Nelly's Magic Moments Podcast
Dave “Nelly” Nelson is a globally published veteran surf and skate photographer with countless magazine covers and spreads to his name. After spending years as a senior photographer at TransWorld Surf Magazine, Dave now shoots freelance for domestic and international publications.
Major action sports brands such as Vans, O’Neill, Fox, and Reef commonly contract Dave to shoot on location for trips locally and abroad.
As one of the best action water photographers in the world, he is usually in the right place at the right time to produce “the goods”. Dave’s relationships and mutual respect with some of the most elite athletes in the world give him access to the best action at the best spots.
Dave’s dedication to the sports of surfing and skateboarding is matched by his values as a person. A true family man, Dave cares about is daughter and wife as much as he cares for his community of Santa Cruz. A consummate role model for young athletes coming out of his hometown, Dave has helped pave the way for some of the best young talent in Nor Cal.
Nelly's Magic Moments Podcast
Kyra Joseph: From Surf Grom To Founder: Building Femme Futures And The Diva Cup
This one with Femme Futures founder Kyra Joseph isn’t just about surfing — it’s about what happens when women build the stage themselves.
Kyra came up in the WindanSea scene, found grit in rodeo, found her voice in music, and found clarity when she paddled back out in Cayucos and realized just how many women were ready to compete — if someone just opened the door.
What started as a small local surf contest became something bigger — The Diva Cup Surf Invitational, a collision of surf, sound, mentorship, and women’s health that’s as irreverent as it is important.
We talk about what equity actually looks like in the water — pro/semi-pro log divisions to balance experience, round-robin heats so everyone gets real time in the lineup, and the infamous “Men in Heat” event that flips old prize structures with humor and intent.
Kyra breaks down how Diva Cup connects newcomers with mentors, how check-ins turn into coaching sessions, and how normalizing conversations about periods and birth control side effects builds stronger, smarter athletes. The sponsors — Mamala Wetsuits, Keep A Breast, Mad Hippie — aren’t just slapping logos on banners. They’re in the lineup, helping fund product drives for women facing homelessness and backing safer surf culture from the inside out.
What comes through is more than a contest. It’s a blueprint for change — book more women on stage and behind the mic, make safety and recovery part of the stoke, and invite allies to help carry the load.
If you care about women’s surf, inclusive competition, or just real talk that moves culture forward — this one’s worth a listen.
Hit play, follow the links, sign up, volunteer, or donate — whatever keeps the wave moving.
And if this one hits home, share it, tag a friend, and drop a review telling us what your local lineup needs next.
Maybe the expendables.
SPEAKER_00:Which you our guests may or may not hear this rad music right now, Nelly. Here we are, Nelly's Magic Moments Podcast.
SPEAKER_01:Yes, let's go.
SPEAKER_00:Dave Nelson, Nell Dog, special guest, remote special guest, pushing the technology limits of Vibes Podcast Studios. Who we got, Nelly?
SPEAKER_01:We've got a special guest for you today. The founder of Fem Futures and the Diva Cup, Kira Joseph. She's kind of a savant. And uh well excited to have her on.
SPEAKER_00:That's a big leading crazy.
SPEAKER_01:What's up, Kira?
SPEAKER_03:Bang, savant.
unknown:Wow.
SPEAKER_00:That's right.
SPEAKER_03:I am so stoked to be here and chatting with you guys.
SPEAKER_00:That's amazing. So, Kira, I think the easiest thing to do is we'll kind of reverse engineer this a little bit. Um, a lot of our audience may or may not know what you've got going, but I think I want to start with the human being before we get to the um foundation and the work that you're doing. Um, and just give us a little bit of background on where you're from, who you are, and and how you end up being on a podcast with us in downtown Santa Cruz from a remote location.
SPEAKER_03:Right on, that sounds great. Well, my name is Kira, as you know, and uh I grew up on the Central Coast of California. So that's like Moro Bay, Cayucas area. Um, I was actually born in San Diego, so I grew up uh surfing for a Windsea Surf Club. Um both of my parents were in the club, and uh when I was about eight, we moved up to the Central Coast. So I really consider the Central Coast uh my home, but there's still, you know, very close ties and family down in San Diego, and I really have uh the coalition contests to thank for that for staying connected.
