Sally and Sofia trade their boards for 'horses made of reed' 

Red Bull surfing Girls Only Camp, 6 June, 2010 : - 'Caballito de Totora' is the name of the typical Peruvian surfboats, made of a watergrass type, typical to this region. Originally used by fishermen, the caballitos are a versatile tool to navigate the waters. Sofia Mulanovich together with world-class surfer Sally Fitzgibbons and junior Nadja de Col changed their boards for the ancient type to test the surfing quality of these Peruvian craft that have thousands of years of history.


Sally Fitzgibbons negtiates a wave on her Cabillito

Little horse made of reed

Carlos Ucañán, one of the few people knowledgeable in the craft of building the ancient fishing boats, travelled from a town in the far north of Peru to teach the surfers how to ride the Caballito de Tortora. The handmade boat, used for fishing is locally known as the predecessor of the surfboard. It is built with hundreds of dry plants of Totora, which are cut and wrapped.

A regular Caballo de Tortora weights around 30 kilos and measures four and a half meters. It also has a small hole in which the fisherman sits and paddles. For the Red Bull surfing Girls Only Camp, Carlos Ucañan built two special Caballitos: they weigh 25 kilos and are 3 meters long with no hole to sit. The fisherman from Huanchaco explaines: "The first model is to fish, the second model is special for surfing."




After a short scenic tour around some southern beaches in Lima, the surfers had the chance to try the "Caballos de Totora" in the waves of San Bartolo beach.

There are only a few lucky people that can have a Caballito for themselves; Sofía, Sally and Nadja jumped on this chance and even the swell and wind worked in their favor and enabled them to hit some waves. Just before getting in the water the surfers were very excited, but also nervous. "I never saw one of these before, only the one's they sell as key chains in some stores," said Sally Fitzgibbons.

On the other side, Sofía, despite being Peruvian and knowing all the tradition of the boat, never had the chance to surf one. "They are huge and heavy, much bigger than a normal surfboard, lets see what happens," Sofia commented before getting in the sea.

 



After some paddling and failed attempts, they seeked the help of Mr. Ucañan; eventually Sofia, Sally and Nadja mastered the ancient boards, showing the style of the ancient Mochica-Chimu Culture and all their abilities as pro surfers. "It was incredible. A lot of fun but very difficult to stand up and do some maneuvers with it. It does not have killas, and its very, very heavy", said Sofia. Extraordinary balance was the key to success.

The top female surfers were able to stand up on this "new" board within an hour of practice thanks to their talent and practice. Even the coaches Dan Ross and Shane Beschen ran into the water to have a chance to surf on this locally made surfboard.
 

www.ExplorerGirls.com / www.redbullsurfing.com

Image: courtsey Red Bull