In this edition of our SM newsletter we turn out attention to the Perth group. I chat to Perth group coordinators, Elke Seppanen & Anna Davis who give me the low down on what makes the Perth group so special.
SM: So how long have you guys been coordinating the group?
Elke: I think I’ve been coordinating for 4 years and Anna and I have been coordinating together for 3 - we make a great team!! Especially with our similar “nerdy” sense of humour.
Anna: We love coordinating together! It's been 3.5years since I started with Elke. We are passionate about the Perth group, it's an amazing crew of frothing, loving, fun, wonderful women. Our group has a fantastic culture of inclusivity and friendliness but we are also super keen frothing surfers that get out rain .. hail... shine ...storm, you name it.
SM: How many meets does the group do a week?
Elke: We surf in the Perth metro region 2x per week and Anna and I call a spot based on the forecast so it can be anywhere between Leighton/Cottesloe and Hilarys.
Anna: As well as surfing we love coffee and chatting! Recently we had a day where we surfed in the morning, then we went to coffee and then out to dinner (most of us til midnight) so we were literally talking allll day!
SM: What sort of surfers are in your group, is it predominantly shredding shortboarders or lady slider longboarders?
Anna: We have a good mix of learners, intermediates and some shredders! Longboards and shortboards. During pregnancies there has been a surfmat that frothing mamas-to-be use to still get out there!
SM: Perth has over 100 members, that is huge! How many would usually turn up to a meet?
Anna: Yes it appears to be a large group but there is a core group that meets, usually between 6-12 mums do you think Elke? Also we have a lot of mums who keep joining up even though they don't have young kids anymore - this is a really nice part of our group - it's almost multigenerational! Also even though it's large we seem to be pretty close knit.
Elke: We have a core group of usual suspects and this has been fairly dynamic over the years as people start transitioning back into full time work/kids full time school. We have a high retention rate and have long term members that still support the cause and come down without their kids. We have lots of social events which also help bring the wider group back together - including two long weekends per year!
SM: How is the surf over winter? Does the chilly weather affect attendance much?
Anna: This winter has been pretty good, I wouldn't say much colder than usual, we usually love winter because it's when we get our best waves and lighter winds. Perth has a reputation for having bad surf but we manage to do okay - there is actually a pretty good range of beaches and reefs which means we usually have somewhere to get a wave.
Elke: Yes winter is definitely the BEST for surf!!! Yea I’d say in winter our core group of taggers is about 10ish. But that blows out in summer and all the fair weather surfers come back out of hibernation. We’re pretty frothy though - you have to be in WA!!!
Anna: You may be able to tell we love our group. Elke and I would both agree I think it has been an absolute lifeline not only for ourselves but for many mums in need of social connection, surfing friends, increased outdoor activity and exercise all of which does wonders for the mental health of mums (and a few dads too!).
A special thanks to Kellie Baldwin for the beautiful images of our frothy Perth sisters. Check out her instagram here
