A film about the little 6 year-old Gold Coast phenom Quincy Symonds aka the Flying Squirel. Coming Spring 2015.
Produced and shot by Sean Michael and James Winegar. Assisted by Grant Davis.
Here’s her incredible story;
Quincy Symonds (aka The Flying Squirre) is quite possibly the world’s best six-year-old surfer and skater. The Tweed Heads local only started surfing about 18 months ago and, in a very short time, has captured the attention of the surfing world, gained multiple sponsors and garnered a fanatical following on social media.
Her parents are right behind her. But nothing like American-style stage parents. Quincy’s dad Jake has been a surfer most of his life and his love for the ocean inspired her to get in the water. Her mum Kim says it was the most natural thing in the world.
While Quincy’s feats in the water are impressive on their own, they are even more inspiring given that she has battled a serious medical condition for her entire life.
Not long after she was born, she was rushed into the Intensive Care Unit suffering adrenal crisis. After extensive testing, Quincy was diagnosed with Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia, a genetic disorder that affects her body’s ability to create cortisone.
Quincy’s condition means she is steroid dependent. “Steroid dependency at this age requires medication three times a day,” Kim explains. “In times of sickness, Quincy needs intensive medical treatment.”
While you might think it dangerous for a five or six-year-old to be surfing at all, every possible measure has been put in place to ensure Quincy is safe in the water.
“We always assess the conditions and the skill level of the other surfers in the water before we paddle out”, says Jake. “When the waves are bigger, we have a custom-made life vest that she wears. It’s quite thin but it offers a little bit of support for her if she takes a wipeout on a bigger wave.”
And it’s not just Quincy’s buoyancy vest that is custom made. Quincy’s boards are custom-designed and shaped for her so she has a quiver of different boards to suit varying conditions and match her progress. There are very few boards in the world THIS small, basically miniature versions of the performance surfboards you see on the world tour.
Words by Scott Gamble, Executive Producer, ABC Open
