BECOMING THE BEST ON A BUDGET
HOW PROFESSIONAL SURFER LAYNE BEACHELY, BECAME A CHAMPION TRAVELING ON A BUDGET
Traveling to reach your dreams doesn't always come easy. But from a young age, now professional surfer Layne Beachley knew she had it in her.
Growing up in the northern beaches of Sydney, it's no surprise that by the age of four, Layne was in the water and surfing everyday she could. She began competing at 14 and came in dead last at her first competition. But that didn't stop her. At 17, she joined ASP Women's World Tour and the rest was history. After competing for 20 years, she has a total of 29 championship victories, seven world titles and numerous other awards and trophies.
Being a world champion made Layne a frequent and keen traveler. And traveling at such a young age, Layne didn't always have all the funds she needed to attend a competition. I spoke with Layne to learn more about her experience traveling around the globe and how she managed to do it on a budget:
Me: What were your favorite things about traveling?
Layne: I love traveling to new places, submersing myself into their culture and meeting new and interesting people. I have seen some of the most spectacular places and I'm grateful that surfing was responsible for taking me there.
Me: What are your least favorite things about traveling?
Layne: Traveling with surfboards is one of the most challenging aspects of being a pro surfer. Airlines sometime refuse to carry them as they take up a lot of freight. If they don't, then they just leave them behind without any recourse on their behalf. When they do take them, often the boards arrive damaged. Sometimes I would open up my board bag, which kind of reflects a coffin as we travel with about 5- 6 boards at a time, and it would look like the bag had been run over. Every board had been snapped, fins knocked out and then I'm left with the repair bill and no equipment to compete on. I've had to borrow a board from fellow competitors many times which is not ideal as every board is custom made and feels very different.
Me: How were you able to travel to competitions on such a small budget?
Layne: I shared the expenses with friends. We would plan our trips together so we could share the car and accommodation costs. Most of the time we rented places that had kitchens so we could cook. Cooking at 'home' saves you a lot of money and forces you to become very creative. In the early days when I was on a shoe-string budget, I would travel with Vegemite (an Australian staple) and mix it up with water to create a soy sauce to pour over rice and avocado. It was a dinner of champions, literally!
Me: It's seems like to reach your dream of becoming a champion, you always had to travel on a budget. How does your foundation help young women achieve their dreams?
Layne: Back in 1994 I was earning $8,000 a year from my sponsors, working four jobs to supplement my income and I was rated 2nd in the world in surfing. Unfortunately, I couldn't work enough to raise the money required to travel for competitions, so I considered quitting due to the financial burden I was facing. Fortunately, one of my employers gave me an around-the-world air ticket which gave me the kick-start required to go on and pursue my dream of being a world champion. Without his support, there is no telling where I would be today. The luxury of hindsight enabled me to realize the value and importance of having someone that believes in you and has the ability to support you. That is now my purpose. I created the Layne Beachley Aim For the Stars Foundation to give back to young aspiring females, ensuring they have the means to achieve their goals in life. There are some incredibly inspiring stories and I'm very proud of each and every successful applicant.
Me: What advice would you give to women who are traveling on a budget?
Layne: The internet always has great deals, so do a bit of research before you go. Even if you find a deal, you can also find a travel buddy to share in the costs such as accommodation and cars. Also, plan ahead and take some of your own favorite ingredients from home. I'm allergic to wheat and yeast so I used to travel with my own pastas and herbs.
Layne's Top 10 Budget Travel Tips
From one budget-savvy globetrotter to another, here are Layne's top 10 tips for traveling on a budget.
- Stay close to places of interest so you can walk.
- Don't drink your mini bar if staying in a hotel.
- Carry your own luggage to your room.
- Eat in local joints (often cheaper) outside of the hotel or stay in a place with a kitchen so you can prepare your own meals.
- Always allow for traffic time if heading out somewhere.
- Keep your passport on you or in a safe place.
- Learn to negotiate.
- Exchange larger sums of money to save on excessive commission fees -avoid using credit cards and ATM's in foreign countries.
- Travel during non-peak times
- Backpackers and hostels are great places to meet people and make new friends.
