International Surf Day Rincon, Puerto Rico

Yesterday was International Surfing Day and it was observed in surf communities around the world. Here in Rincon, Puerto Rico we celebrated it by starting with a beach clean up inside the Tres Palmas Marine Reserve, followed by stand up paddle boarding by some, paddling on surfboards by others and a snorkel by the rest around the reserve, and we ended the day with a potluck lunch on Steps Beach. The sun was shining and the water was crystal clear....it was another gorgeous day in paradise!

International Surfing Day is held annually on the summer solstice. It was established by Surfing Magazine and Surfrider Foundation in 2004. It's not just for people that surf, it's for everyone that loves the beaches, oceans and waves. It's for people that are environmentally conscious and want to give back to the community. It's also a day for people to get outside and enjoy the water. It's an opportunity to invite people to come spend the day on the beach, together as a community, and that's what we did!

The good news is OUR BEACHES ARE PRETTY DARN CLEAN!!! We gathered about 10 bags of trash, some corrugated tin, two tires and broken flower pot. I have to say that the beaches here in Rincon seem remarkably cleaner than they were a few years ago. I think a lot of that has to do with the monthly beach clean ups we do with Surfrider Foundation. Also, due to the clean ups a lot more people are aware of the "keep our beaches clean" effort and whenever they go to the beach they pick up scraps of trash on their way out. Now, I'm not talking about masses of trash everywhere, but it's the cigarette butts or the plastic cup you see while lying on the beach that really bug me.

Anyhow...yesterday was a great success. Thanks to Joel Cordero for all the great photos. Thanks to Steve Tamar for tirelessly setting up the Surfrider tent. Thanks to Roger Wagner from 787 Surf School for carting all the tables and coolers back and forth. Thanks to everyone that made delicious food for lunch and helped clean our beach! Thanks to Surfrider Foundation, Kaenon and Monster Beverage for donating all the cool schwag that we gave away at the event. And thanks to David and Maureen Miller for donating about 30 lbs of delicious squash, free for the taking, from their farm.

Arte Acuatico Exhibit

The Aquatic Art Workshop is an after school art project spearheaded by Annette Blasini, Wess Merten and Leon Richter, all dedicated Surfrider activists.  The project involved 39 middle school students from the Jorge Seda Crespo middle school in Rincon.  The talented students were given various themes relating to the Tres Palmas Marine Reserve Tire Removal Project.  This project has been funded two years in a row by NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) and led by Wess Merten and Pauco, a local fisherman.  Over 475 tires have been removed from the reserve as well as clothing, plastics, fishing nets, abandoned boats and other debree that suffocate and threaten the coral reefs.  None of the clean ups could have been possible without the help of many volunteers week after week.

The students participated in two Saturday workshops led by Annette and Wess.  Their assignment was to paint a picture of what the marine reserve means to them, relating to certain topics such as marine life, coastal clean ups and pollution that affects the reef.  The paintings are being printed and bound into a book that will be available to the public as of June 25th, 2009 at the art exhibit on display at the Rincon of the Seas Hotel.  

Annette, Wess and Leon have been educating the students year after year about the importance of the Tres Palmas Marine Reserve.  Every student in the elementary, middle school and high school has been educated about the TPMR and taught  about the wonders of the natural beauty they have in their back yard.  I'm often reminded of that when our friends and family visit us from the states.  They're always in awe of the beauty and the marine life we have literally in our backyard.

I have to say I was incredibly impressed with the sophistication and talent of these students.  I had the opportunity to be a part of the first workshop when I volunteered to make lunch for the students.  Not only was I impressed with their talent but their focus to get the job done.  As soon as they finished eating they wanted to get back to their paintings.  

Many thanks to other volunteers.  Oliver Bencosme was ready and willing to document the project as the on site photographer.  Cuqui Gonzales graciously volunteered lunch for round two of the project.  Leon Richter, my husband and long time Surfrider Coordinator was there to oversee the project.  Wess, Annette and many teachers from the middle school offered their time on the weekends to help remind us  of the unique place that we are so lucky to live in.  I smile when I have those moments when I'm reminded of the fact that Rincon is a special place.  It's not something that can be created by hand, it's  natural wonder that we are lucky to be a part of.

2nd Annual Rincón International Film Festival

A lot has changed since I first moved to Rincón over 7 1/2 years ago. With each passing year, life in this small town gets a little richer with art, food, music and culture.

