ’90s, larger-bodied surfer Shawn Briley was known as one of the best to have ever taken on Pipeline in Hawaii. In 2008, big-bodied Hawaiian surfer Kekoa Bacalso, also known as Bam, managed to rank 17th in his rookie season on the Championship Tour. He placed ahead of Jeremy Flores and Josh Kerr, and was signed by Rip Curl. He’s since gone on to coach the Rip Curl grom team. Then there’s Mick Lowe, who, after a glorified junior career, made it onto the Championship Tour and almost became a Pipe Master, coming in as a runner-up to Rob Machado in 2002. These surfers all made an impact on the surfing community without conforming to the typical surfing body type.
Representation in surfing is important for two reasons: perception and inclusivity. As a sport that has historically seemed exclusive for myriad reasons, representation in surf media helps people from marginalized communities feel included and welcomed into the sport. It also allows people to reinforce positive perceptions of themselves and what they could potentially achieve. Sneed’s surfing instructor understood this and encouraged her to keep going.
“She told me that surfing didn’t have anything to do with what I looked like and that if I put the time in and committed to surfing, that I’d be able to paddle, pop-up and catch waves,” explains Sneed. “I kept going but I never forgot what that felt like. I wanted to fit into surf culture and wear big-name surf brands but my body was too heavy. I had a double D chest, so I was forced to wear rash guards and sports bras while surfing because I couldn’t find any surfwear in my size. It made me feel bad about myself when I looked around the lineups and saw all of these slim, beautiful women wearing cute suits that I couldn’t wear. I felt completely left out.”
Sneed quickly learned that there were limited surf wear options readily available for plus-sized women. Most major brands offered very few options above a size large, forcing plus-sized women to order custom-made or men’s suits to be able to get in the water.
“Wetsuits for women usually go up to a size 14, which is a barrier to entry for anyone who has a bigger size and wants to join the lineup. It forces anyone beyond a size 14 around the world into ill-fitting men’s wetsuits or having to pay more for a custom-made suit. It perpetuates this patriarchal misogyny that women over a size 14 shouldn’t have size options.”
With the support of her instructor, Elizabeth Sneed overcame both barriers to entry, continued her surfing journey, and often frequents her favorite Hawaiian break, Pops, which is the outer reef behind Canoes to the west of Waikiki. “I love going out there on a 2-4 foot day with these beautiful, long rolling waves,” says Sneed. “It’s like a 20-minute paddle to get to, but so worth it. The waves roll in, build momentum and have this slow ride down that just goes and goes. You can get over one and a half minute rides at Pops on a good day, so it gives me the opportunity to practice more complex maneuvers, whether it’s my bottom turns or if I’m working on getting to the nose regularly. It’s out in the middle of the ocean, and the waves are just, they are pure magic.”
For three years, Elizabeth Sneed continued to build her surfing skills at longboarding breaks around Oahu. Then in June 2020, Sneed realized that if she wanted the surfing industry to have a surfing plus-sized role model, she was going to have to become it. So she created Curvy Surfer Girl, a community dedicated to providing the body-positivity and encouragement to women of different body types that Sneed had missed out on when she began her surfing journey.
“I’m most proud of having the courage to start Curvy Surfer Girl because I was absolutely terrified of becoming the face of this movement,” admits Sneed. “But I don’t want other women to feel as excluded as I did when I started surfing. Having surfwear that fits is an integral part of the starting process, and one negative experience can put you off surfing forever. If it wasn’t for my instructor, I probably would have given up, too.”
Since starting Curvy Surfer Girl, Sneed’s community has grown into the thousands. She has built her community through an online forum, as well as by arranging in-person photoshoots, paddle-outs and surf retreats for women of all sizes and backgrounds to participate. As the curvy Surfer Girl movement has grown, Sneed has even collaborated with surf brands to encourage them to offer a wider selection of sizing for women. In February 2021, Sneed partnered with Rip Curl for a campaign that was a world-first in incorporating plus-sized surfers. Sneed has also partnered with other surfwear brands to expand further the availability of plus-sized options.
“We’re now seeing major corporate surfing brands starting to move in the direction of body positivity,” adds Sneed. “These are conversations that were not even on the table before the Curvy Surfer Girl movement. So that’s a huge accomplishment that all of the women in our community have been able to leverage our voice to show how important it is.”
“If surf brands expand their collections to allow any body size to surf, then we’re removing barriers of entry, so more people can join in,” explains Sneed. “This can only be a good thing because it means more profit for surf brands.”
This month, Sneed has collaborated with swim and surfwear brand Jolyn for their first surfwear collection, which is aimed at supporting surfers of any ability level and size, by using sea-flex fabric, UPF 50+ protection and having a non-slip fit.
“Jolyn was the first surf wear purchase that I made that made me feel like I fit in,” says Sneed. “They catered to my size, were stylish and supportive. It was revolutionary. So partnering with Jolyn has helped me bring the same feeling to more women. Their designs are made for surfers, so you don’t have to worry about lack of coverage or mishaps. I’m so stoked to partner with them.”
From building an inclusive community of body-positive women from all over the world to influencing surf brands to rethink their sizing options for women’s surfwear, it’s clear that Elizabeth Sneed is set to cultivate a more inclusive environment for women who want to surf.
Her next goal? Wetsuits. “So many women contact me to say that they can’t find a wetsuit that fits them. So that is something that I will continue to advocate for with my community. I’m fine with companies saying that it may take some time to make those changes, but so far no one has risen to the occasion. So that’s something that I will continue to advocate for alongside my community.”
“I’m mobilizing our community of almost 100,000 women to continue to put pressure on surf brands and leverage our voice and influence to make these changes happen. So that’s what I’m going to continue doing, so we can make surfing more accessible for more women.”