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Shot
by Byron Spratt
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Courtney
Conlogue smiles much louder than she
speaks. When I ask what her least favorite part
of surfing is, an ear to ear grin creeps across
her face. Her slightly sunburned cheeks redden
even more, exposing some additional freckles on
her nose. “Losing,” she says. “Losing
to someone I know I can beat.” She looks
every bit the part of the So-Cal surfer girl as
she sits on her floor in board shorts and a Billabong
t-shirt. She's incredibly comfortable and well
versed when talking about surfing—it’s
clear she’s been interviewed before—but
when it comes to assessing her own skill level,
she becomes modestly reluctant and starts to squirm
a little.
To name losing as her least favorite part is a
very Michael Jordan-like answer and at 13 years
old, she’s walked the walk with Jordan-like
dominance over her contemporaries. Since 2004,
she’s taken first place in 13 competitions,
only once going two contests in a row without
bringing home the title (she placed second in
both).
Courtney hasn't always been so competitively driven.
“I used to think competitors were weird
and mean,” she says. For Courtney, surfing
began as a family pastime. She was introduced
to the water at the tender age of four (her vehicle...a
boogie board). It was at this time she saw her
father surfing and decided to wave good bye to
the sponge in favor of surfboard.
Right on cue, Courtney’s mother comes into
the living room bearing snacks, (honey-roasted
almonds), of which I consumed excessive amounts—“They’re
addictive, huh?” said Courtney, as I put
away yet another handful). Mrs. Conlogue started
surfing around the same time Courtney did, but
she was quick to clarify, “I don’t
surf like her.”
Courtney
flashing the style of a champion-shot by Ramon
Purcell
With her family, the Santa Ana native learned
to surf at Blacks, Newport Beach and Lower Trestles.
“At first, I was scared at Lowers,”
she says. “There were 6-foot sets, and I
was 3-foot something and 5 years old…I caught
one wave and then went back to shore.” But
by the age of 8, she was surfing 10-foot waves
at Uppers. And by 10, she entered her first surf
competition—and started racking up the titles.
The sponsorships from Billabong, Reef Shoes, Smith
Eyewear, Huntington Surf and Sport Shop, and Dakine
followed. Did I mention that she’s just
13?
These days, Courtney likes to surf Rincon, Sand
Spit, the La Jolla area, Seaside Reef, and Blacks,
even though it still scares her when it’s
big (“all those rip currents,” she
says with another modest smile). Her favorite
break is in Mexico around the Solana Cruz area,
though she won’t say exactly where. “We
just call it ‘The Jetty,’” she
says of the break she surfed at Snipe’s
and Dino’s Surf Camp this June. “It’s
a secret spot, we’re not allowed to say
the name.” It must have been pretty good
to be her favorite since she's already sampled
some of the world’s most famous surf spots.
Stylin' somewhere South of
the Border-shot by Ramon
Purcell
Now that summer has rolled around, Courtney can
spend whole weeks surfing at secret Mexican beaches,
but during the school year, she only surfs twice
a week. “Academics are number one,”
she says. “You have to have a backup plan
in case you get hurt.” Of course, this plan
still involves her love of the water—she
intends to be a marine biologist. Although she
doesn’t want to postpone college in favor
of a surfing career, she doesn’t want to
put surfing on hold either. With a bit of juggling
she’s planning a career than can coexist
with life on the professional tour and has considered
taking college courses via the Internet.
For the time being school and homework will remain
her number one priority. Unfortunately, Courtney
just doesn’t have time to surf during the
school week. That’s not to say, however,
that she takes time off from training. On top
of running with her two dogs every day, Courtney
practices yoga, archery, and Tae Kwon Do. “Martial
arts teaches you everything about life,”
Courtney says, and she credits Tae Kwon Do with
helping add power, fluidity, and stability to
her surfing style.
And what exactly is Courtney’s style? “I
try to have a powerful style like Kelly [Slater],”
she says, adding, “With his stability, he
can recover from the craziest things.” And
in competition: “I like barrels and smacks.
In my heat, I always try to get a barrel…and
I pretend I’m the only person in the water,
or else I can get stiff and fall—I’ve
done that before.” She says she’s
done that before, anyhow. But with all those titles,
and not one injury from surfing—she’s
never had stitches—I don’t think Courtney
falls very often.
“I want to be World Champion as many times
as possible,” she says, then adds with a
giggle, “Seven times…Layne Beachley
has six.” But when I asked her if she ever
thought of trying to follow in the footsteps of
Michelle Wie and Annika Sorenstam and compete
against men, she shook her head. Despite finishing
second at a 16-and-under men’s competition
last year, she says she’s only interested
challenging men for practice.
Instead, Courtney hopes to “get women [surfers]
more coverage, so we’re not seen as second
class citizens in the water.” While admitting
that she does feel a little discriminated against,
being a female surfer, she claims it only increases
her motivation to improve. “My dad reminds
me as a girl you have to show you’re good,
or people will shoulder hop you,” she says.
Then, she recalls when her mother told her about
Billie Jean King’s famous win over Bobby
Riggs in the battle of the sexes.
Indeed, it is clear that for all her goals in
and out of surfing, family takes precedence over
all else. Be it surfing at Lowers or a day at
the Go-Kart track, she made sure to include “with
my family,” when naming her favorite pastimes.
At least she’s got the support she’s
going to need if she’s to become 7-time
world champion and marine biologist Courtney Conlogue.
Interview by Ian Lovett
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