- April 19, 2024
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Braeden Kopec. Photo by Ray Boone
Braeden Kopec catches a wave during a competition. Courtesy photo
Braeden Kopec catches a wave during a competition. Courtesy photo
Braeden Kopec catches a wave during a competition. Courtesy photo
Braeden Kopec. Courtesy photo
Braeden Kopec was 2 years old when he first learned how to surf.
He and his father, Brian Kopec, used to travel up to Matanzas Inlet — back when you could drive your car straight onto the beach — and head out in search of waves. Brian would paddle, and Braeden would cling onto the nose of his father’s longboard.
He learned to pop up onto the board by grabbing onto his father’s head, and he started surfing in competitions a year later.
“People thought we were crazy,” Brian recalled. “I had no idea that when I was pushing him into waves all those years ago, that he’d be where he is today.”
Braeden, now 13, is one of the most decorated youth surfers in the country. The Hammock Beach resident most recently won his sixth and seventh East Coast titles this past spring, and he competed at the USA Surfing National Championships in California in June. USA Surfing has taken notice of Braeden over the past year and, as a result, named him to the USA Junior Developmental Surf Team.
He was the only boy from the East Coast to be nominated.
“It means the world to me,” Braeden said. “This has always been one of my biggest goals. I’m really stoked to make this team.”
Braeden’s life has revolved around surfing since he first started competing. “I live for the buzzer,” he joked.
His primary coach is four-time world surfing champion and Flagler Beach legend Frieda Zamba. Braeden, who met Zamba four years ago, has flown to Costa Rica, where Zamba lives, about 20 times to train with her.
“Sometimes Frieda is his mom, sometimes she’s his sister, sometimes she’s his buddy, most of the time she’s his coach,” Brian said. “They have an incredible relationship.”
When not traveling for training, he’s traveling for competition.
The Kopecs spent 111 days in hotels last year, according to Braeden’s mother, Rachael Kopec. Braeden is homeschooled, as a result. The long distances can be tiresome, but his parents have never missed a contest.
“It gives us a lot of time to be together as a family," Rachael said. “He really truly wants to be the best he can possibly be. I think that’s really admirable for someone at such a young age who knows that he wants to be successful at what he loves.”