SPEAKER_01:So um yeah. One of my favorite spots in the world is Big Rock. I don't know if you know that, but uh I spent a lot more time down there. I lived in PB. Probably I was at Big Rock every morning at the crack of dawn.
SPEAKER_03:I guarantee you surfed with both my parents. That's hilarious.
SPEAKER_00:That's hilarious.
SPEAKER_03:Sure. And uh yeah, my mom, um, she's a professional surfer. Um, she's still competing actually at 60 something. Yes. And uh yeah, my dad, my dad was pretty low-key. I mean, he's you know, kind of uh, you know, he's WSR enforcer, big dude, but also big heart, you know, papa bear. And uh together they are just quite uh quite a funny duo and never a dull moment. And I was fortunate enough to have a ton of aunties and uncles as a result of the surf community and uh yeah, the surf clubs.
SPEAKER_01:That's so radidity surf with like Huffman and Joe Roper and all those games. Oh yeah.
SPEAKER_03:Of course, absolutely grew up. Jojo and I have hilarious stories, uh Joe's son. Just like growing up, you know, going to all these contests together, and uh our parents were always getting into shenanigans. So, you know, obviously that side of the contest scene um was a huge, huge element of just growing up and you know, having that extended family and really, you know, seeing beyond just like the stoke of surfing, but the family is such a core part.
SPEAKER_01:So before we go into it, what was your spot? Winnancy, little point, Simmons, hospitals, horseshoes, what was the what was it? All of it?
SPEAKER_03:Honestly, my my favorite, my favorite memories and like earliest memories are surfing Little Point with my dad. Nice. Um, I wanted to have a little blue or excuse me, a little purple stripe on my wetsuit to match his. And I don't know why, but I was like, no, I want I want dad to take me surfing mom. I always wanted dad to take me. Um and uh yeah, we would do like the little menahoone contests. Um I uh I remember my dad pushed me into waves. I I won my first comp. I think I was five, and I got to go pick out uh pick out some fabric for a custom board. Um one of their good buddies, Tim Bassell, makes amazing boards and so had to go for the Hawaiian print. So it's like a low hall flower. Um yeah.
SPEAKER_01:So time. Wow. I didn't know this history about you. So where was that contest at? Was that La Jolla Shores or was that termally? Yeah. Yeah, La Hoya Shores.
SPEAKER_03:You nailed it. It was at the shores. Big time.
SPEAKER_01:That's so evil.
SPEAKER_03:Yeah. So that was really, you know, how I was. I mean, the system is just really what I grew up in, you know. Um, the president of uh Winnansey Surf Club, uh, Ostar, you may know him, uh big Aloha character, but he would always take us trick-or-treating. So every house that was like trick-or-treat, support clean ocean water.
SPEAKER_01:So then how so then how did you end up moving up to Cayucas?
SPEAKER_03:Well, my parents, and my dad's a commercial fisherman. Um, and my my parents uh lived in Morrow Bay in the 80s. My mom used to wait tables, and my dad was fishing, and um my mom had she had like a horse girl side too. So um her grandpa bought a ranch in Santa Margarita way back in the day, and it's like this little tiny horse biker town. Um, but you know, if you know La Hoya, which it sounds like you do, it's it's pretty fast. And uh, you know, they were just thinking about myself growing up really quick. And so when I was about eight, they were like, you know what, let's get out of here. You can get a horse. Um, so you know, eight-year-old girl here she can get a horse, big stoker.
SPEAKER_01:Wow, that's insane.
SPEAKER_03:Mm-hmm. So you're yeah, left um San Diego.
SPEAKER_00:So you're Kira, you're deep in the culture as far as the water. It sounds like heavily influenced by your folks um on both levels. And so when did like advocacy and sort of like calls to action, did that work its way into your world at a certain age, or is that something that kind of came later?
