Since the moment that Kike experimented with the sensation of gliding over the waves on a board he was smitten with the sport. His passion for surfing started to change his life, whether in the beaches of Cádiz, Huelva, the Portuguese Algarve, Morocco, Cantabria or the Canary Islands, he was always searching for the perfect conditions to improve his performance and style in the water. Being a rugby player, a challenging and disciplined sport for which he trained regularly and systematically,his surfing was self-taught. As many other at that time, his way of learning was by focusing on the experienced surfers and learning from their behaviour while using a short board he found in an old basement.
At that time, there were neither surf schools nor internet in Andalusia, which meant that knowledge was passed on among friends and acquaintances by candlelight. During his frequent excursions to the Algarve, he taught his friends the secrets of the 1000 year old art of riding waves and everything related to it. And so 9 Pies was born, as a way of transmitting knowledge of the waves to the people attracted to surfing. Using thick and large longboards for the ability to enjoy surfing from the first contact with the waves, the school was baptised 9 Pies (9 feet). In this way, he started teaching in El Palmar with Andy and created the school in 2005, a place open to all where he could teach with his own personal touch distinguished by his character. The training of the instructors taught by 9 Pies allowed them to open their own schools in the area, as in those years there were only 2 or 3 schools around.
Over the years 9 Pies has taught thousands of people, sharing experiences and special moments while maintaining our spirit of respect for nature, people and the sport. At the same time we adapt ourselves to new times. The progression of surfing is unstoppable and it’s our commitment to steer it in the right direction to share our passion so that everyone can enjoy it.
