Bethany Hamilton's Blog, page 66
June 21, 2012
HLN Road Warrior video
One-armed surfer travels with no sweat
by HLNtv.com
WATCH VIDEO ON HLNtv.com or embedded below…
As a professional surfer, Bethany Hamilton is on the road more than 150 days out of the year.
“It’s a pretty exciting lifestyle. I get to travel all around the world,” she says. “I’ve seen a lot of cool places along the way and it’s been awesome.”
When Bethany is prepping for a trip, she admits she’s a bad packer: “I take forever. My stuff’s all messy and unorganized. I guess it’s just how I do it!” She thinks the airlines cringe when they see her coming with her overstuffed suitcase and big surfboard bag. “Almost every time, I travel overweight,” she confesses. “I make sure I’m extra prepared.”
A couple of things she doesn’t leave home without include… [Read more on HLNtv.com]
June 8, 2012
June 6, 2012
Swatch Girls Pro France 2012
6STR • May 30 – Jun 3, 2012 • Hossegor,Landes, France • Swatch Girls Pro France • $40,000
FINAL RESULTS: 37th place, 380Pts, $150
Bethany got 4th in her heat in the Round of 48. She lost by only fractions of a point. It was a very close heat, and she feels like she did her best.
WATCH EVENT VIDEOS:
DAY 1 HIGHLIGHTS
WATCH DAY 2 HIGHLIGHTS
June 1, 2012
Summer Vacation tip: Packing Healthy Snacks for Travel
Summer Vacation tip: Packing Healthy Snacks for Travel
I travel a lot. So I feel that I’ve got traveling healthy down pretty good (though there’s always room for improvement). Instead of bringing “junk food” (processed, salty, & sugar filled foods like candy bars, chips, cookies, etc – that I try not to ever eat anyway) I try to do something good for my body by packing healthy snacks when I travel.
My favorite snacks to bring on the plane or in the car on a long drive are celery (with almond butter if I have it), apple (cinnamon on slices is delicious), Kale Chips, and raw nuts.
And don’t forget to stay hydrated! It’s important, especially if you’re traveling to a different time zone. Drinking lots of water (starting a few days in advance of your flight) can help to prevent / lessen jet-lag.
May 29, 2012
Upcoming Surf Competitions
6STR • May 30 – Jun 3, 2012 • Hossegor,Landes, France • Swatch Girls Pro France • $40,000
UPCOMING EVENTS 2012:
Rating • Dates (Waiting Period) • Site/Location • Event • Prize Purse
6STR • Aug 2 – 5, 2012 • Lobitos, Piura, Peru • Lobitos Pro Surfing (Tentative) • $40,000
6STR • Aug 27 – Sep 2, 2012 • Arugam Bay, Sri Lanka • SriLankan Airlines Pro (Tentative) • $40,000
6STR • Sep 12 – 16, 2012 • Pantin, Spain Cabreiroa • Pantin Classic Pro (Tentative) • $40,000
6STR • Sep 20 – 23, 2012 • Bafureira,Estoril, Portugal • Estoril Surf and Music Billabong Girls 2012 (Tentative) • $40,000
Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) Website
May 6, 2012
RECIPE: EASY Delicious Cauliflower Soup
EASY Delicious Cauliflower Soup
One head of cauliflower Half a head of broccoli Boil cauliflower and broccoli till soft, don’t overcook (you loose the nutrients the more you cook!)
1-2 cups of Veggie broth (switch half coconut milk of you want creamy)
1/2-1 cup of organic tomato sauce (I used “Field day” organic Italian herb pasta sauce)
One garlic clove (or more if you like)
Add your favorite Italian herb, or you could go Thai!
Dash of sea salt if need
Blend in blender or Vitamix
May 2, 2012
Throwing a football and Emily with Dream Factory
I’ve always have been really sporty. Aside from my mermaidness, I played soccer, took boys out hehe(: playing dodge ball in elementary school, and could throw a decent softball. I now love playing tennis and am just figuring out volleyball! But football is a different story.I could never really figure out how to throw a football properly. I find the odd shape intimidating, a very tricky challenge. Not a big deal at all, i just leave footballs where they are.