SPEAKER_03:Oh, that's a great question. I think, you know, to be totally honest, it was really interesting having the people that I looked up to look up to my folks. It was just kind of weird. Yeah, you know, and whatever your parents do is not cool. Uh you know, when you're a teenager, like you just I don't know. So true, you don't want to do what your parents are doing.
SPEAKER_01:It's called rebellion. Rebellion.
SPEAKER_03:Yeah, yeah, and finding yourself, you know. Um so I wasn't really sure who Kira was. I mean, I was always Michael and Miranda's daughter. Um, but who is Kira, you know? So that that journey ultimately um led me, well, first, you know, rodeo and riding horses. That was a really, really exciting thing for me that I got really into um talking about talk about the rodeo a little bit.
SPEAKER_00:That's gonna, I'm gonna linger there for two seconds.
SPEAKER_03:Okay. Um, yeah. So moving up from San Diego, the Central Coast, obviously it was way colder. Um, we were always just like we lived a couple blocks from Winsea in San Diego. So we were always at the beach. And moving up here, it was way colder. All I'd ever dreamed of was having a horse. Um, I got pretty picked on in school, was like had no friends, but I had my horse, so that was fine. I was totally okay with it. Um, and just spent all day, every day, you know, aside from school, uh, with my horse, doing rodeo, um, riding, you know, cast out of a bucking chute. And uh kind of was always one of the boys, just because my hobbies, it was a lot of guys that were doing those things. So, you know, not that I didn't love my girlfriends, of course.
SPEAKER_01:Nothing gnarlier than a bucking horse, you know what I mean? It's like if you get bucked off a horse, you gotta be tough, right? Those are some.
SPEAKER_03:Yes. I was kind of a little savage for sure. Just was pretty pretty fearless. And um, but you know, I I loved it. I was like had something that was my own, and it wasn't about my parents or their scene or their friends, or you know, it was just me and my horse. And so, like full competitions for a while?
SPEAKER_00:Full competitions for a while. That's amazing.
SPEAKER_01:Take over on your surface. Totally compete with like it did. Yeah.
SPEAKER_03:Oh, it did. I stopped surfing. I I stopped surfing for like almost two years.
SPEAKER_01:That's not too long.
SPEAKER_00:I was doing my homework. Is this sometimes this stuff's true or not true? Something came up when I was doing a little homework when Nelly said we're doing this. Do you fit somehow DJing into the middle of all this? Oh, yeah.
SPEAKER_03:Yeah, yeah, that comes a little bit later. I'm we uh wait, Kira.
SPEAKER_00:What we're doing is we're weaving a pretty good narrative here right now. We've got, you know, the Rad Surfer jumped off rodeo, DJ. Um we're working our way towards the you know, to FEM futures, but this is I'm enjoying the ride right now. So where do you want to go next? I mean, now I feel like you can drive the car right now, Kira. Where are we going? DJing now, what do you want to do next?
SPEAKER_03:Sure, yeah. Let's uh let's go into the music, into the music next. Um, so you know, I was finishing up high school, obviously, so ready to get out of my hometown, which I you know considered to be the central coast. Um, I grew up in this tiny town, Santa Margarita, but it was always in Morrow Bay and um was just ready to get out. There wasn't a lot of music, wasn't too much happening. Um, and so I went up to Santa Cruz, actually, of all places. Wow. Yeah, and in Santa Cruz, um I started working at this restaurant, Harbor Cafe, I would always be making the playlists. Um, and a little side note, so on both sides of my family, I have uh musicians. My mom's parents met doing music, and then my dad's brother, Jerry Joseph, he's uh like a rock and roll, rock and roll, uh somewhat of alleged. He's he's a full, full savage, and just you know, being on the road is not an easy or glamorous lifestyle. And uh neither of my parents were interested in music, like playing music at all. We always listened to a ton of music, but as far as playing music, it was just like a no-go, and I was thought, ah, didn't get the gift, that's cool. Um, but loved, loved bumping tunes. We were always listening to a ton of music. And so when I moved up to Santa Cruz, I uh okay, this is where the story takes a really strange turn. Um, I go to Burning Man and I bring my banjo. And uh someone that I met who threw big parties up in Santa Cruz was like, oh, cool banjo. I've always you know wanted to play and I explained it's open tuning. And he said, Hey, how about this? I'll show you how to DJ, you show me how to play the banjo. I was like, Great. So he gave me a little once over, and you know, it clicked pretty, pretty quickly. And next thing you know, I had a gig in San Francisco, and uh it kind of just someone came up to me and uh during my first set and they're like, Hey, do you do private parties? I was about to say, Oh no, this is my first time, I don't know what I'm doing. And um, John interjected, he you know, gets in between before I can say anything, and he's like, Yes, she does. I'm her manager, and then Mr.
