Cori Schumacher is an interesting woman. Few in the surf space are so outspoken about their feelings towards it, but Schumacher, a three-time world longboard champion, isn’t afraid to speak her mind.
Born in Huntington Beach and raised in San Diego, Schumacher excelled on both long and shortboards–in the mid-’90s, in fact, she competed on the ASP tour on a shortboard, but it was on longboards that she truly dominated.
A few years before the turn of the century, Schumacher decided to focus on school and relocated to San Francisco, where, like so many others who find themselves in the formative hallways of college, she cracked open the door to what would become her real life. Angry at the industry’s treatment of women, Schumacher spent a few years studying, partying, and not surfing very much. Then, she proved that she was still the best in the world. In 2000, she was involved in a bad car accident just before the Women’s World Longboard Championships. Just a few days later, with a concussion and two injured legs, Schumacher paddled out, won the event, and then came back the next year to win it again.
Her surfing, though, isn’t what has defined her in the surf industry. In 2011, in a highly publicized battle against the ASP, Schumacher boycotted the event in China, citing their “human rights violations” as the reason. “I have deep political and personal reservations with being a part of any sort of benefit to a country that actively engages in human-rights violations,” Schumacher wrote to the ASP, “specifically those in violation of women.” A few years later, when Roxy released their now-infamous Stephanie Gilmore advertisement, Schumacher again took to the battlefield, collecting over 20,000 signatures for a protest against the surf wear giant’s questionable portrayal of women.
Waves of Disruption: The Cori Schumacher Story chronicles her life and what drives her. And surfing is a better place with her in it, not only for her talent on a surfboard, but for her willingness to call bullshit where she sees it.
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