Surfing is usually seen as an intensely visual pursuit. You watch for the swell building on the horizon, study the way the shoulder feathers, and lock your eyes on the peeling pocket of a wave.
For Brazilian surfer Derek Rabelo, the ocean is an entirely acoustic and physical landscape.
Born in Guarapari, Brazil, Rabelo was diagnosed at birth with congenital glaucoma. Several surgeries during his infancy were unsuccessful, leaving him without any sight.
Still, his connection to the water started before he took his first breath. His father was an avid surfer who dreamed of raising a child to share the tides with, even naming him after Hawaii’s legendary world champion, Derek Ho.
When Derek turned 17, his dad handed him a board and guided him into the break. Learning to pop up on shifting water is humbling enough with full vision, but Derek quickly fell in love with the simple sensation of moving with the sea.
To navigate an environment as chaotic and unforgiving as breaking surf, he had to build an unconventional relationship with the water. Without sight, he learned to map waves through resonance and physical feedback.
“I listen to the ocean and feel it,” he explains. “Every single part of a wave makes different noises. So, I can decide which side of the wave I should surf towards.”
He reads the pitch and rumble of an approaching crest, gauges the pressure shifting beneath his feet, and trails a hand along the open face to sense its speed and steepness.
It demands a level of quiet presence that most sighted surfers rarely pause to build.
Now in his thirties, Rabelo has taken his board to some of the most unforgiving breaks on the planet, including Pipeline on Oahu’s North Shore.
When he is out of the water, he spends his time advocating for adaptive surfing and pushing for the sport to be added to the Paralympic Games.
His perspective on the whole journey is strikingly simple:
“What many see as a difference may actually be a new way of seeing the world. Diversity gains strength when we understand that each person carries unique stories and perspectives.”
In a world full of artificial noise, Derek’s story is a clean, honest reminder of what happens when you slow down and actually listen to the wild around you.
Follow Derek Rabelo’s sessions and travels on Instagram. H/T to MyModernMet.
1 Comment
Amazing story of winning. He can do anything he can imagine.