SPEAKER_02:That's how it's done, right?
SPEAKER_03:Yeah, he's like, You don't need to show me how to play the banjo.
SPEAKER_00:That's so good.
SPEAKER_01:So, how long did he live in Santa Cruz for? I this part of the story I didn't know yet.
SPEAKER_03:Yeah, about eight years.
SPEAKER_01:Wow, you probably uh helped me at Harbor Cafe. I live right down the street from that.
SPEAKER_03:Oh, for sure. Definitely. Yeah, and Santa Cruz was amazing because you know there was great surf, there's redwoods, and then San Francisco is just a hop, a skip, and a jump. Um, so that's how I really ended up like falling deep into the DJ thing. I would have never in a million years guessed, or or my parents, you know. Um, and I I kind of stopped doing surf competition. I I stayed competing after my horse girl era. Um, but then I got into going to music festivals and stopped going to contests. And so I felt like my folks and the club was kind of like, oh, you know, just partying, okay. But it it felt deeper than that. If that makes sense.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, it does. Yeah. Where where were your hangouts here? Where did you find a little crew? What was your favorite spots up here in Santa Cruz once you settled in for surfing?
SPEAKER_03:Yeah, I actually scored um this really cool spot right at the end of 41st Avenue, the last house before the hook.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah.
SPEAKER_03:Um yeah, it's right next to those turquoise apartments, this pink house. So the the hook was really the go-to, I'd say.
SPEAKER_00:That's a sick little spot. I'm trying to I I'm thinking of the couple houses there, but that it only is rad houses right down there. You're talking going towards the hook on the right hand side, right? Like if you're walking down 41st, yeah.
SPEAKER_01:Just pack jack. Just pack the jack on this house.
SPEAKER_00:Yep, yep. That's a good idea.
SPEAKER_03:Yeah, if you drive down 41st, basically it dead ends. That does, you know, the loop around into the hook parking lot.
SPEAKER_00:Yep.
SPEAKER_03:Our house looked over into that parking lot.
SPEAKER_01:Wow.
SPEAKER_00:So your favorite spot was about 140 feet away from where you lived?
SPEAKER_03:Yeah, yeah. And I met um one of now my best girlfriends and fellow board members. Uh, her name is Tessa Timmins.
SPEAKER_01:Oh yeah. Um you know Tess? Oh yeah.
SPEAKER_03:Oh, so she's like my sister. Uh she has she was there for every part of these crazy music shenanigans, going to the city. When I fell into DJing, we were living together and we lived together for six years.
SPEAKER_01:Wow. Um, so it's crazy.
SPEAKER_03:Yeah.
SPEAKER_01:So interwoven. You know, I've done a lot of shoots with Tessa for O'Neal, and you know, Kyle Boothman's one of my really, really good friends, and we've done a lot of traveling together and stuff. So it's just like how we never met is beyond me.
SPEAKER_03:Yeah, it's it's that's pretty crazy. Well, maybe we didn't. Luffy is like a brother.
SPEAKER_01:It's possible.
SPEAKER_03:Honestly, that's that's the more likely, I'd guess.
SPEAKER_00:Right. So let's keep the journey going forward, then we can get to business here in a little bit. So you leave Santa Cruz, right? You go back down south, or what's up?
