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Ramón Navarro : Big wave surfer- Tow in

Surfersvillage Global Surf News, 3 October, 2007 : - - Since he was a child Ramón has always known about the ocean and how to treat and respect it. He always wanted to be a surfer, and never doubted that he would be, but he also studied International Cooking to appease his parents, allowing him to pursue the sport that is also his life philosophy.

Ramón Navarro was born on October 21,1979, in Pichilemu, Chile. His mother: housewife and business owner. His father: fisherman. When he was seven years old he learned to swim and to scuba dive. He accompanied his father wherever he went, and the ocean was his faithful friend. Everyone was sure that he would be a lover of aquatic sports, but never thought he would be able to make a living with them.

So while he was learning how to surf from watching foreigners when he was 12, he also paid close attention to his academic responsibilities. He was surfing by the time he was 13, and together with friends and others who were practicing the sport; Navarro began to understand what surfing meant and how it would influence his life.

When he was 18 years old everything changed. Finished with his studies and beginning to receive sponsors, his parents realized that he could make a living surfing and that their son was very good, with an innate potential. They were and continue to be very important in his life. “I think that the most important thing that my parents have taught me is to be humble”, he confesses.

Ramon Navarro : photo Alfredo Escobar

“What I love to do is ride big waves with or without tow in”, says the Chilean National Surf Champion. Now he is speaking with bigger words, and not precisely because of his national title. Ramón is a specialist in searching for big waves, and he found them in Chile in June 2004. “La Bestia”, “The beast” is a wave in Iquique, which is 7 meters. This event created a “before” and “after” in Chilean surfing.

Now, the global surfing scene knows exactly who Ramón Navarro is, the man who rode one of the most dangerous waves in the world and who is looking for another one. “It isn’t easy to come across all the right factors; the wave, the wind, the tide …everything was important and in this case, everything fell right into our hands”, he said after riding La Bestia.

What is Tow-In?: It is a type of big wave surfing in which the surfer is dragged by a jet ski in the water so that he/she can arrive in the crucial instant before the wave breaks. It was the license to operate these Jet Ski that Ramón acquired in a course in Hawaii, at the beginning of January.

In terms of challenges, he has no limits. Is a pioneer in big waves searches and expeditions. For this reason, the jet ski license is vital, and now that he has it, there is no stop for him.

He is already registered for the National Tour 2007, which has two prizes: the wild card bet in order to compete in the world cup of the Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP), in June, and the option of finishing in the top ten with the possibility of participating in the Master’s Tournament, which will close the Chilean season in December, possibly in Easter Island.

He will also participate in the Global Tow-in Tour, with dates in Hawaii, Mexico, Chile and other countries that have yet to be confirmed. He will also compete in the Global Tour (WCT) with dates in Arica, Chile and in the Pan-Americans which will take place in Iquique, Chile, in November.

Although the time that Ramón spends on top of a board, travelling through the ocean with his body is relatively short, there are many years ahead in which to live uncountable experiences. “I can’t see myself doing anything else. I want to continue exploring and carry out projects like La Bestia.

Surfing is a reflection of how I live my life. And outside of the sport itself, I see myself living in a house in Pichilemu, surrounded by the sea with my surfboard next to me”.  There is still more to discover, more to surf, and without doubts, Ramón Navarro will continue his search.

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Trent Banfield

Team - Surfersvillage