April 27, 2026

Lessons from Competitive to Creative Surfing w/ Garazi Sánchez

58 minutes

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Garazi Sánchez (@garazisanchezsurf) is a two-time Spanish national champion from the Basque Country who built her career competing on the world stage before finding a whole new relationship with surfing through twin fins and board shaping. In this episode, she opens up about what it truly takes to surf at a high level; from how a serious back injury became the turning point that led to her best results, to why paddle fitness is the foundation that most surfers overlook. She breaks down the mental side of competing, what it feels like to lose the joy of surfing and how she got it back, and shares her honest take on riding twin fins including the one mistake most surfers make when they first get on one.

Chapters

00:01:20 Introduction: Meet Garazi Sánchez

00:02:13 Growing Up Surfing in the Basque Country

00:03:30 How the Basque Culture Shaped Her Surfing

00:05:10 The Adventure Mindset: Surfing in Unlikely Places

00:08:04 The Joy of Watching Beginners Fall in Love with Surfing

00:08:52 Competition as a Path to Self-Knowledge

00:11:17 Starting Out: Competing in the Basque Country

00:16:36 Plateaus, Confidence & Finding Her Footing Internationally

00:18:35 Overcoming the Fear of Not Belonging in the Lineup

00:22:40 The Back Injury That Changed Everything

00:27:39 Training on Land: How It Unlocked Her Best Results

00:31:10 The Overlooked Fundamentals: Positioning, Paddling & Pop-Up

00:39:28 Coaching Maneuvers: Reading Wave Energy

00:45:25 The Shift to Twin Fins & Rediscovering Joy

00:52:22 Tips for Riding Twin Fins & Board Design with Lemon Surfboards

Subscribe for more interviews with pro surfers, coaches, shapers, and everyday surfers like Tom Carroll, Zeke Lau, Victor Bernardo, Matt Parker of Album Surf, Matt Meola, Ryan Lovelace, Eric Arakawa, Noel Salas of Surf n Show, Parker Coffin, Dane Gudauskas, Kassia Meador, Clayton of Ombe Surf, Dylan Lightfoot, Derek Dunfee, Magnum Martinez, and more!

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