Courtney Conlogue looked out at the perfect waves breaking off Huntington Beach on a recent day, but instead of frothing to paddle out to catch a few rides, the surfer simply soaked in the sight.
Most of the Santa Ana surfer’s life has been dedicated to chasing waves, spending countless hours, days and years training in the ocean with a goal of being the best of the best at surfing’s highest levels. But now, at age 31 and following more than a dozen years on the World Surf League World Tour, Conlogue is eyeing new rides on her horizon.
“I’ve been definitely tapping into new stuff. So much time was put into just competing as an athlete – 365 days out of the year revolving around being an athlete and surfing on the (World Tour),” she said. “Now, it’s more about being an athlete of the world and whatever that craft is, mastering that.”
It’s a drastic change for the fierce competitor who had an early start on the waves – she was first pushed into small surf at San Onofre by her dad at age 4, then made Huntington Beach Pier her home break.
Her determination and drive quickly earned her the nickname “Sea Tiger,” a moniker she still uses today.
Peter “PT” Townend remembers coaching the youngster when she was just 11 and he said she was among the best he’d ever coached because of her ability to listen and figure out what had to be done to win.
In 2004, Townend took Conlogue to Tahiti to compete with the USA Surfing Junior National team – she was the youngest on the team – where she went up against elders such as Stephanie Gilmore, an Australian who would eventually earn eight world titles.
Conlogue made her first big mark in 2009, at age 16, when she won the US Open of Surfing at her home break in massive surf, fearlessly shooting the pier and making it known she was ready for the big leagues.
She joined the World Surf League’s World Tour at age 18 in 2011, and for years was the only North American, and Orange County, surfer…
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