All-Girl Grom Squad // Meet the Next Generation of C-Skins' Female Shredders
"I hope that I can inspire more girls and young people to get into the water. It’s amazing to watch other young girls fall in love with the sport that I live and breathe." - Harlyn Sykes
Carving the way for the next generation of mini rippers is our all-girl grom squad. Made up of Betsie Reay, Harlyn Sykes and Ellie Hickie, the team are charging at home and away, showing us how it’s done. Whether surfing competitively or paddling out for fun, the skill and strength of these groms is what first led us to support them, and we’re so excited to see where their surfing journey takes them.
Whilst the sheer talent and determination of these girls is their driving force, we also recognise the support and commitment of family in helping young surfers to achieve their potential. Enabling groms to access their dreams are the parents, carers and older siblings standing on the shoreline. Squinting against the wind, shouldering the camera equipment, fronting the comp costs, providing the taxi service, booking the plane tickets. Whilst the groms are putting in the graft it’s the unseen support that gets them there, and we couldn’t be more thankful to the grown ups that support our all-girl grom squad.
We spoke to the girls and their parents to find out what more about their surfing journey and also what it takes to be a grom parent…
Home town: Bude
Achievements: U12 Euro Kids Champion in 2024, U16 Junior Surfing England Squad, club member of Bude Waveriders
Loving: Surfing with family and friends, surfing in Lombok, Indonesia
Goals: International surf travel
How and when did you first get into surfing?
Betsie: I started to ride on the front of my Dad’s board when I was three but I properly started surfing green waves at about six at our local breaks in Bude with my brother, cousins and friends. We have a great grom crew in Bude!
What do you enjoy most about competing?
Betsie: I love the thrill of getting a good wave and knowing that you will improve your score. There is something you can’t describe about the buzz of a good score after a good wave in a competition. I also have made a lot more surf friends through comps!
Where is your dream surf destination?
Betsie: My dream surf spot is probably snapper rocks as the thought of getting such a long wave excites me. I also love Indo and can’t wait to explore that more in the future!
What would you like to achieve?
Betsie: My goal is probably to get selected to go to the ISA world juniors with Surfing England as it would be such an adventure and great fun!
Favourite wetsuit for surfing at home?
Betsie: My favourite wetsuit for surfing at home is my 4:3 NuWave as it’s really stretchy and easy to move in. I wear this from spring through to autumn at home and any winter surf trips to Morocco!
What does it take to be a grom parent?
Naomi (Betsie's Mum): It’s always nice to have a reason to go to the beach, especially when the weather and waves are good! However it takes a lot of dedication and time to ensure they can get in when the waves are pumping. Other activities often get sidelined! Our holidays have now all become surf destinations but this has allowed us to venture to some great places around the world so we’ve been incredibly fortunate. But most the time it involves standing on a cold wet beach at all hours waiting for the beach cafes to open to get a warm coffee! All beach cafe owners out there, please start opening earlier!!!
Do you surf together?
Naomi (Betsie's Mum): We are a tight unit and always head to the beach together, it helps having a family beach hut at Crooklets with cousins, aunties and uncles that all surf with us. We used to be a family of four and surfed together all the time! However with the addition of baby Ozzy it has become trickier to all get in together - it is mostly a combination of Dad, Betsie and her brother Sully at the moment.
How did you feel when your daughter first expressed an interest in surfing and how did you nurture that?
Naomi (Betsie's Mum): Betsie has always loved the water and demonstrated natural balance on boards. Her first ever wetsuit at the age of 2 was a C-Skins wetsuit. It was a joy to see her so confident and happy in the sea, sharing a sport we love together with her was amazing. We just kept giving her opportunity to jump on a foam board with us. It was the COVID summer at age 7 where it changed from grovelling in the white water to riding 2ft peelers.
How do you fit surfing and training around school?
Naomi (Betsie's Mum): It helps when the days are longer as we have always been a family of early-risers; Ozzy currently sees 4.30am as the start of his day! Therefore a pre-school dawny is always an option and living close to the beach means any spare time we have we can jump in quickly. We are lucky to have surfing family friends that kindly offer to collect Betsie from school and get her in when we’re still at work too.
Any plans for school holiday surf trips?
Naomi (Betsie's Mum): As we are both teachers, we are fortunate to have school holidays with our kids. This summer we’re camping in France on the west coast. We went to Lombok a few years ago and we all loved it there so hope to go back there again soon.
"Surfing with [my older siblings] at our local breaks is the best thing ever."
Home town: West Cornwall
Achievements: Winner of Cornwall Schools Championship, Winner of Surfing England’s Junior Series 2022, Surfing England’s Junior Squad
Loving: Competing, surfing the epic waves on her doorstep
Goals: Compete for England in the European and World Junior Championships
How and when did you first get into surfing?
Harlyn: My family are all surfers. I grew up wanting to compete with my older brother and sister and I tried surfing myself at 5 years old. Over the years I followed them into the lineup and now surfing with them at our local breaks is the best thing ever: catching waves back-to-back and cheering each other into the huge sets.
What do you most enjoy about competing?