SPEAKER_03:Um, I actually was still in Santa Cruz, ended up uh working with uh a little music festival up there, and ended up um taking on a role directing it one year. And so I got a ton of experience. I was really pumped to book more female artists because I realized that weren't a lot of women on the lineup, um, and get more women um in leadership roles with production. And so that was a really big, you know, stepping stone of just recognizing how how much more space there was for women, both on the stage and behind the scenes in the music industry.
SPEAKER_01:So what festival was this?
SPEAKER_03:It was called Do It Ourselves Fest, Dio.
SPEAKER_01:And and where where did that uh play?
SPEAKER_03:It was in Felton.
SPEAKER_01:Oh, in Felton's sick.
SPEAKER_03:Yeah, yeah. And what kind of music?
SPEAKER_01:Just all kinds of music, or what was the genre?
SPEAKER_03:It went eight years of it. Um started pretty bluegrassy, but it expanded into like psych rock and um like sugar candy mountain, Tommy Guerrero, some different uh Tommy Guerrero, the skateboarder. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01:Wow, that's epic.
SPEAKER_03:Yeah. And uh I was kind of like the anti-DJ DJ, if that makes sense. Like I thought I hated electronic music.
SPEAKER_02:Oh, track.
SPEAKER_03:And then yeah, was like, okay, wait, we just need more, you know, stuff we can sing along to, and guitar riffs and funky classics on the dance floor. So that was really my mission with DJing was to have less of the womp womp womp and more of that soul and those classics, but just turned up a little bit.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah. So do you DJ the uh the events down at the Diva Cup?
SPEAKER_03:I do. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01:Yes. I do. I've seen some sick photos of you DJing.
SPEAKER_00:What's the um well now we'll kind of lean into it a little bit um to stay on time and everything. Um what came first? Was it Diva Cup or was it Femme Futures Born of the Diva Cup? What what was that? What came first?
SPEAKER_03:Oh, great question. So, okay, so very long story short, I ended up moving back home to the Central Coast. Um, and when I was in high school growing up here, there was not a lot of girls in the county. There was just truly, or not like surfing, you know, there was a handful. And we all knew each other, and it was pretty much always you and the boys. And so I moved back and paddled out at the rock, could not believe there were so many chicks in the water. And I was just like, we could have, we could literally have our own comp. So it kind of became this fun little dream idea. Um, and I ended up quitting my job, and a friend was like, hey, this is such a sick idea, and just have an events background. And this was like a guy friend who was like, I don't know what I need to do to, you know, get you to just to say F it, just send it and make it happen. But I'm I'm down, like you need to follow your dreams. So I was like, oh, you know, all right, like I just do a little homie style, did it on Thanksgiving, thinking everyone would be home. Um, was like really hoping to fill four heats of six. So, like if there were 24 girls that signed up, I was gonna be stoked. Um, and next thing you know, we had almost a hundred girls sign up.
SPEAKER_00:It's so crazy when you think about it that way. It's like so much different like points in history where you know advocacy leads to this this it, you know, like you create a space, it's always been there. There just needs to be like this A to B connector. It's not like it's not like there's limited heat and limited opportunities for, say, girls. Like I think a lot of times uh in competitions, it was almost like a token sort of division. And you might even have like, I remember some of the days where you'd have like it's uh it's almost open, a 13-year-old going against a 27-year-old. Um, I'm talking back where it was limited, where the reality is they're always there. They're waiting, but they just need, you know, equal kind of access to, you know, the the the promotion, the opportunity, and the infrastructure, right?
SPEAKER_03:100%. 100%.
SPEAKER_01:And that's what you created. Honestly that's what you created, right, Karen? It's like so insane. I've talked to so many people that have been, oh, I surfed in the Diva Cup. And it's like, you know, a really good friend of mine's daughter just surfed in it. I don't know if it was last year or the year before, but like just loved it and had nothing but like crazy things to say about it. And I was just like, wow, like this is way bigger and more well known than I thought. You know what I mean? And it's like, anyway, it's just super cool, super proud of you for starting this.
