Lorenza
Kitesurfer/Freediver/(River)Surfer
Nationality: Italian…I’m Canadian now…
Hometown: Bologna, Italy
Where did you grow up: Northern Italy, the Alps, Nice (France) and along the Mediterranean when I wasn’t in Milan or Bologna
Favourite place to kite and surf: Tofino, BC for surfing…Norway’s vast endless plains for kiting (if not on the slopes of Banff National Park..)
What do you love about freediving: I love that feeling of absolute silence, and being suspended as if in space with over 20 meters of water over my head…there’s nothing down there (well…if you’re in deep water that is) and you have nothing else but your mind and body to focus on as the pressure squeezes your soft tissues. It’s the closest anyone can come to the ocean in my books. It’s another level of meditation- I tell people who meditate that you haven’t quite conversed with your mind or your body until you dive to that depth. Humans didn’t evolve to dive but when I freedive it reminds me that I am, after all just a simple animal with an overrated brain and sense of importance in this world.
Other activities/hobbies that we should know about: I adore back country skiing, and even more so snow kiting in the back country. It’s a tad tricky with the avalanches and shifty weather conditions but it’s my heroine. It’s closely followed by freediving and kitesurfing in warm weather of course. Hiking/scrambling large mountains is also another one, along with river surfing.
One thing you can’t live without: I have no French blood but it’s artisan cheese, good European bread and good red wine.
Top 5 things on your bucket list: Too many…but let’s just put visiting the Lofoten in Norway (and surfing there!), freediving and kiting in Iceland, touring the Greek and Turkish islands on a catamaran, touring Japan, competing in the VAKE in Norway, and many many more.
Motto you live by: “Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference” – Robert Frost ..I love this quote because it represents what I stand for…take chances, and live life to its fullest.
Why do you love Honubelle swimwear: I love what it stands for- strong, beautiful, active women. I love that it’s designed locally and made for girls that undertake big physical challenges and live an active lifestyle. All the while, it isn’t strictly sporty so it makes your body look good while it stays on you, despite the elements you are exposed to.
