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Slopes to sand: How snowboarding and surfing go hand in hand, even for Team USA pros

Shaun White is known for snowboarding, but he does a little surfing on the side. Sisters of the Sea surfers say one sport can help you train for the other.

JACKSONVILLE BEACH, Fla. — Seven thousand, six hundred, twenty-three miles from Beijing, winter sports aren't that far from the First Coast.

We don’t have slopes on the here, so skiing is out of the question. 

However, we have coastline and plenty of water.

Some Winter Olympians train for their sports on the water. Team USA's Shaun White reportedly trains for snowboarding with a little surfing in the summer.

That didn't surprise the four surfers from Sisters of the Sea who also tell me they all snowboard, too. 

“It kind of feels like you’re floating or flying," said 13-year-old competitive surger Lanea Mons about surfing. "It’s a really awesome feeling.”

“Mentally it shuts my brain off actually," Erin Miller, Vice President of  Sisters of the Sea says.

“Even if you don’t catch a wave, you’re going to be a lot better. Like recharged," describes Inna Bell, who has been surfing since she was 18, but she grew up snowboarding first on the pacific northwest. 

There’s no off season on the first coast for the Sisters of the Sea. However, every once in a while they trade the surf for fresh powder.

“Snowboarding is a little different in how you ride the board and how you get it to move," explained Miller. "But when I am snowboarding I kind of imagine it is a big wave and I’ll try to carve on the mountain like I do out on a wave.”

Newbies start on the sand practicing your pop up and your stance. That's where the sports are similar. 

You have to have a certain balance on the boards. If you lean too far forward, you’re going face first into the water or the snow.

“It’s a natural progression for surfers to go to snowboarding," said Linda Farber, surfer and snowboarder. "You are on a board. You got that stance. You are using mainly your legs and your balance.”

“It’s a great way to practice surfing because your balance and weight transfer is the same," Mons says. "Watching snowboarding is super fun too because I love watching people do what they love.”

These seasoned surfers tell me the sports are physical and mental.

"It is a spiritual endeavor," Farber says "Then once you get up on the wave and glide it’s like that song. Catch a wave and you’re sitting on top of the world.”

Don't be envoious. Join them. 

Sisters of the Sea meet up on the northside of Jacksonville Beach pier the first Sunday of the month from 8 to 10 a.m. Their next meet is February 6. 

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