The 2009 Rincón International Film Festival is taking place this week in Rincón, PR. 60 films were selected from over 350 submissions and are being screened around Rincón from April 28 - May 3.

Salva Tres Palmas - The Film is being shown on Sunday, May 3 at 7pm in Rincón's town plaza. This screening is free and open to the public.

As many of you know, I have spent over seven years collaborating with our good friend SuperChad Nelsen on the Salva Tres Palmas campaign. With the adoption of the Tres Palmas Management Plan and the formation of a Management Board comprised of locals that will govern the management of the Reserve, our work is drawing to a conclusion. Consequently last summer we offered an internship to a journalism graduate student to describe the community effort in her own words and images.

Salva Tres Palmas tells the story of the Surfrider Foundation campaign and the resulting environmental victory that gave life to the Tres Palmas Marine Reserve, the first marine reserve on the main island of Puerto Rico. Tres Palmas has earned a global reputation for its "giant" surfing waves and for possessing one of the healthiest Elkhorn coral reef colonies throughout the Caribbean. This coral is of vital ecological importance to the shores of Rincón, the health of the sea and the species that inhabit it.

If you can't join us on Sunday, May 3rd at the Plaza, you can watch the film on-line here.

Enjoy the film and post your comments. We want to hear what you think...

The Film Festival is being sponsored in part by the Tourism Association of Rincón and Porta del Sol along with a variety of local merchants including the Secret Garden Art Gallery, the Shipwreck Bar & Grill, and Uncharted Studios.

1st Annual Beach Boy SUP Race in Rincon

On April 4^th, 2009 the 1^st Annual Beach Boy Race for Stand Up Paddleboarding was held in Rincon, Puerto Rico. Organized by local Rincoeños, there were over 70 participants in the race and many more on hand to watch.

Villa Cofresi was the starting point of the race and they graciously sponsored part of the event. Food and refreshments were provided before and after the race. Angelo Cordero was on site volunteering his time as the official photographer on land and in the water, as he snapped photos from a jet ski. Mar Azul donated boards for contestants that didn’t own their own boards. Shipwreck Café and Taino Divers were there with staff members helping out and participating in the event. The event really brought together everyone in the community.

The open race had about 40 participants, male and female of all ages, racing from Villa Cofresi to the marina and back. That’s about 2.5 miles but it looks a lot less when standing onshore. My confidence got the best of me when Leon encouraged me to enter into the elite category with 30 other competitors. The elite race went from Villa Cofresi, to Domes Beach and then back to Villa Cofresi for a total of 6.5 miles.

I turned in my white open shirt for the red elite shirt and lined up for the horn that signaled the start of the race. Right from the get-go the serious competitors took the lead. I quickly realized that I was in a little over my head. I began to doubt myself especially when I reached the first orange buoy marking the halfway point for the open race. I started thinking of escape plans. I thought I could turn around as soon as I saw Leon lapping me on his return trip. When he passed me and I told him my plan he insisted that I keep going. Then I thought I could discreetly exit the beach in front of my house and no one would notice. But then I thought about how good it would feel to cross the finish line. That’s when I made up my mind to finish. It didn’t matter how long it took me, it mattered that I complete the race. At that very moment I realized that I had been daydreaming and the guy I had been neck and neck with for the first half of the race had gained 20 yards on me. As I snapped to it he fell off his board in the choppy waters just as he rounded the point between the Rincon Lighthouse and Domes. That’s when I made my move. I passed him as he fell off his board for a second time in the hellish waters by the point. As I passed him I made a wake so big I knocked him off his board a third time (ok…that’s a slight exaggeration). As I rounded the buoy I smacked it so hard with excitement I knocked myself off my board. But that didn’t stop me. I let out a whoop and a holler knowing that I was half way home. As there had already been a number of people that had already passed me, I knew heading home would be much easier moving with the current. On the way back the waves were pumping, surfers were catching waves and cheering us on. I even managed to catch 2 waves around Dogmans that propelled me closer to the finish line. By this time I had a solid 200 yard lead ahead of my male competitor. As I turned the bend at Steps Beach I saw Miss Snickerdoodle Bruiser on the beach running alongside me. It was like she was cheering me on. My very own mascot! Next I passed the marina and I reached the finish line at Villa Cofresi. I knew I had placed 4^th in the women’s category since 3 other women had passed me during the race. As the wave took me to shore and everyone was cheering I felt a huge sense of accomplishment and pride. That’s when a teeny tiny vicious wave knocked me off my board and lurched me onto shore face first into the sand. What a photo finish!

