By: Ellen Zoe Golden Photo by Mario Avendaño Photos courtesy: Christine August
If your father is one of the most famous surfers in the world, wouldn’t it follow that you might be pretty good at the sport?
At 17, Christine August Baldioceda admits that while it was her dad Robert August who pushed her in a wave at 5, surfing is a sport she came to love on her own.
The primary goal of this tall blonde vegetarian is to do well in school, and then go on to a University where she might study nutrition, psychology, or even dermatology.
At this moment, in 11th grade, she admits that growing up is indeed, scaring her dad.
THE Tamarindo News met Christine one day after school to talk about her past, present and future.
THE Tamarindo News: Tell me a little bit about how you ended up living in Tamarindo.
Christine August: I was born in San José, and lived there until I was 7 when I moved to California with my dad. Then we came back to Costa Rica for my 2nd, 3rd, and 4th grades, but returned to Huntington for my 5th, 6th, 7th and 8th grades. I started my freshman year of high school there, but now I’ve been back here for 10th and 11th grade. I will finish up this year and 12th grade here at La Paz.
TTN: Why did you go back and forth so much?
CA: When I was in San Jose living with my mom, my dad decided he wanted me to learn English. I got to appreciate both countries. And, being a freshman, it’s a tough year, considered difficult to be in the first year of high school so that’s why I was in California. There I joined the Huntington Beach (HB) surf team. It was cool because there I stood out. I may look American but I have a lot of Latin America in me. Like when I was there I would kiss my friends on the cheek, and they were like ‘whoa’. Kissing on the check is part of our culture. The best thing about that time was how my surfing was pushed. My Coach Andy Verdone was very strict with me, especially at competitions, where he was around to help me improve. He even made me surf a longboard sometimes which connected me with my roots of my dad.
TTN: Did you realize that your dad was famous?
CA: I just always thought that my dad was very friendly. People would come up to me and say they knew my dad, or had his poster. I watched his movie “Endless Summer” when I was 10 and that changed the way I looked at my dad. He’s very humble. He’s just my dad. Actually, I learned more about dad from other people. I love the movie, still watch it and feel very proud.
TTN: How did you do on the HB surf team?
CA: When I was on the NSSA Junior Varsity we won the nationals and I was champion. Sometimes I was allowed to surf on the Varsity team, which had girls on it that were professional. Our team competed against teams from Hawaii, North Carolina, and of course, all of California.
TTN: What was your evolution with surfing?
CA: Well, when I was 5, I first stood up on a longboard. When I was 12, I really started to have an interest in surfing on my own. I was always around the industry, and spent my whole life up to that point on the beach. The Witch’s Rock instructors kept pushing me to do it. I even started competing that year. Now my board is a Robert August 5’8, with pintail and purple, shaped by my dad.
TTN: What is your relationship with your dad today?
CA: It’s good. I appreciate all he’s done. He’s still not bored with surfing or life. Every day he is excited by everything, and always positive and cheerful.
TTN: What’s going on with you now?
CA: I have a leaky knee joint, and I have not surfed for three months. That’s okay, I’m very focused on school, which is very demanding. I want to compete still, but I choose education over surfing and I need to if I plan on going to a University. I want to go to University somewhere else, where I can travel to a different location, but I don’t know exactly what I want to study yet. Before I was injured I competed at the Hermosa Pro near Jacó and came in 3rd place. I’m always going to have surfing in my life until I physically can’t. I always want to get better, that’s a personal goal.
