Confessions of a Surf Lady | The First Women's Surfing Podcast™

75. Stronger Than Ever: The Joy of Surfing Over 50 with Sassy Silver Surfers

• Laura Day at The Surf Société • Season 6 • Episode 75

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What does it feel like to paddle out in your fifties, sixties, or even seventies? For the women of the Sassy Silver Surfers Club, it feels like freedom. It feels like strength. And most of all, it feels like proof that surfing doesn’t have an age limit.

In this episode of Confessions of a Surf Lady, The First Women’s Surfing Podcast™, I’m joined by co-founders Lisa Alfano and Inessa Love, who started surfing later in life and quickly realized how few role models they saw in the lineup. Together, they created the Sassy Silver Surfers—a vibrant community for women 50+ who are showing up with courage, joy, and inspiration.

Through heartfelt confessions from their members, Lisa and Inessa share stories of women who started surfing at 57, became instructors in their fifties, and even returned to the waves at 72. These are stories of resilience, self-discovery, and the wisdom that comes from embracing life fully at every stage.

This is a conversation that will make you laugh, tear up, and walk away believing that your best waves may still be ahead of you.

Main Themes

  • Redefining Surfing After 50
    Lisa and Inessa share their personal journeys—one from triathlons, the other from Hawaii—and how they built a thriving community that proves surfing isn’t just for the young.
  • Challenging Ageism in Surf Culture
    The women of Sassy Silver Surfers are breaking stereotypes and pushing back against the idea that you’re “too old” to surf. Their stories show how visibility creates change.
  • The Power of Community
    From laughter to tears, their group is living proof that women thrive together. Community provides encouragement, role models, and the space to grow at any age.

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Confessions of a Surf Lady, women's surfing podcast, is supported by The Surf Société, our unique digital women's surfing platform where we come together to Learn More. Surf Better. Live Happy. Learn more at Surfsociete.com

not prioritizing myself, created all sorts of negative consequences in my lab. Actually, actually didn't serve anyone, it didn't serve me, and it actually didn't serve my family. So if I found surfing earlier and allowed myself to just. Do it and just do it for myself. I would've been much happier sooner. It took a divorce for me to start moving and to start prioritizing myself. If I could tell my younger self, is Your happiness has to be a priority. Because that is what I could build on. Everything else could follow. Hi ladies. Welcome to Confessions of a Surf Lady. Today I have with me Lisa and Anesa. They are the founders of the Sassy Silvers Surfer Club. So stoked to have you. This is a group of women, 50 plus surfers, um, and you guys have been building a vibrant and beautiful community. To me, I just look up to you ladies so much because what you show me is something to look forward to, how you show up in the lineup, how you show up with your passion. I think it's really beautiful and very inspiring. So we're here to like, talk about some of the confessions from your club today. This is the first time we've done this, actually a little CoLab with, uh, a group with a. A specific confession story. So I'm really excited that we got to do this whole conversation together. But before we go into that, I want to hear more about the Sassy Silver Surfers Club, tell us how it all started, how you guys came together and where everything's at., We're so happy to be here, Laura. It's just. Yeah, just awesome. Um, let's see where to start. So I'll try to do this, the Cliff notes. Um, I started, uh, training for triathlons when I was 50 and I didn't see myself much in our races. Like my age group was really small and fast forward. Um, I started surfing at 57 and once again. I didn't see us, me my age range, um, out in the lineup very much. And so I was following some surf groups and I said, wow, how can we gather women 50 and over and have it on a Facebook community and then that's how it got started. And Vanessa and I are co-founders of Sassy Silver Surfers. We came at it from different places, but our goal and mission, um, is the same and it is in alignment of bringing women 50 and over who are surfing together. Amazing. And that's Lisa, just by the way, because I just realized or they won't get a visual of you. So yeah, that's Lisa. Um, that's so amazing. And Lisa and Vanessa, you wanted to share too, more kind. Of like where your background is and how you came into this. Uh, in the way it's a little similar. I started surfing at 50. The reason I didn't start earlier is because I didn't think I could. I never knew anyone who was my age and just learning to serve. I lived in Hawaii by that time, eight years since I was Wow. till 50, and it didn't occur to me that this was accessible to me, and it was absolutely random that I started surfing when a friend my age invited me for surf lesson. It was COVID and nothing else to do, and I said yes. But for me, it's having those role models of people my age that I felt like I didn't have, and my desire for this club and. What I'm doing now on Instagram, which I'll tell later, is provide these role models and so people can see that, okay, this is actually accessible to us. We can do this. And it gave me inspiration too, whenever I would