The Power Of Change And The Birth Of Chix Surf School

Every surf school begins with an idea. A lightbulb moment where somebody ponders what might be possible and then has the drive and determination to begin building something truly special. Gee Cormack, owner and founder of Chix Surf School in NSW, Australia, has lived that moment and built her something special.

ASI caught up with Gee to discuss her journey. This is her story.

ASI: How did surfing first become a part of your life, and was there a moment that you knew surfing was something with the power to change your life?

Gee: My family are salt water people and the ocean and the waves have always been a big part of our lives. I have grown up on the Northern Beaches of Sydney and have grown up doing Nippers and Surfing from a very young age, so surfing and the ocean were always going to be a massive part of my life as it's in our blood.

ASI: Was a career involved in surfing always something that appealed to you?

Gee: No, not at the beginning. I actually moved away from the ocean to follow a career in snowboarding and was fully involved with this sport for many years as I was training with the Olympic development team, and I was travelling a lot all over the world. So, surfing took a back foot for a while so I could focus on my training but any chance I got to go home I was always back in the water.

ASI: When the idea to start a surf school took hold, was Chix as it is now the vision from the beginning?

Gee: Yep, Chix started as an all-women's surf school as I really wanted to create a safe and open space for women and young girls to explore surfing and learn how to progress no matter what level they were. I wanted to create an education platform where programmes were designed by female surfers for female surfers.

There are some programmes that developed over time which included men (on land SmoothStar training which is for men and women) and our father & daughter programme (which helps fathers learn how to support and assist with their daughters surfing) but the core focus has always stayed the same and we are only growing stronger and more positive in the female surfing community as the years go by.

ASI: How important was it to you to build something that would offer women a space to come together as almost a family and embrace surfing?

Gee: The heart and soul of our school is having a space for women to feel empowered to step out of their comfort zone and test their physical and emotional capabilities. The community we have created with everything and our clients make Chix what it is today. We all have each other's backs in and out of the water and the positive energy that we see in the water is just inspiring and it's what surfing is all about.

ASI: And was the desire to do this shaped at all by your own early experiences in the surf?

Gee: When I grew up surfing, I was the only girl I knew in the water. I surfed with my older brother and you had to be tough otherwise you got your ass kicked. It was a men’s club and either it got the better of you or you were motivated by the energy in the lineup.

As I grew up and was travelling with Snowboarding, even though it also was a male sport we had a lot of support during that time from the older boys and that really motivated us to push harder. When I retired from Snowboarding at a young age due to injury I got straight back into the water and was a lot more aware of the environment and how women presented themselves in the water. Sitting far from the breaks, not committing to the take offs, allowing men to paddle around them and just not really feeling confident in their own ability. Unfortunately, in surfing (for men or women) you just can't go out there with that kind of head space otherwise you won't get any waves.

I first started coaching in 2007 and lived in and out of Bali for 10 years coaching in Australia and coaching in Bali and just surfed all day every day. I watched the men and the women in the water and I studied their movements. I studied their head spaces and what they were physically and mentally able to do. With a sports background I really found it fascinating how people are guided by what their mental capabilities are and what it took to break through to get the results they were after. I coached men and women for years and then had two kids and moved back to Australia. That's when I decided to open up Chix and I haven't looked back.

ASI: What have been the biggest struggles you have faced in getting the school to where it is today?

Gee: Coaches...Finding female coaches who have the knowledge and the ability to emotionally connect with our clients. We are a school that focuses on surf education and ocean wellbeing which means you need to be able to match personal skills with the conditions of the day, but you also must be able to understand what their emotional needs are in the water.

We need adult female coaches who have some life experience and who are highly skilled in surfing. As surfing in Australia was not really a female sport when I was a kid, there are not many women my age who grew up surfing and have that natural gift of finding peoples rhythms out there in the ocean.

ASI: If you could go back a few years to where it all began and give yourself one piece of advice, what would that be?

Gee: Look after your body. Look after your mind and look after your family. Running a business that grows a lot each year takes its toll for sure. We are in an industry that is very physically demanding and with our work particularly, it is also mentally demanding.

I pushed myself really hard at the beginning for the first six years to build up something solid but it definitely was taxing. I had two very little kids at the time (one was still in my belly when I started my business) and I pushed my body hard. It's about having a balance and now I have a strong focus on my rehab to keep my body strong and able so I can keep doing what I love for a long time to come. I want to be able to surf with my kids and partner outside of my job and not be in pain and have the energy I want to have for my family, and that comes with body care. 

ASI: The holistic approach you take to teaching surfing seems a wonderful way to share the joy of the sport. Do you find this approach allows students to attain a deeper connection with surfing as more than simply a sport or hobby?

Gee: Surfing is a very unique sport as you must find a rhythm with something external that you have no control over. You must let go of life outside of the water and simply focus on mother nature. It’s a sport where you are forever changing how you move, how you read the waves and how much energy you put into it. If you don't find that rhythm then the sport doesn't work. It's a sport where, in a split second you can be in a very dangerous situation and I find this really humbling. 

Our work is to help people connect with their bodies and to listen to the ocean. To feel empowered to push out of their comfort zones and try new things. This is such an emotional release for so many people. It allows our endorphins to be released and for our minds to feel energised. To be the translation for people with the ocean is a real gift and we are so proud and honoured to guide people through this transition. 

The incredible thing is watching our clients bring these concepts into their everyday lives and wanting their whole lives change for the better. It really is remarkable what surfing and the ocean can do if it is taught correctly.

ASI: Are there any standout moments as a surf instructor that made you think, ‘This is why I do this.’?

Gee: Over the years of coaching all over the world there are so many moments that have allowed me to feel that moment, feel as stoked as my client, or been there as a rock for people to progress big emotional shifts in their lives and then using the ocean as a tool to release emotion and move forward. There are so many different elements to my work and so many big goals I have reached. So many people I have listened to or guided it's hard to pick one. 

I think those moments when someone comes to me needing the ocean back in their lives, needing to get back on their board and feel that connection because they have either had something really hard happen in their lives or they are at a crossroads and they are struggling to find themselves again.

That moment when we work and work for months to get that feeling back in the water and then that moment happens. That moment where it all comes together and that person reconnects with their bodies and their minds and all you see is pure joy, pure happiness and a real moment of gratefulness of the ocean and also of themselves. That moment is why I love to do what I do. No matter what level the surfer is, you can get this feeling and that moment and that makes it all worth it for me.

ASI: Was there a reason you opted for ASI in terms of your accreditation?

Gee: I like the international reach ASI has and I am really keen to work with a company that allows for growth and change. I like that ASI is open to supporting surf schools and connecting businesses all over the world.

ASI: In a perfect world, what is the future for Chix Surf School?

Gee: In a perfect world...I want to be able to have our programmes accessible all over the world, for women and young girls, high schools and surf schools no matter where you are from. I want to be able to travel around the world and help women's communities connect with the ocean to help create a stronger, more positive and empowered next generation.

It is genuinely difficult not to be left in awe after listening to Gee and understanding the depth of her dedication and passion for both surfing as a vessel to a better life, and as a place where women can feel the empowerment and ownership that was a long time absent. Long may it continue.

You can check out Chix Surf School right here and see more of the amazing work Gee and her team do on a daily basis.