Short board for a short guy

To many students at Virginia Wesleyan, a life by the ocean can be taken for granted all too easily. This is not the case for VWC junior Mark Messina.

An earth and environmental science major from Brielle, N.J., Messina strives not only to educate himself about the ocean and its inhabitants, but he also lives some of his own life in the midst of it.

Typically seen sporting board shorts around campus, Messina started surfing at age 5. He was taught by his father, who in turn was taught by his father.

“It’s been a generation thing,” said Messina. “Just the way it should be.”

It was love at first ride. Love that only grew stronger as Messina got older.

“Surfing is like dancing with Mother Ocean,” he said. “It’s an interaction between you and the wave, and it creates this eternal partnership between you and the ocean.”

Eager to speak about something he loves so much, Messina dove into stories of his childhood and adolescence, detailing how he got to where he is now. His eyes light up as he tells them.

Initially, Messina loved surfing because it was a challenge, not only involving the conscious part of his mind, but the subconscious as well. He also never got bored with the sport, because for him, one wave is never the same as the last.

“Waves are kind of like snowflakes,” Messina said.

Later in his teens, a surfing company called Basic Element sponsored Messina. He has competed in about 25 competitive heats, including the 2003 North Atlantic Regionals in New Jersey. He placed sixth in the competition.

Though he still surfs for fun whenever he can, Messina stopped competing when he began college to focus on his schoolwork. He wasn’t heartbroken, though.

“I don’t really like competitions,” he said. “They tend to bring out the worst in surfers. I’m a soul surfer – someone who surfs for pure enjoyment, not money or sponsorship. I just happened to get sponsored.”

To Messina, surfing is spirituality. While the sport is an activity that’s both amusing and active, he points out that it is primarily an escape, and in its own way, a type of therapy.

“When you’re in the water at a line-up,” he said, “you could have a thousand things in your head, but they all fade away and you just think about the wave you’re about to ride. There’s nothing better to put you in perspective and humble you than a big wave. Some people need to be humbled like that.”

Messina’s love of surfing has taken him all over the world. Always in search of new waves, new people, and new perspectives, he has taken trips to London, Paris, Tortola, Jamaica, Puerto Rico, Barbados, St. Thomas, Costa Rica, Nicaragua and Fiji.

“Costa Rica was by far my favorite,” said Messina as he reflected on the trips he has taken. “It had the best consistent surf, the friendliest people, and a truly beautiful countryside.”

Messina’s passion for oceanography has grown as a result of his surfing experiences. His shelves are full of books on the subject, and he smiles as he takes one down to leaf through the pages he knows so well.

“Surfing is actually the reason I chose my major,” he said. “I have such an appreciation now for the science involved and a better understanding of the bad things that are done to the ocean each day. I’m hoping a college degree will allow me to help change some of those things.”

Messina’s cousin, an employee of the Environmental Protection Agency, initially introduced Messina to his scientific knowledge of the ocean. From there, Messina has done all he can to help save the environment in which he finds his tranquility.

For the past four years, he has volunteered with the Surf Rider Association in New Jersey for their ocean clean-ups, and even helped organize a clean-up close to his home in Brielle.

During the summer of 2003, he taught a three week class entitled “The Beach Environment” to a group of kids ranging in age from 7 - 12. Messina came up with the lesson plan himself.

He also protested a movement for the draining of an estuary near his home which put dozens of fish and other marine life in danger.

“Surfing has led me to where I am today,” said Messina. “Without my understanding of the ocean, I probably would never have discovered my passion for its science.”

In the years to come, Messina hopes to graduate and continue his schooling at Florida Atlantic University, completing a Masters degree in a more definitive area of science.

And, of course, to keep up with his more than regular meetings with his favorite therapist, the ocean he has come to know and love - no matter where in the world he may be at that point in time.