SPEAKER_03:Oh, thank you so much. I mean, it's definitely, you know, it's obviously been a community effort. Um, and it was really cool too, being able to uh have experience within the music industry and working with different women there. For example, our visual director, uh Joanna, we had worked together um on music festivals and throwing different events. And um, so when she saw me making these funny little posts on Canva and publishing them, she was like, Oh girl, you know, I'm I'm down. Let's let's rag. And brought a bunch of fun into our graphics. And um, yeah, it was kind of to me, it felt like an opportunity to just put all of not have to pick a lane, put everything into one, you know, it's not just about really good music, it's not just about rad art, it's not just like the family and spirit of Aloha, it's not just that like Central Coast, you know, uh rodeo culture that is all of it, both and and surfing.
SPEAKER_00:Of course. I just think you've done an amazing job. It's a great crossover. It is, and I think here's what it looks like for me, not knowing you, kind of getting this little like speed update the last couple weeks, looking at to it, and it's just I I think the thing you've done, which is very hard to do in a foundation of business, is you've been able to kind of weave, and maybe this is just like for your own personal stoke, you've been able to weave your personality into the Diva Cup, you know, so that I think it has, you know, talking to you now, everything about the art that's involved in Diva Cup, the music. Um, you know, I think I even read something in Surfer at one point. There was an article talking about there's sort of like a cowgirl vibe to the whole thing, you know, like I don't know, you've it now talking to you, all of that makes a lot more sense that you're sort of like your fingerprints on this. You're abdicating space and making space for for girls and women, but you've definitely, I think, left some room in there. So you're probably excited to do this every year because it's a lot of you in it.
SPEAKER_03:Oh that's yeah, that's that's so kind. Thank thank you for for those words. And um, yeah, I I honestly feel like it's just such an amazing opportunity to be able to bring something that doesn't really exist yet to life. Um, it's something that's really scary naturally and vulnerable. How so, how so?
SPEAKER_00:I never didn't that my thing on this job is I never let those go by. Those things jump out at me. Like uh when you say the word vulnerable, and we're gonna lose about three minutes right now.
SPEAKER_03:Oh, we could go, we could go the rest of the podcast.
SPEAKER_00:Let's go.
SPEAKER_03:I mean, let's go.
SPEAKER_00:I'll I'll extend the time on the room.
SPEAKER_03:All right, all right. So let's get really real real here for a second. You know, growing up in like deep in the surf scene, it felt like all my parents' kids, my parents' friends' kids were, you know, pro surfers or models, really. Like that was all their friends' kids. They were in one of those boxes. And I always just felt a little bit weird, you know, and like I needed to figure out who Kira was and be able to, you know, feel just like I was comfortable in my own skin. And, you know, we're going to Burning Man, finding DJing, finding this crazy festival culture, you know, tussle would joke and give give me shit and be like Festi Queen's back. And uh yeah, just you know, then kind of being like, you know what, I don't I don't give a shit anymore. I I'm me. I'm gonna let my free flag flying and celebrate it. And that was a huge part was just finding myself and and getting comfortable with myself to be able to recognize, hey, if I didn't feel like I fit in in this surf scene that I literally grew up in, I'm sure that a lot of people that didn't grow up in it feel that on a way more extreme level. Um, so it just felt really, really important to take up space in an authentic way and be weird and you know, authenticity over perfection and just, you know, maybe I'm gonna mess up and that's okay, you know, and that's a really big part with our internships and our mentorship program is a chance to offer the kind of professional and corporate experience that I really wish I had had, you know, because similarly to the DJ scene or the surf scene or rodeo, which has been very much male dominated. It's really, really cool to make this safe space for our interns and be like, hey, you can ask questions, no stupid questions. We always start with a quick mind, heart, body check-in so we know how each other's doing. And it's also been pretty powerful too, with you know, like the effects of our cycle and where we're at there. We'll talk about, you know, the effects of birth control and how side effects are pretty gnarly and you know, things that aren't usually talked about.
SPEAKER_00:But essential.
SPEAKER_03:Dive into all of it. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01:Take all the grandiosity out of it by talking about it, right? And just getting it out in the open.
