Ocean Swimmer
ABOUT
Being in the ocean is like being at home.
Hi, my name is Rodrigo and i'm a surfer and ocean swimmer.
I grew up on the brazilian coast in Guaruja, Sao Paulo. Since my first steps or strokes i'm involved with the ocean.
Being in the ocean is like being at home.
From an early age my first passion was for aquatic sports.
Racing and competing was the second!
I started surfing at the age of 6 and since then surf was what moved my life, my choices and my goals.
At that time there were no surf schools or camps, we only had the elder surfers, divers, sailors and fishermans to teach us about the currents, winds, tides and moon efects.
We had to learn the hard way, going out there and doing it!
Swimming in the sea, spearfishing, paddle boarding to nearby islands were my childhood plays.
At 7 years old I entered the first swimming club and already started to participate in competitions and getting on the podium. By the time I was 12 I joined a bigger club and for once I was part of a team and competing with a focus on regionals and nationals tournaments.
My preferred styles are Crawl , Back and Breaststroke.
At 16 I started competing amateur surfing championships and used the swimming in the sea as preparation for contests.
With no good results at small, windy and crappy waves during the contests I started dedicating myself to what I really like, surfing big and hollow waves!
I began to focus on my training to surf in the most extreme conditions and also payed special attention to my physical preparation to be at sea in severe conditions of wheather.
I spend lots of time in spearfishing, bodysurfing in havy conditions and swimming in open waters long distances for endurance.
I learned the techniques of apnea diving and also to control my anxieties and fears to face the big-wave surfing.
In 2001 I moved to North Sumatra, seted up a surf camp and developed my navegation skills doing boat surf trips and exploring indonesian islands.
Back in Brazil I graduated as master skipper and all of this navegation knowledge helps me on open waters strategy.
At 32 with good experience in surfing big waves and having traveled to various locations around the world I began competing open waters races in Brazil.
Festival Tribuna held a strong circuit with the best athletes of Brasil at the years 2003/2004 and 2005.
This circuit has prepared me to swim in the sea with 300 other competitors, despite my best result was arriving at 8th, my victories were personal.
Finishing the races beating my personal time and joining the party that provides such an event were my main goals. I specialize in races like 1,500, 3,000 and 5.000 meters.
Today I offer my experience and skills to help you became an athlete very competitive on open waters or a big wave surfer!
Pura vida!
Rodrigo Guerra