Thomas Cravarezza exclusive ITW!
January 13th, 2011 by admin received Comments Off TweetWe’re back in Italy, ready to know a surfer who’s always present on the local line-up. Thomas Cravarezza, well known for his nice style, and for being one of the most talented surfers in the Peninsule.
Hi Thomas, thank you for this nice talking, finally I can put somewhere all the pictures I have in my database 
Let’s start with some easy question,
How old are you and where do you come from?
I’m 26 and I come from Genoa.
What are your sponsors?
My sponsors are Reef , Varazze Surf Shop and Surftolive
When did you start surfing, and what was that pushed you to that?
I began surfing when I was about 13-14. But my love for the waves began long before, in fact when I was a child I was a body boarder and so the passage to surf has been pretty easy.
Your favourite spot in Italy? And abroad?
In Italy I have no doubt: it’s Varazze! Abroad I think I have many favourite spots, choosing only one would be too reductive. Anyway I’d look for a long and tubing left, since here it’s pretty rare.
Three pros and cons of surfing Varazze;
The pros are that waves are steep, they push and they break both left and right.
The main con is that is too crowded, even if I can’t complain because I take always a lot of waves, but having too much people in front of me is annoying anyway. Unfortunately the left is not as good as the right, I’d give anything for a fronside right..
What do you think of the Italian surfing, compared to the international scene?
We’re behind, because there are too much words and no facts. Anyone has something to say, but nobody does anything. Instead of being a combined community, I’ve never seen so many divisions as among the Italian surfers. We should help and support each other, instead, everytime someone try to do something new, people always complain. Fortunately the new generation, thanks to the support of the sponsor and to personal sacrifices, can spend a lot of time abroad to train and the results are evident. I think to kids as Leo Fioravanti, Roby D’amico , Angelo Bonomelli ,Alessandro Piu and Ale De Martini. It’s so good to see them surfing, and I’m proud of them.
Who’s your favourite surfer, the one that inspires you the most?
My favourite surfer is Andy Irons. I had the luck to meet him and to spend some time with him, he was a great person, and we all miss him so much.
What do you usually do beside surfing? What are your other activities?
I’m pretty busy, I’m studying Maritime and Port Business Management, I’m the Reef representative in Liguria and I manage a surf school in Recco and Bogliasco. I organize surf camps abroad with my school, so I’m often around the world when the sea is flat here!
We know you are one of the stars of Onde Nostre, surf film in pure 60s style. Tell us how it was to do it and an highlight moment of the shooting.
It has been a wonderful experience, during last April we shot in Liguria and Sardinia looking for the best swell. We had a lot of fun and we were a nice group, even if during the shooting I suffered from several injuries. Firstly a concussion due to a butt on the board, then a cervical trauma as a consequence of a car accident and finally a dislocated shoulder while we were shooting the skate scenes!
You have ten lines to convince those who still haven’t seen it, to watch Onde Nostre.
It take less than ten lines: 16mm films are awesome and the soundtrack is worthy of an art film, it’s the image of the Italian surfers’ life, and it contains also some Davidino’s pearls of wisdom that you mustn’t absolutely miss!!
Tell us something about the Bogliasco surf school. When was it born, where came the idea, what are its main activities and the plans for the future.
Bogliasco surf school was born in 2009. The idea was already in my head, then I met the owners of the establishments of Recco and Bogliasco and there I began the courses with the already existing Surfing Club Bogliasco. We teach individual and collective courses for everyone, we’ve people of all age, from 4 to 50. We organize surf camps together with Surftolive, last year we went to Spain (Santander), to Sardinia (Buggerru) and to Morocco (Sidi Kauki). In the end of February we’re going to Morocco again, and by the end of April we’re going to restart the courses, that will continue till the end of October. In May we’re organizing a free-lessons day in Bogliasco, where anyone can participate. Anyone willing to follow us can find us on Facebook or on our page on Surftotal.it.
What’s the most beautiful thing that surf gave to you over the years?
The opportunity to travel and to know new places and cultures, the experiences I live in the sea with my friends, at home but also abroad, the glimpse of the childs when they surf their first wave and the enthusiasm they transmit me.
Any other sport beside surfing? Have you ever tried with snowboard, skate, bike, freeski and so on? If yes, what kind of sensations did they give to you?
I ride both skate and snowboard. When I was younger I was skating a lot, now I skate a bit less because I can’t control me and I often get injured. Snowboard has been passionating me especially in those last years, I love the sensation of surfing the pow, and I like to recreate on the snow the lines that I trace surfing.
We know you’re a passionate reader, so let’s put some culture in this interview: favourite book?
Dostoevskiji’s Crime and Punishment. I’m fashinated by the noir and I think this is the most fascinating detective story that has ever been written. If I should suggest a most recent book I’d say The Power of the Dog, by Don Winslow, there are plots between drug trafficking and politics of U.S. and Mexico, with an incredible attention to the characters’ profiles, a really good book.
And, why not, favourite song and favourite movie?
Favourite song is Helpless, Neil Young. Film Holliwood Party by Peter Sellers
This interview is going to end, thank you again Thomas for the time you granted us. Last lines are yours, just say anything you want to our readers, last words, thanks, whatever.
I want to say thanks to Filippo Demontis, president of the Surfing Club Bogliasco and responsible for Surftotal.it, for all the support he gave me, Filippo of the Varazze surf shop for giving me the chance to surf with the best boards available and Riccardo of Surftolive for his willingness and the fondness he showed me.
Tags: bogliasco surf club, molo del surf, Onde nostre, reef, scuola surf bogliasco, surftolive, Thomas Cravarezza, vss
Posted under: INTERVIEWS, SURF