Harlyn: I love the adrenaline that I get from being at competition sites and in the water for heats. I think that sometimes my best surfing has been when I’m under pressure. I’ve also made some amazing friends through competitive surfing, who push and support me into doing bigger turns and surfing heavier waves.
What is your dream destination?
Harlyn: I was really fortunate to be selected for the World Junior Championships in El Salvador last year. Surfing at a world-class wave in twenty-degree water and thirty-five degree air temperature was amazing. I’d love to continue exploring that area of America, so probably Costa Rica or Nicaragua.
What would you like to achieve through surfing?
Harlyn: Surfing is a great sport and I am so thankful to have found it and been welcomed into it. I hope that I can inspire more girls and young people to get into the water. I have already coached some of the local groms who are new to surfing. It’s amazing to watch other young girls fall in love with the sport that I live and breathe. Competitively, I hope to continue to represent Team England Internationally.
Favourite wetsuit for surfing at home?
Harlyn: I love surfing the cold winter swells in West Cornwall – the NuWave 5:4 has been super warm all winter but still very flexible and easy to surf in.
What does it take to be a grom parent?
Martin (Harlyn’s dad): Fortunately, I’m a surfer myself. There are a few different stages in being a grom parent – the early years are mainly about helping to pull small wetsuits on and off and pushing into waves; there is then a satisfying period of calling the children into reasonable waves; the final stage is more frustrating where unfortunately they take all of the best waves and ‘parental priority’ has to come into play!
How did you feel when your daughter first expressed an interest in surfing and how did you nurture that?
Martin: I have two daughters who surf – Harlyn and her older sister Asha. I was really pleased when they both became serious surfers – it was especially good to see how welcoming the line-up in West Cornwall is to younger female surfers, it is a pretty tight-knit group – especially through the winter months. I don’t recall too much nurturing being required – it soon becomes them dragging me out on the marginal days.
How do you fit surfing and training in around school?
Martin: The school have always been very supportive. They provide twice weekly strength and conditioning sessions for national level athletes and more importantly allow late starts when the surf is good! However, it’s always great in summer with the brighter mornings, allowing the kids to get in for some surfs before and after school.
Any plans for school holiday surf trips?
Martin: We will be taking our van down the West Coast of France in the summer. This is our usual school holiday surf trip and we tend to meet up with other surfing friends that we have made over the years. The waves can be variable over the summer but we usually get at least a few good sessions in the hollow French beach breaks.
Home town: Newquay
Achievements: National U12 girls surf champion, Ambassador for Women and Waves, active member of Newquay Board Riders Club
Loving: Competing, skating, surfing with friends in Cornwall, surfing in Morocco and Portugal
Goals: More warm water travel
How and when did you first get into surfing?
Ellie: When I was 10 and my mum and me would go for surfs together some days and I loved it so I entered the nationals and I won! And it went from there really.
What do you enjoy most about competing?
Ellie: Being with all of my surf friends that I wouldn’t normally see since some of them live far away.
Where is your dream surf destination?
Ellie: Indonesia!
What would you like to achieve through surfing?
Ellie: Meet lots of new people that also love the sport and that I can travel with to compete, I’d love to be able to surf for a living .
Favourite wetsuit for surfing at home?
Ellie: Winter is my 5:4 hooded Session, it keeps me toastie all year round! Summer is my 4:3 NuWave, it is so flexible and light to wear but still keeps me warm!
What does it take to be a grom parent?
Jess (Ellie's Mum): Lots of organisation and patience! Winter surfing can be hard with the light and cold water being less appealing, but can be some of the best surfs when you don’t have to deal with the crowds and have the peak to yourself. Her wetsuits keep her super warm, so it is always worth getting in after school before the dark winter evenings draw in. A bathroom of winter wetsuits, sand and swimwear is something we all live with! It’s easier when spring and summer swell arrives as does dawnies before school and again after school, sometimes until sunset, which is really special for us all! Your life does revolve around the tides, wind and swell, but the joy it brings us, especially Ellie, is worth it.
Do you surf together?
Jess (Ellie's Mum): Dad goes in with Ellie quite a bit to coach and take videos for surf analysis afterwards. I go in for some fun surfs with Ellie to remind her that it isn’t all about training!
How did you feel when your daughter first expressed an interest in surfing and how did you nurture it?
Jess (Ellie's Mum): Seeing your child develop a love for the sport that you also love is really special. Ellie naturally took to surfing, but keeping things fun to balance out the training is important. As a family we are part of Newquay Boardriders, who have been really supportive of Ellie. Being part of a strong surf community is definitely helps nurture her as she has made friends and has the older groms to look up to.
How do you fit surfing and training around school?
Jess (Ellie's Mum): With a lot of planning! Her school doesn’t let her have any time off for training, which makes things quite hard particularly in the winter. Luckily, living in Newquay, there are lots of options within a few minutes of us so pre and post surfs can happen all year.
Any plans for school holiday surf trips?
Jess (Ellie's Mum): We are currently in Indonesia for the Easter holidays, enjoying some warm waves! We like to be at home for the summer as there is so much going on around us and everyone just surfs all day. No more plans just yet but we will see where the year goes!
To meet the whole team of epic C-Skins ambassadors click here.