see an older woman in the lineup, because when I was learning to serve, it was a very long journey for me. I was struggling for the first two years. Until I started getting it. But anytime I would find an older woman in the lineup, I would kind of look up to her and I'll try to befriend them. And I try to talk to them and just. Is giving me that encouragement that, okay, I'm not too old. I can do this. And so that's kind of my, uh, side. Why I am passionate about both this group and this work is to create this encouragement and inspiration for older women to, to, to take on surfing or to take on something else that may be difficult. And they may think like, , I'm too old for that. I don't like that. Belief that we are too old for something. I think we are never too old to try and learn something new. Beautiful. If you are saying like you've entered sport and then you didn't really see as many women or role models, were you surprised at how many women there were that started joining your group? Yes, I think I, I was, How did that feel? oh, it feels great. And we've asked our communities, you know, what's so special about this group or what's different about this group? And so many women said, because it's, it gives me a sense that I'm not alone. It gives me a sense that there's wider community of similar women like me. There was just so many people said. That similar thing about our group. So they all find it valuable to be this, even though we kind of exclusive and we only let women 50 and over, and sometimes women who are like 47 wanna join. I'm like, okay, we'll see you in three years. Um, but I, we find that having that protected community, it's very valuable to our folks. Yeah. really beautiful. Yeah, and I, I'll echo a little also what Vanessa said. So I was, um, pleasantly surprised and also dismayed is not really the proper word to use, but the amount of women who. Responded and then started joining. It made me realize that, wow, this really is a need that we're trying to, fill and provide a community for, for us to gather and be in community and wow, there's more women that. I was surprised. And now our, our community member base, the numbers keep on raising. You're. Creating obviously the space that did didn't exist for you, and then welcoming all these people into it and showing that you can do anything at any age. And I, I love it so much. I, I look up to you ladies. I hope to surf with you one day. You keep me inspired and just like really excited about the future. I think that's for me. I'm 37. So to be in an age group that I think youth is, so I idealized, you know, and I'm kind of phasing out of that. I'm not 20 anymore, but learning to look up to where you have been, what lessons you've learned, um, how much you're enjoying life. I think that's, that's why are we not telling that story more like, why not? There's a lost story about how. Important. The matriarch figure is in community. I was talking to Danielle, one of the groups, one of the women in, , surf Society, and she was talking about how there's certain species, I think it's whales and. Elephants and then humans that go through menopause and the evolutionary biological reason why is because those species have realized the importance of the older female woman and childbirth is the most dangerous thing that a woman can go through, that the knowledge. For those communities need to be carried through from the grandmother figure. Um, so I think it's just so under underrated. I think community and the surf culture doesn't pay attention enough to women who are older, and I love that you're creating that space and just showing that you can do it and empowering the women around you. Yeah. Thank you. I, I love that story. The concept of aging, right? We live in an ageist society in the United States. I can't comment on other countries, but I do know that other cultures value , they appreciate and they embrace folks as they age, but, um, we don't, and I think that's changing a little bit, but yeah. So you have that ageism factor where, when we turn 50, I'll speak from my perspective, right? From what I experienced, it's like, oh, you're too old to start. Triathlon or you're too old to start surfing or you're too old to start this why aren't you slowing down and why? It's because you're getting too old. And even the medical profession sometimes, well they lay boundaries right at when you reach a certain point, you're, you shouldn't be doing X, Y, z 'cause you could break bones. So that's a long story by saying we are really addressing ageism as well. Trying to be advocates of do what you feel is. And good for you. And because we age is not a deterrent from starting things such as surfing or being in the surf world at 50, 60, 70, even into your eighties. That's awesome. Well, before we get into our. Can I, is there anything I can open up the floor? Tonessa, did you wanna share more about Instagram or the, some of the projects you're working on? Oh. Sure. So we have this Facebook group, which as I said, closed community and Instagram is sort of a public face where we share some of the stories of our members. And as an inspiration to younger women so anyone can follow and it, in fact, I think the target audience are like maybe women in their late thirties and forties who are already starting to think, oh, I'm too old. And now when they see older women, 50, 60, and even 70 surfing, I'm getting so many messages from women in that category, said. Wow, I'm gonna try it. You know, I always wanted, but