Bio
As a young surfer, Karina charged the waves so hard, she left the girls in the white water and competed with boys until women’s surfing caught up to her. Since then, she’s been holding strong on the ASP WQS, and qualified for the elite ASP Women’s World Tour this year at the age of 19.
Karina. a.k.a. Shorty, developed her love for surf in the waters off the coast of Panama in the American Canal Zone, where she lived with her family until she was a pre-teen. A move to Atlantic Beach, FL helped Karina develop her contest skills and catapulted her to the top of womenaAAs competitive surfing.
Q & A
You’re young, but it feels like weaAAve been waiting forever for you to qualify. Is that the downside to being “the next big thing” since you’re 11?
Oh, I think people expected this out of me a looooong time ago. They said, “You can make the tour at 16.” Yeah! Yeah! Hype! Hype! Go! Go! But it had to be my time, the right time in my mind. The funny thing, is it really hasn’t hit me yet; the whole shock of “Wow, you’re on this elite tour of surfers.”
What's changed this year?
Last year was a rollercoaster for me. My dad suffered a huge brain aneurysm last November. And in April I lost my best friend in a hit-and-run. I think that all turned my mindset around because the last three years, I didn’t care at all. The World Qualifying Series turned into he World Partying Series. But I realized: life is short. I should use all these talents God equipped me with. And the funny thing is it just started falling into place. It wasn’t like I said, “I’m going to go win these events.”
