Icelandic Digital Magazine LIVE+ICELANDIC+Spring+2017 | Page 15

Both Heiða and Rut got into surfing the Icelandic way – without any formal
training, just a group of friends who decided to make it on their own. Little by
little, they started understanding the waves and getting a hang of the surf.
"When you understand the vast power of the ocean, you start respecting it in
a completely different way and you realise how unique it is to live on an island
surrounded by the Atlantic," Heiða says with a bit of seriousness in her voice.
"Even if surfing is all about having fun, we also take safety quite seriously."
Arctic surfing requires wearing a thick wet suit (made for arctic conditions),
being a good swimmer, knowing where to find your weather information and
most importantly, never heading out alone.
When it comes to their health and diet, both Rut and Heiða agree that arctic
surfing is a healthy lifestyle that provides an amazing exercise for both body
and mind. Rut for example, has experimented with being both a vegan and a
pescetarian, but now mainly enjoys a vegetarian diet. She does however enjoy
the occasional fish and when asked why, she explains: "I'm Icelandic, so I do
eat fish. But it's only because of the purity and quality of the fish here in Iceland –
I wouldn't eat it anywhere else in the world”.
About the future of the arctic surfing in Iceland, in particular for women, both
Rut and Heiða agree that surfing is here to stay, and that the positive examples
set by the local surfers will likely inspire more to join in.