I thought I was too old and now I'm gonna try it. So that's like super exciting to me and totally on board with this defying age stereotypes. And so many of my, my, one of my favorite saying it, you know, we don't, we don't stop playing because we get old. We get old because we stop playing. Right? So it's just like we can play and we can get better at any age. That's something that's, blew my mind when I went on this cycling trip last summer and I met a woman who was 85 years old on a cycling trip and it was 250 mile trip. I couldn't do that. I, I didn't think I could either. I was 54 and struggling, really struggling, and I trained really hard for three weeks and I went on this trip and I was really struggling. And on the first day there's, at the end of 50 mile day, this woman just passed me on the hill, on the uphill. We rode together for a little bit when it was flat, and then the last big hill, and she just went and I was like. Well, what is that? And so I wanted to meet her and to learn from her the secrets. How is it possible that 85-year-old woman can be stronger than I was at 54? And this, the solution is very simple. It's just keep moving. It's just keep doing it. It's not always easy because we have to do it at the level of intensity that is required to maintain and build that strength. But one of my most favorite thing saying these days is the more we move, the stronger we become. And that can start at any age. So I'm a big advocate for movement. At any age. A hundred percent on board. Um, Alexis Peer, who's one of our mentors in surf society and a member, she's a rehab chiropractor, and she says, the same thing just, and even in terms of injury. The moment you stop moving is the moment everything stops working. So Absolutely. Whether it's injury or age, the body, the body is amazing. And we don't give it enough credit just because we've reached a certain age. So that's really beautiful. I'm, I'm so stoked. I'm just, I love the energy, so thank you Yeah. I just wanna say one more thing. We have this saying that everybody knows if you don't use it, you lose it, but. I think that's a negative spin on it. It doesn't inspire you, it creates fear. What inspires you is the opposite of it. The more you move, the stronger than become, you become. And I feel like taking that common saying that everybody knows, which is a hundred percent true, but it doesn't inspire us and turn it into this. The inspiring way of saying the same thing, the more you move, the stronger you become. And then people start thinking, oh, if I move more, I'll become stronger. It's, I'm very big on the mindset and how we use language. So I've been, you know, start on my Instagram also promoting this more positive messaging about aging and movement and the power of movement to defy the myth that it's all downhill. It's not downhill if you keep moving. And to, to plug me for a real quick second. My mantra is I have it on my website. Age is not our limitation. It is our inspiration. And so whenever I start, . Seeing some comments from our members or even from myself. I'm like, okay, so it's my inspiration. It's my inspiration. Who is inspiring? Those folks are inspiring me. It's not this like, I can put so much limitation on myself, but when I turn that mantra around and it just brings up my, the brain energy. Mm-hmm. that I, I'm with you enough. I'm the same. In terms of like, is this phrase really truly serving me? Is it something I just say?'cause I think that, you know, I have to say it. And how can I? Think about it and say it in a way that is absolutely inspiring and really lifts you up and, and pushes you to where you wanna go. So I love the intricacy in that and I think, again, that's the wisdom of a woman who is 50 plus. And that's why we need you ladies around and sharing your stories. Um. Well with that, I think I found the perfect confession for us to start with. Uh, and so for your group, we asked the sassy silver surfers, how does it feel to be. A 50 plus woman surfer. Um, and then we also asked you, knowing what you know now, what would you tell your younger self? So here is a confession for how does it feel to be a 50 plus woman surfer from the sassy silver surfers. I started surfing when I was 58, 3 years ago, I feel only stronger with every surf I go for. It makes me feel alive and happy. Now, I cannot imagine myself without surfing. I do not feel my age. I developed a back problem from too much sitting in front of the computer 20 years ago, but now I don't get it because I stay active all the time. So I feel younger and stronger now than 20 years ago. I'm also proud of being 50 plus, actually 60 plus because I can prove that women this age are full of energy and courage and have the power and confidence. Also being older, that other female surfers makes me care less about how I look, focus more on learning and the skills and progressing further in my surfing. I wanna learn how to cross step on my longboard. I wanna learn how to turn on my shortboard. Wanna get some incredible waves. I feel like a teenager. Crazy, happy, but I also feel more confident to talk to younger surfers, both male and female, and encourage them. This actually goes for a while, so I'll, I think that's a. Good place to start. Actually I'm reading it. I was like, is this an Vanessa's confession? No, because I'm only 54, I Yeah. I was calculating, at the moment, it sounded like it. writing, I was calculating, but this one actually came in, um, as anonymous, so there's no, there's actually no name