The idea that fear is a tool for pursuing something rather than a roadblock in front of that pursuit is nothing new. And that philosophy is nearly universal within the big wave surfing community, where you’ll find no shortage of people crediting their natural fear in a moment as the very thing that allows them to paddle or swing into the largest waves ever ridden.
With all that said, is there any spot on the planet worthy of taking such a philosophical deep dive as Nazaré? Joana Andrade is exploring this in a new film series about getting fear out of the mind and into the body, which premiered at the Ocean Film Tour in Lisbon this week. In it, Andrade shares that fear is in fact, “a good thing.”
“I’m always driving, saying ‘Maybe I’m not going. Maybe I’m just going to check,'” she says of the spot she’s been a regular at for years. “But I think in big waves, I learn a lot. Before, I was a person very stressed, very anxious. And now I understand fear can be a good tool for your life.”