SPEAKER_00:And it's just like well, what I realized having two two daughters is that um you are like I think you somebody had said earlier that you mentioned about your parents. You want to be off to your parents. The other thing, there's a dynamic, no matter how good of a relationship you have, there's a part of it where it's white noise to um white noise to your kid when you're talking about these issues, even if you're partnering up doing it. It's so nice to have validation from a credible outside store talking about those same core issues because you your kids aren't gonna come home and go, you were right, dad, you were right, mom. That's not gonna happen. But it will come when they're 26 or 27. Like, thank you for putting me into that competition because um it's so much more powerful when somebody else says the same shit you're saying. It's the it's the bottom line. It's like it's a reaffirmation. And there's nothing to it. We're just we're just the species. And these are the things that happen to our body, and it's uh um it's older than than our culture, older than our species, you know, you know, the the science of our body. And I don't know, well, I know when the whole different podcast, Kira, talking about when we started to stigmatize those conversations and make them um, you know, shame included in all of it. That's a 10,000 year history, not for this one, but um, I think that's rad what you're doing. And I and I think I kind of got the answer to the question there that it sounds like the the competition sounds like it did possibly come first, and then maybe in a cup of coffee or a thought after, you're like, there's some shit here. Is that how it went down?
SPEAKER_03:Yeah, that's that you you nailed it, honestly. The competition happened, and uh, you know, this sort of thing is definitely a labor of love, and it's a it's a big labor. So, you know, went back to uh just I I got another job in events, remote event planning, and um then the second year was ramping up, and I ended up leaving my job and just recognizing what an amazing opportunity there was. And um, Sierra Emric is her name, she's our board president now, but she's the ED for Central Coast State Parks. And similarly to how you were talking about um, you know, the contest back in the day with like a 14-year-old against a 30-year-old. That was that was Sierra very much. There was this uh contest in Morrow Bay, and and there's a women's women's open, and we'd be competing for a trophy with a dude on it, a goodie bag filled with like, you know, boys' t-shirt, you might even win a men's wetsuit. And it wasn't that it was wet suit.
SPEAKER_01:And a men's pair of board shorts.
SPEAKER_00:So fucked up.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah.
SPEAKER_03:But it wasn't, you know, it wasn't.
SPEAKER_00:No, of course not, no, it's fucked up.
SPEAKER_03:It was, yeah.
SPEAKER_00:No, it's it's it's the it's the funniest thing to hear it that way because you're talking about it now with that perspective. We're saying it's fucked up, but in the moment, you're psyched to get that t-shirt, psyched to get that wet suit. It's not like that, but it's but it's how the narrative is kind of sewn in is reaffirmation of that. Like you do you do your best, but it's still our world. That's sort of the world that exists right now is nice job, kid. Here's your men's wetsuit, here's your here's your medium men's t-shirt. And there's a dude on the trophy.
SPEAKER_03:Totally, totally. And so this like women's open would be, you know, myself, my mom, Sierra, who's like 11, you know, total grom. And we would be competing against each other. And so full circle, it felt really natural and kind of necessary to have a men's open right in the diva cup. Yep, yeah, and uh it's called the it's called the men in the eat.
SPEAKER_00:Do you give them women's trophies?
SPEAKER_03:Oh, uh well, they actually are trophies are ceramic cups that say diva.
SPEAKER_00:I want one for 2026 for next year.
SPEAKER_01:I want you enough to surf in it, dude.
SPEAKER_00:No, the next year I want the women to get the old, I want the women, the men to get the old trophy used to get with the chick on it. That's what I want when the when the dudes went and give them a small women's t-shirt. Bring it all the way around. I know.
SPEAKER_03:Well, it's funny because we're we don't cater our sponsors to them. Nice. I was telling my dad, I was like, oh man, dad, like we should really get you know some men's teas for the for the men in heat.
SPEAKER_02:And he's like, fuck them, like fuck wear their shirt. Wear brown. You know, I'll put on it.
SPEAKER_03:Give me the paint shirt.