to it. So whoever, you know, if you're women are listening, they might be like, oh, that's me. Um, but it's beautiful. I that, that's an amazing story. Oh, that's wonderful. I got the chills. I was, as you were reading it. It's so true. I hear it so many times that I am stronger now than I was when I was younger, and it's absolutely true for me. I'm approaching 55, I'm stronger than I was at 25 and 35 probably combined because I was not an athlete. I don't come from athletic background, and that's the main difference with me and Lisa. I wasn't. And so the older I became, the more active I started to be. In my forties I hiked, and then in my fifties I started surfing. And so this woman who confessed, we just read, she said, I feel stronger and better because I don't have a back pain anymore. Isn't that amazing? I hear this so many times from the women. In our community that they feel stronger now and a lot of them now from surfing get inspired to add on gym workouts and that sort of the synergy of it gets even better. how did it feel for you and ett, uh, to not come from an athletic background and then start discovering like, oh my gosh, all these things my body can do and all these things I can be a part of. Yeah, it feels amazing. It feels super empowering. So by, by the time I got to 50, I was already fairly active, but definitely not an athlete. Right? I was hiking and doing yoga and doing acro yoga for maybe five years before I started surfing. So I, I, I started feeling stronger as I got more active. Then surfing made me even stronger. And then Lisa, for you, completely different kind of background because you came as a triathlete, incredibly athletic. I've been an athlete all my life and surfing came pretty easy to me. And what's the most difficult part? And where I have grown the most is emotionally and mentally. Triathlons have taught me that I can do almost anything. I'm extremely driven. I'm very focused on a schedule. When you're doing half Ironman's, you have to be on this specific schedule I took that training to surfing and it's, it's great. It's this mental capacity of me saying, I'm not good enough. Am I strong enough? Am I too old? Wow. Like all the stresses of my day. And when I get on that surfboard, it all goes away. And so I am calm, I'm at peace. Um. I'm confident I have the courage and just being on that surfboard, it's irrelevant to me about my athleticism. It is all about the mental strength that I've gained and it's, um, it's pretty amazing and it's really what drives me needing, not wanting, needing to live out a coast because I am so at peace and so healthy in mind when I'm on my surfboard. Do you feel that there's less of an intensity on like training and practice versus like the triathlons? Totally. I, thanks. That's a really good question, and I'm sitting here shaking my head yes, as it's an easy answer, and I never thought about it that way. Yeah. I don't focus on that intensity because I, huh. Just think about that now because when I get out into the water it's just, it just happens. You know, I love the ocean. She calls to me, she is this raging force of nature that I don't, I can't overcome because it's, she is who she is and we just get on the board and you know, the ocean takes us. Um, so yeah, I don't have that intensity sense of training 'cause it just happens. It's, it's a really interesting little micro moment story. Uh, I've been thinking a lot because I used to be a CrossFit trainer, so that's intense. Absolutely. And I've been thinking a lot more lately about the types of training and types of lifestyle where you don't need the intensity to thrive. Um, just like completely different mindsets, right? So, um, days where I've like, oh, I need a workout. Well, what, what do I really need? Do I need to do a hard workout? Or I do, I need just calm my nervous system down and going into the ocean and being like, okay, this is just a moment where I just. Need to like let everything, all the nerves calm, everything come down, and letting that be enough has, I think, really been beautiful for my personal mental health instead of always striving to achieve just being. Yesterday I got in the water and I went with a friend of mine who I used to surf with all the time. We got to the coast and the waves on the outside were huge and. The wind was crazy. And my friend Sarah, she wanted to be in the whitewater 'cause she hasn't been on a board in a while, and I, I stayed with her and I'm frustrated. I don't like to surf in the whitewater and all of these words are coming to my brain. Then I realized. I could have just as much fun and I'm watching her and I'm with my friend and it's just beautiful. It's so.- I wanna, um, jump in on this thread because there is something that I'm also passionate about and this is the benefits of being older. Woman, which nobody talks about, and which I didn't hear when I was, you know, getting into this age. And one of the benefit that I see and I hear from people is we are less driven. Like in this Lisa store, we can just enjoy the moment more. We can just learn to enjoy the, the white water perhaps, or just enjoy every wave and there is more patience. I actually ask this question. Just a few days on our group. We have these discussion questions every week, and this is some of the answers. I'm not so preoccupied with how I look anymore. You know, I get more patience. I have less mental baggage. Um. I get more respect when I'm charging in the lineup. I can serve any time because we have more free time. So