Here’s how Mylene Dizon got into surfing and why she continues to love it

Mylene Dizon is definitely known as a versatile seasoned actress, whose career started as a teen star in the late 90s and continues to flourish up to the present, as she notably scores one project after the other or even takes on two different projects at the same time.

Although she’s been in the local entertainment scene for more than two decades now, not a lot of people are probably aware that she’s actually a surfing enthusiast, unless they scroll through her Instagram feed where we could spot a few posts of her riding the waves while on a surfboard. Since this is a facet of her that not a lot of people know, we had her talk about her surfing journey in this exclusive video!

According to Mylene, she already tried surfing around 2003, but she really didn’t actively surf until 2013. She learned it during her first-ever trip to La Union when one of her friends invited her to try it while they were in Baguio City, which is just around a one-hour drive away. She was actually surprised since that was only when she found out that surfing is actually also a thing in the Philippines.

Despite having no idea how to surf nor any instructor to train them, she and her friend still managed to teach themselves how to do it. However, she didn’t get to pursue it and had actually forgotten about it until her close friend, fellow actress Agot Isidro, invited her to go to Baler, Aurora around 2013 to check out the place and to also try surfing. That’s when her interest in surfing reignited, so she went back to La Union and since then fell in love with the sport.

“Nobody really inspired me to surf, I’ve always loved the ocean. The idea of surfing was talagang a “wow thing” for me. Sana nga nalaman ko na may surfing noong mas bata-bata ako. Siguro e gumaling pa ako. Ngayon kasi ‘di talaga ako magaling eh,” she said when asked who or what inspired her to try the sport. 

There may be a plethora of sport or outdoor activity to choose from, but it’s with surfing to which Mylene got really inclined to due to the incomparable thrill riding the waves always bring her. Being on the surfboard and in the middle of the sea provides her with immense adrenaline rush, healing, and euphoric feeling, especially whenever she’s able to glide through the waves.

“I think, sa aming mga surfer, we regard our time in the ocean parang our “church,” especially for me. I’ll just speak for myself then. It’s a good time for me to be with nature—God’s creation—to see people who are happy to be there as well. And that is the time that we appreciate being alive and living life. And every time, it’s always a chance for me to say a little prayer of thanks to Him. 

With regard to her best surfing moment, the Kapamilya actress revealed that it’s going to be her first “stoke,” which she explained as “the feeling of euphoria related to surfing” that she had experienced in 2013. She recalled being able to catch her own wave that was quite huge, which made her yell out of joy. It was also the same day when she decided that she wanted to live in La Union and she would do anything to make it possible. 

Mylene also enthusiastically imparted an advice for someone out there who’s just begining in surfing. She conveyed, “Tibayan mo lang ang loob mo, kaya mo ‘yan. At saka para sa akin, ‘no day but today.’ Kapag gusto mong matutong mag-surf, gawin mo na ngayon. Huwag ka na magpa-bukas pa. Yes, magiging masakit, maraming injuries, maraming pasa, maraming reef cut, maraming aksidenteng maaaring mangyari, but I think, kasama ‘yon sa learning. Like with anything, it shouldn’t come easy naman eh.”

Then she continued, “Don’t be afraid. Just know the rules of surfing, know what to watch out for. Don’t be too cocky na akala mo lahat ng bagay ay kaya mo. Maniwala ka na Mother Nature is a lot stronger than you, wala kang laban sa kanya. Dapat alam mo how to play on her playground.”