The History of Dos Ceibas, Rincon, Puerto Rico

As I was about to leave my corporate job at Gap, Inc in NYC and move to Rincon I weighed my options about what to do next. Leon and I both have real estate in our family backgrounds so it was a natural course to follow. We also felt that Rincon, Puerto Rico is a special town that lent itself to tourism and we were watching the real estate market grow before our eyes.

The opportunity presented itself when we were introduced to Mama Kahuna. She was the owner of the legendary piece of property formerly owned by her husband, Kahuna. Back in the 60’s when the pioneers of the surfing began to visit the island, Kahuna ran the first guesthouse on the west coast. Kahuna would pick up eager surfers from the San Juan airport and drive them across the island to Rincon and continue to taxi them around daily to all the epic surf spots in town. Kahuna had a knack for deciphering when and where the waves would break. Unfortunately a fire devastated the guesthouse and shortly thereafter Kahuna passed away. That was the end of the first surfing guesthouse in Rincon. In 2004 we were fortunate enough to cross paths with Mama Kahuna. She took a liking to us, or should I say she took a strong liking to my husband Leon in particular. She blessed our future, sold us the property and our dream was born.

We interviewed a number of landscape architects around the island to help us cultivate our vision. Unfortunately we didn’t see eye to eye on some design aspects and we eventually met up with Big Prototype of Brooklyn, NY. Once we teamed up with them it was a match made in heaven. We spent the first 6 months contemplating the site design. We spent many hours day and night walking the site, getting to know the intimacies of the land. I spent three weeks clearing over 2 cuerdas (approx 2 acres) by hand with a team of local professionals in the art of machete swinging to understand what we were working with. Once we cleared the brush and opened up the view we realized we had a true gem on our hands. After months of review we finally landed on a design that felt like the perfect fit for the topography. We decided to place the road on the lower west side of the land where the views were least spectacular and most conducive for the road. That allowed us to save the most spectacular views up on the ridge for the home sites. This also allowed us to preserve the two most magnificent ceiba trees smack dab in the middle of the site, hence the name Dos Ceibas. It turns out Kahuna had planted the trees over 55 years ago. Not only are ceiba trees protected be the law, I felt like the trees represented Kahuna and Mama Kahuna and how they will always be watching out for us. We decided to divide the property into 8 lots, all offering unique ocean views from each site. I’ve tried capturing the view through photos but it never does it justice. It’s one of those things you need to experience for yourself. We’ve sold two out of the eight lots and the first home we like to call Little Malibu is nearing completion. It’s been a wonderful learning experience and I look forward to doing it seven more times.

Streetlights - Neighborhood Planning

One of the most critical decisions in planning the Dos Ceibas neighborhood was the placement of the road. The undeveloped land was a 4 acre parcel with a ridge running down the center of the property -the only access to the site was along the southern border from road 413. With the exception of a few foot trails, most of the site was covered in thick vegetation and was difficult to navigate. Figuring out the ideal location of the access road was one of our first tasks in the design of the master plan.

After walking every inch of the site with machetes, we evaluated the possible options. The road would provide access to each of the lots, but would also be the service spine for utilities (water, electricity, cable and phone service) AND have to be lit by streetlights to comply with municipal codes. We constructed a 3d model of the site topography to test the extents of the light pollution from the anticipated streetlights. Below are the images from preliminary designs A and J.

Design A locates the road on the top of the ridge - roughly dividing the property in two. While this seemed like a straightforward solution to vehicular access, the downside was that half of the properties would lose their ocean view and all of the lots would experience nightime light interference.

Design J locates the road to the west, below the ridge - allowing all of the houses to occupy the ridge and taking advantage of the elevation for ocean views. This also located the streetlights in such a way that the natural topography of the site helped to contain the light pollution. We determined that Design J would be the basis of our master plan.

Rincon Student Art Project Underway

The Surfrider Foundation's Aquatic Art Project is underway at Rincon's Jorge Seda Crespo Middle School. Check out the slideshow from Day 1 or simply learn more about this outreach and education program.

Our Inspiration

Chillin' out after a hard day of play. Thanks to A-Ron for the photo.