Aloha,
My name is Miku Uemura. I’m 24 years old and currently reside in
Makaha, a rural town on the leeward side of the island of Oahu. My
family and I moved to Hawaii in 1989 from Japan. I’ve always been
fascinated with the ocean and water sports so I guess it was only
natural for me to start surfing.
My earliest experiences came from tandem surfing; a form of surfing
done with two people on one board, usually a male-female
partnership. Shortly after my tandem introduction into surfing, I
began riding a board of my own. I was fortunate to have been raised
where I was; the beach was practically in walking distance and I had
to look no further then the breaking waves for inspirational role
models. I was mentored from former surfing World Champions, water
sport pioneers and lifetime watermen/women.
I have been surfing competitively for over 12 years with the last
seven as a professional. I currently compete on the JPSA tour in
both shortboard as well as longboard, and on the ASP world
longboarding tour.
When I’m not on tour, I love to spend time with my dog named
“Patchie” or just relax at the beach and surf for fun. I also enjoy
sharing and teaching others to surf. Nothing makes me happier than
to see someone stand up and ride a wave for the first time; the look
in their eyes and that smile from ear to ear. Reminds me of all the
great times I had in the water and how surfing has changed my life.