Thanks to an an organization called Dream Factory I got to take three rad kids surfing! Dream factory is the 2nd largest “wish” granting organization in america.
A young girl named Emily who had endured some hard stuff in her life but I had no clue what had happened to her until I met her. Emily had a sweet spirit, tender heart and she really wanted to learn to surf!. She also had extensive burn scars all over her body with her fingers stumped making it hard to grab hold of things. I also had Zoe and Colt two grommets who have cystic fibrosis, they where adorable and have so much to endure at their young age.
With the help of my surf coach Russell Lewis all three enthusiastic kids got surf lessons for the first time! I had confidence Emily could learn to surf even though I’m not sure she did. And I knew Zoe and Colt would catch on just fine! It was a ton of fun to see all of them get up and surf at the beach where I learned to surf. They all did great and I was really proud of their enthusiasm to go for it wave after wave!
What really stuck out to me through out the entire day was what happened after surfing. We were all enjoying a BBQ lunch on the beach. As some of the Dream factory guys where throwing a football around, I was kinda watching trying to figure out how they throw the football with that cool spin on it. In surfing, technique is really important, I’m sure its the same with throwing a football. I was too shy to just ask them to show me how to throw it and just remained sitting. Soon enough, Emily got up and joined in throwing the ball with the boys. It certainly was not easy for her but she went for it anyway. I thought that was awesome! So simple, yet complex and beautiful in my mind!
Watching Emily, Zoe and Colt taking on new challenges that many of us take for granted reminds me to be thankful for what I have and to take on new challenges!
I ended up throwing the ball around, not quite with that fancy spin on it but I gave it my best shot…
Thanks Emily, Zoe and Colt for being so courageous!
Throwing a football and Emily.
I’ve always have been really sporty. Aside from my mermaidness, I played soccer, took boys out hehe(: playing dodge ball in elementary school, and could throw a decent softball. I now love playing tennis and am just figuring out volleyball! But football is a different story.I could never really figure out how to throw a football properly. I find the odd shape intimidating, a very tricky challenge.
Not a big deal at all, i just leave footballs where they are.
Thanks to an an organization called Dream Factory I got to take three rad kids surfing!
A young girl named Emily who had endured some hard stuff in her life but I had not clue what had happened to her until I met her.
Emily had a sweet spirit, tender heart and she really wanted to learn to surf!. She also had extensive burn scars all over her body with her fingers stumped making it hard to grab hold of things.
I also had Zoe and Colt two grommets who have cystic fibrosis, they where adorable and have so much to endure at their young age.
With the help of my surf coach Russell Lewis all three enthusiastic kids got surf lessons for the first time! I had confidence Emily could learn to surf even though I’m not sure she did. And I knew Zoe and Colt would catch on just fine!
It was a ton of fun to see all of them get up and surf at the beach where I learned to surf. They all did great and I was really proud of their enthusiasm to go for it wave after wave!
What really stuck out to me through out the entire day was after surfing.
After surfing, we all enjoyed a BBQ lunch on the beach. As some of the Dream factory guys where throwing a football around, I was kinda watching trying to figure out how they throw the football with that cool spin on it. In surfing, technique is really important, I’m sure its the same with throwing a foot ball.
I was too shy to just ask them to show me how to throw it and just remained sitting.
Soon enough, Emily got up and joined in throwing the ball with the boys. It certainly was not easy for her but she went for it anyway.
I thought that was awesome! So simple, yet complex and beautiful in my mind!
Watching Emily, Zoe and Colt taking on new challenges that many of us take for granted reminds me to be thankful for what I have and to take on new challenges!
I ended up throwing the ball around, not quite with that fancy spin on it but I gave it my best shot…
Thanks Emily, Zoe and Colt for being so courageous!
April 27, 2012
“Love for Mothers” Day Giveaway
Mother’s Day is coming up (May 13th) and I wanted to honor my mom Cheri by telling you some things I love about her, and by doing a fun giveaway of my mom’s book Raising a Soul Surfer!
So here’s how we’ll do it:
1. You need to copy these statements below & paste them into a response* to this blog post.
2. Tell me what you love about your mom by completing the statements in your response.
3. 10 people will be chosen who will get a signed copy of my mom’s book to give to their mom for Mother’s Day!