there is this positive aspects of aging and our society only focuses on negative aspects so much, and it's not only negative, there's just positive too. So why don't we have a more balanced. Picture of what aging is. There are gifts that only come with age, and one of them is just like, you know, being a little more chill and that's a great thing. And what I like to say is it's taking me five years to learn how to ride two feet waves. And it's taking me 54 years to learn how to enjoy two feet ways and not needing to go further, how to be okay with where I'm at. And that also comes with age, and those are beautiful things that come with age. How do you think? Um, I don't wanna ignore our confessions, but I'm like, Ooh, I wanna get, as a woman, 50 plus. Comparing to your experience younger when you maybe did care about how you looked or did care about what? Tell, tell me about those differences. Like how do you feel when you're ex, when you're in the water or anything that you are doing? I don't really give a crap any longer. About how I look in terms of. Being out on the board. Um, I do have to say though, a friend of mine I was mentioning last night, she just turned 60 and I mentioned to her yesterday that, you know, I'm slowing down a little bit and I don't want to. And she's like, just embrace it. I, I don't really want to. So on the one hand, I really enjoy just being out there and I'm okay with where I'm at, but I still have that drive and it kind of, it, um. Sometimes it's in, not incongruent with one another. But with that being said, um, being an older surfer, an older woman, I care less about what other people think of me. I am really sitting in myself and trying to be more accepting. It's a little softening. Like that drive, it's still there. You know, I still wanna improve. I don't wanna lie, but it's softer and it's not just quite in your face anymore. And that drive to perform and to show up and to impress other people and to be this or that, and it's really softening of that I'm like, how many years do I have till? You can start now. There is no rule. Yes. And that's circling back to that idea of an older woman as a ma matriarch of the society. And that's what we can learn from older women is that wisdom. Because I am fif in my fifties, I'm learning from women who are 60 and 70 and I just like soak up their wisdom like a sponge. And I feel if society put all the women on the proper place of respect, the world would be a better place, Hundred percent. A hundred percent. All right, let's get to another confession. Oh, we could talk forever. We're gonna have to hang out and then we can talk all day. Okay, so how does it. To be a 50 plus woman surfer. This one says absolutely amazing. I feel free and alive and sexy. The constant challenges and successes reflect life and have taught me so much about riding waves and other aspects of my life. I love that I now have the time to dedicate to improving, which was so difficult when working full time. I always had a stereotype that surfers were young and fit and cool. Now I know that there are no limits. To what a surfer looks like and that the best surfer is always the one having the most fun. I think that being in your fifties gives us a sense of freedom that we didn't experience before. Always too concerned with what others thought about us, always holding back from our hopes and dreams. Now I have a newfound confidence to encourage others to give surfing a try. I was. With a young instructor today who I've surfed with many times, and he told me I was old young, which he meant was that I may be old in years, but I am young in lifestyle and that really resonates with me. And that was from Rebecca. I am from go in the Channel Islands, United Kingdom, but based in Sri Lanka at the Wander Lister Camp, She has an amazing story. She actually went, I know this woman because we show, we shared her story on Instagram. She went through a 10 week surf instructor training in her fifties while not even being a strong surfer. Can you believe that? And then she just changed her life. She moved to Sri Lanka and she's building a surf camp there. So anyone who wants to go to a surf camp run by women, by a woman in her fifties, it's a super inspiring story. And we have, we, we've shared her story on, on the Instagram too. Amazing. Alright, should we do one more confession on how does it feel to be a 50 plus woman surfer? And then we can go to knowing what you know now, what would you tell your younger self? Okay, so this one says, it feels wonderful. I don't feel my age at all. 76 years young. So glad I picked up surfing when I was. 72. After a 54 year break, I've widened my social circle, improved my physical fitness, have more energy and joy than I have had in decades. I feel like a teenager again. And that is from Pam Curtis Gray from Texas Upper Coast. Yes, I know Pam too. And she also said that she feels better in her seventies than she felt in her sixties because she returned to surfing. And that also blows my mind, like how is it possible? But that's exactly what she told me. It's so amazing. It's so funny. I think it, the words would sound like we're, we're selling a magic pill. Like, you know what I mean? But it's all, it's is aging and, and being true to yourself and being a part of a community. That, and being in the water and surfing. It's so beautiful. Ocean is magic. We are selling a magic pill you're right there. except that's free. We are not selling it. Uh, it's, it's a free magic pill. It's even better. All