From the inside out
Just as we were heading to print, Paige competed in the first six star event of the year, placing second to World #5, Joanne Dufey. What an epic start to the year Paige, looks like you've definitely got this!
Sport is a weird and wonderful thing, it can lift your confidence and emotions so high in one moment and in the next send them all crashing down, leaving you searching for answers. Through preparation and experience, along with having a trustworthy support network at your side, by sticking to the processes that brought about success in the first place, once again success can be tasted. Taranaki’s Paige Hareb first qualified for the illustrious world tour as a sprightly 18 year old and after six years on tour and at only 24 she was considered a senior veteran, then in 2014 the world she knew came crumbling down when she failed to requalify her place on the greatest stage of all. In the two years since then Paige has soul searched, and re-invented herself in a bid to claim her spot back, for the past two seasons Paige has come agonisingly close and we are honoured to have Paige share her quest with us during the 2017 World Qualification season. Another year, another Paige: If you missed out on my last blog, late last year, it was basically explaining how I tried and went so hard, but again came heartbreakingly close to one of my main goals to re-qualify for the WSL Women’s World Tour. Now this year I guess I have a slightly different perspective and approach. The saying “if it ain’t broke, don’t try to fix it” comes to mind. Well actually, the last two years of missing out by only a couple of spots has made me think that it might actually be broken. Last year I surfed and trained so much that I even had a crying breakdown from over training. Late last year and this year may have been good for me in retrospect. At the time, I was getting a bit worried about my home town Taranaki not having a summer; wind, rain and brain freeze makes it hard to get motivated every single day so I admit it, I didn’t surf anywhere near as much and I was aware of my training breakdown this time last year, so didn’t train as much either. Like any athlete, you get a bit worried about not doing enough or doing too much and sometimes find it hard to find that perfect balance of hard work and play. I definitely was a bit worried there for a while about not doing enough but then in the surfs that I did have, I felt really good, if not surfing the best I’d felt in a while! Almost like I had hit a ‘refresh’ and ‘froth’ button. I surprised myself. I had a few Mt Woodgee surfboards stashed away in my boardroom at home that are over two years old. I needed to take some back to the Mt Woodgee factory on the Gold Coast so started sorting through them. I found a 5’5” round tail that I decided to try out again for something different to my standard boards and for “fun”. Guess what? I planned to give it back then I rode it again and it’s become one of my favourite boards once again! It’s so dinged up, has a couple of cracks that I need to fix but I rode it in my first warm-up 1000 event at Burleigh Heads in January and the spark it had felt like a brandnew board! Helping me get all the way to a third-place finish. Maybe you can teach an old dog new tricks! I’ve even started getting into yoga over here in Kingscliff, NSW where I base myself with fellow competitor and good friend Codie Klein. I’ve always liked stretching by myself because I can do it when and where I want and for a short time but going to these yoga classes has been a good physical and mental challenge for me. To keep my attention span for a whole hour focusing on my breathe was quite a struggle and almost frustrating at the start but now I’m almost craving that time, it’s still physically and mentally challenging but I have also been enjoying being in that moment for a whole hour not thinking or worrying about anything else. Don’t worry I’m not going to get all spiritual on you and I’ll tell you the truth that somehow I felt tighter and more sore after yoga rather than the common mindset of being more flexible and loose! Haha go figure! Either way, if I like something, I’m going to do it! As I write this, there’s one more week to go until my first big event of the year, a 6000 in Newcastle, Australia. I’m currently having a rest day from being surfed out, done a bit of coaching and even got to try the Australian High Performance Centre skate ramps to practice airs which was pretty cool since the ‘Aussies’ have never allowed this little kiwi girl to go on it before. They’re a little bit competitive! I’m feeling relaxed, confident, a few nerves and excitement to start this new Paige ball rolling and start racking up points and results for 2017. Best of luck to all the other Kiwis too, come on! We’ve got this!