*If you are selected to receive the book, you will be notified via email (which will be required when you post your comment)!
Be creative, be funny, be serious, be heartfelt, but most of all just take a few minutes to think about how great your mom is and share it with the world!
Even better share this with your mom. Print it out for her and put it in a card for mothers day!
Copy and past the following:
MY FIRST NAME IS ______
MY MOM’S FIRST NAME IS ______
OUR FAVORITE THING TO DO TOGETHER IS…
I LOVE WHEN MY MOM…
SOMETHING SHE TOLD ME THAT REALLY IMPACTED ME…
BEST ADVICE SHE EVER GAVE ME…
FUNNIEST THING MY MOM EVER DID…
THE BEST THING ABOUT MY MOM IS…
I KNOW MY MOM LOVES ME BECAUSE…
MY MOM IS EPIC BECAUSE…
So I’ll start:
MY FIRST NAME IS: Bethany
MY MOM’S FIRST NAME IS: Cheri
OUR FAVORITE THING TO DO TOGETHER IS… play tennis and swim!
I LOVE WHEN MY MOM… tells her “serious” funny stories!
SOMETHING SHE TOLD ME THAT REALLY IMPACTED ME… to forgive others; and to understand the difference in each individuals personality and it will help you get along with everyone!
BEST ADVICE SHE EVER GAVE ME… to follow Jesus!
FUNNIEST THING MY MOM EVER DID… I have no clue, but shes constantly making me laugh!
THE BEST THING ABOUT MY MOM IS… she is one of my best friends!
I KNOW MY MOM LOVES ME BECAUSE… she’s always praying for me.
MY MOM IS EPIC BECAUSE… she’s unique and really cares for others.
Thank you Regal Books for donating the “Raising a Soul Surfer” books. Follow Cheri Hamilton on Facebook.
April 19, 2012
Whale Shark diving, biggest fish in the sea!
Oh my, INCREDIBLE!
About four years ago my mom discovered whale shark diving in Western Australia. This past month I had two surf contests in Australia, one being in West Aus, so I brought my mom with so we could go swim with the Whale Sharks after the contest.
We ventured to Exmouth, Australia to swim with the Whale Sharks, which are known as the biggest fish in the sea! Technically whale sharks are actually sharks, and they are absolutely beautiful! “These plankton eating gentle giants visit the waters of Ningaloo Reef each year around the coral spawning event on the West Coast,” says Ocean Eco Adventures. “Although they can dive to depths of 1500m the whale sharks found at Ningaloo Reef are generally swimming on the surface and travel at about 3-5kms per hour.”
We boated out to deeper ocean where a spotter plane locates the whale shark then directs us where to go. The first person in the water was my mom, she was so excited! Then I followed. I was in awe when I saw our first whale shark. It was beautiful, and definitely one BIG shark. It was a little scary, but after a bit I realized how graceful and peaceful it was. We swam along side of it keeping 3 meters away.
“One of the bigger whale sharks was slow cruising and then turned around and came right at me with his huge mega mouth 4-feet away,” recalls my mom, Cheri Hamilton. “I fumbled my camera in panic as I struggled to get out of his way. Bethany was nearby but laughing too hard to be of any assistance.” It was pretty funny. My mom wrote a great blog post on her website SoulSurferMom.com which shares loads of interesting information about Whale Sharks and more about her perspective of our adventure! She concludes, “This was the experience of a lifetime recommended for any bucket list!”
According to OEA’s website, they have seen both male and female Whale Sharks up to 14m (about 45 feet) in length, although many of the juveniles they see are around 4-6m in length. We swam with 3 different sharks for a total of about 6-8 swims. The sharks we saw were around 3-5 meters.
I filmed a little with my GoPro but I was too busy looking with my eyes that I didn’t get very much footage.
My personal favorite swim was near the end when everyone was getting tired and it ended up just being me and the staff photographer swimming with the whale shark!
Whale sharks are gorgeous creatures and sadly they are finned and killed. 
To support the stop of finning and killing whale sharks and other sharks, please check out-
PEW Environmental Group and Heart for Sharks Australia
The company that we went Whale Shark snorkeling with: Ocean Eco Adventures
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