right, let's go on to our second, uh, confession. So knowing what you know now, what would you tell your younger self? And before I go into these ladies, uh, I'd like to ask you, Lisa and Vanessa, what would you tell your younger self? Don't wait. Like if you have something, regardless of whether it's or anything else, if you have a desire to do something, don't put it off and. Don't say, you know, I'll do this later, or I don't have time, or make excuses. Like, just go for it. Um, you, you can do it and you are strong enough and whatever it turns out to be will be fine. That, and I would tell myself to prioritize my own happiness, which I did not do when I was younger. I was with a child and raising a family and always prioritizing my child, my husband, my work, and I was on the last place. And that makes me really sad because if I found surfing eight years when I first moved to Hawaii, maybe my life would've turned out very differently. Because of not prioritizing myself, created all sorts of negative consequences in my lab. Actually, actually didn't serve anyone, just not prioritizing myself, did not serve anyone. It didn't serve me, and it actually didn't serve my family. So if I found surfing earlier and allowed myself to just. Do it and just do it for myself. I would've been much happier sooner. It took a divorce for me to start moving and to start prioritizing myself. And I'm sad about it and I wish it would've turned out differently. And some, if I could tell my younger self, is Your happiness has to be a priority. The priority, because that is what I could build on. Everything else could follow. Okay. It might just be, 'cause I'm on my period right now, but I. Was really beautiful and uh, I really appreciate you sharing that, Vanessa, and, you know, being open and vulnerable about that. That's beautiful because I think what society does is tell women to be the person that's foundational holding down the fort for the family. And, and like you said, that doesn't, that actually didn't serve anyone. Thank you for sharing that, Vanessa. Really? There was this certain box that I was supposed to be in. Um, I grew up on the East coast. I was working in Manhattan. I had a certain job, a certain title, a certain salary, and it was this expectation that you would, I would move up the ladder and, or like, don't spend time on yourself. If I was to tell myself as a younger person, you know, who you are in your soul and be that person and buck up against the familial, the family standards or the cultural standards or the expectations and be true to yourself. And it's somewhat similar to what Vanessa was sharing. Um, yeah. You know, there are certain things and questions that you're asking. That are bringing up things that I haven't thought about in forever, and that's one of them around setting expectations of who I was as I got older and trying to meet them. And then by that I lost myself. Well, I am so appreciative of you ladies creating a group where I, I can no doubt say that women are finding themselves and feeling true to themselves and prioritizing themselves. And that's a beautiful thing.'cause like I mentioned, we need our matriarchs. We need our grandmother figures. And we need you ladies to be empowered to share your knowledge and share all of this with us. Um, I don't know. I mean, these are gonna be great ones too. I don't know if they can compete with what you ladies just shared. Um, okay. So knowing what you know now, what would you tell your younger self here? Some confessions from the sassy silver surfers. If I had to do over, I would've started surfing as a teen, starting surfing sooner. As you're old enough to ask your parents to buy you a surfboard, don't wait till the kids leave home, grab one of their boards and go and join them. So most of them really start younger, rise above the perceived expectations of others and have a go. Yeah, you can do it. You can do whatever you desire. Just believe in yourself. Don't listen to those who say you can't. So along the same, um, story that you ladies are telling, and I just wanna say thank you too to all you, all the ladies that did contribute to share their confessions and just being vulnerable and open. Laura, I found out about, , surf Society through a friend of mine who was part of, uh, surf Society. And our conversations over time, over the past year have been awesome. And I wanna thank you so much for, um. You know, providing the space that you do for women's surfers and who you have on, because you too are also, um, providing an avenue, providing a community for women's surfers regardless of age. And it's just, it's heartwarming it to hear the stories of our members, sassy silver surfer members, share their, share their stories and their feedback with you. And then, um, having this opportunity to promote it out to the world. It's just beautiful. Yeah, that goes both ways. Um, with and on that note, let's talk about why community is so important in this sense.'cause you ladies are running sassy silver surfers. We have Surf society. Um, what does it bring to all the women in the group? Why is community the thing that we need to build and create and we're all passionate about that. Women have to be there for each other, um, to provide encouragement and support and be there for when we feel crappy, we excel with each other. And for me personally, having that wider birth of friendships that I formed. Age, you know, within my age range and even younger. Within both surf and triathlon. It means the world, like you have other folks that you can rely on and count on and to run things by. Life just seems so much more fuller and more expansive when we have community, when we're doing it in community. One last thing. We also are bucking up against the premise of ageism, um, because all, all of us will experience it if we're lucky enough and less enough to reach that age. And so when we're working, when we're, um, in community with e with younger women, we're sharing our experiences with them so they can see. So we're trying to se segregate or not segregate. We're trying to separate that. Ageism view, and then we as older women are also having an experience of younger folks, so we're supporting one another. I wanna jump in on this because I also love this question. I think as women, we actually, or should I say design or evolutionary, um, design to be in community with one another? I somewhere heard this story that I love that I don't wanna share that in some Indian village. All the women of the village would go and do laundry at the same time in the river and have this sort of, you know, shared experience. And then with with modernization, they got enough money to get washing machines and after a while they realized that they get more depressed, they less happy. And if you look at patterns, you can say, oh, the washing machines made them less happy. No, it's because they don't have that going together to the river. Let's hang out and wash our clothes. Experience of a communal experience. And there are so many stories like that of how we women, we thrive more in community with other women and And that's why you do in your community, we do in our community, is to kind of re. Or reclaim that or regenerate that environment in which we women thrive the most is in community with each other. That's beautiful. Yeah. Yeah. Well, thank you ladies for sharing your story with Sassy Silver Surfers. Um, anything, anything we left out? Any, I mean, obviously we could talk forever. We could talk forever together, but anything else you wanted to mention here? In terms of in general from sassy silver surfers, I'm so honored and grateful and, um. Just so in awe of all of us getting together and sharing and being in community with one another. I, I believe that Vanessa and I are, we we're providing the container for all of us folks to get together and, and talk and be in community. And, um, in terms of. Moving forward, like we're holding retreats and I know that you'll be providing some information about sassy silver surfers and angels adventures and, and surf society and how we could get in touch with one another. It's just let's continue to talk and be open to hearing each other's opinions and experiences.'cause when we do that, that's where all the anger and hate and barriers start to dissipate. Keep the communication open and our hearts open. I just joined Surf Society because of your six week nose writing challenge that I feel like I'm ready for it. I cannot say anything about my experience, but ask me in six weeks and I'll tell you. Um, I'm excited to learn. Because there's always learning. And that's another thing I believe is we, we have to keep learning no matter how old we are. And if we keep learning, we keep being young. So learning and movement, there's two things that keep us young. So I'm still learning and I'm excited to learn from your community and, um, get better. We can be, because we can get better at any age we can. It's not downhill. But the minute we stop moving and learning, it's definitely downhill. So it's in our power to create the kind of life that we want to have. Thank you ladies. And yeah, Lisa, you've been with Surf Society for a while and Issa, you just joined us. We're so stoked and hopefully some of your sassy silver surfers will join us as well. Um, I love this collaboration'cause we just feel the same way. About community and we feel the same way about growth. And I just think we have like some beautiful projects and collabs ahead of us. Of course. So thank you ladies for the confessions. So stoked to have you. This is just, I feel like this is the beginning. This is like the beginning. Great to, to be on, on this podcast and great to meet you and totally just the beginning. Tell our listeners how they can join Sassy silver Surfers if they are 50 or you know, when they do turn 50. It's a Facebook group, sassy silver surfers. They just have to, do a member request and answer three questions. We have a few basic rules and, they can join up if they're 50 and over. They don't have to be surfers. They have a desire to learn or their paddle boarders. If that's how they can find us, Yeah. And if you are not 50 and over, you're welcome to follow us on Instagram because it's a for everybody. If you just want inspiration, and we have about half of the followers are surfers and half are what I call surf curious, meaning, oh, I wanna try that one day. And some people are there. Not even wanna try surfing, but therefore inspiration because of seeing these role models of older women doing hard things. So it's the same tag, sassy silver surfers on Instagram and everybody is welcome. I'll put the link in the show notes. All right, ladies, thank you so much. It was so beautiful to have you. Such we, I, I know, I know. I laughed and cried, so I think it was a success. Thanks so much, Laura. Just, it's just been wonderful. I, like you said, I could sit here and talk with the three of us for a really long time. and if we laugh and cry, that means it's. Perfect.