SPEAKER_01:I'll rock it. So I know I know that Kiala's been grinding on getting some new sponsors, but you want to shout out some of your current sponsors, Kira?
SPEAKER_03:Yeah, absolutely. Um, well, Mamala wetsuits has been super rad since year one. She reached out and was like, hey, I want to donate wetsuits to every winner. So actually, the the winner of Men in Heat does win a women's wetsuit. Nice to be legendary.
SPEAKER_02:I love that.
SPEAKER_03:Yeah, absolutely. And um, we've had Tayukis Hot Soft. Um, Lars really jumped in, the founder, and just immediately was supporting the judging and helping bring it to life. And Mad Hippie's been incredibly, I mean, I could go, I could go on about our sponsors. Um, Keep Abreast is a nonprofit that is all about, you know, self uh self-checking and prevention of breast cancer. And uh they send up a bunch of materials for us, yeah, in our goodie bags. And my mom's a breast cancer survivor, and so is my grandma. So really resonates um and really hits home to just be able to offer, you know, materials for women to know how to check themselves and um just stay, stay on it with our health. And yeah. Also, have had some uh menstrual products like uh tampons and like clean ones, you know, not with a bunch of chemicals. And what's been really, really cool is we've done a menstrual product drive where we encourage people to bring, you know, a box of tampons or a bag of pads, and we then donate them to uh a homeless shelter for women facing homeless, uh homelessness because so like you said, yeah, there's so much shame around a period. And so, you know, all these women are facing this problem every freaking month, you know, no one's talking about it, no one's thinking about it.
SPEAKER_00:I was just gonna ask, as you answered the question right there, is like, you know, there's always sort of like this um you're against the current in conversations like that. But now being in this position, two things I think about. One, how stoked are these brands to hear this pathway to get the word out? Like it's so different than their normal platforms for marketing, media, and sponsorships, right? I mean, this is truly a one-of-one opportunity for them. And is have you felt like um massive stoke when you call them and kind of explain what you're doing?
SPEAKER_03:Oh, yeah. Yeah. I mean, massive stoke. And that's been so humbling for me too, because you know, this will always, in a way, feel like my crazy idea of will it work or is this possible? And uh, you know, I think that sometimes it's hard to look outside of what you've made and what we've made collectively and just remember how how rad it is when you're deep in the weeds. And so when, you know, sponsors are are stoked and like we just had Surf Line reach out um this week to want to, you know, showcase what we're doing, and it's like, what? No way, you know, it's just so cool to yeah, yeah, so humbling and just honestly just so special to be able to not have to pick a lane. It feels like for the first time in my life and in so many other women's lives, like we can just do it all, you know?
SPEAKER_00:Totally. And then the part two of that question was um the more the human question of it, which is when you're talking with these girls or you're kind of out there, the resistance, um, you use the word shame, which I completely agree with having my own daughters and kind of having gone through that. Do you think the shame comes from what do you what's number one? Do you think parents are not talking to their kids about it enough or parents talk about it, and they're still not maybe um, you know, they're not taking the edge off of it or downplaying. What do you what do you think is the problem?
SPEAKER_03:Brian, that's a great question. Um, you know, I think honestly, uh it I mean, it depends. You know, my parents were really open about everything from sex to dating to periods. And my dad wanted to take me out to dinner when I got my period. I was like, mom, you told him.
SPEAKER_00:Classic dude, though, let's go get a steak.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, that was kind of sushi, babe. I'm proud of you.
SPEAKER_00:I'm like, right, right, right. That's amazing, actually.
SPEAKER_03:Yeah, but that's not super normal, you know. A lot of my friends had no um talk of it or sex, you know. So basically, even just shame around our anatomy and shame around, oh my god, I bled through my shorts, you know, just that's horrifying, horrifying air. When you're, you know, I mean, you've still embarrassing. So I think there's an amazing thing.
SPEAKER_00:I think you're so on it because I think of all of my I'm sure they love it when I talk about my wife and I do on our podcast too, though, when I talk about my daughter's periods on um, you know, on the air. But but I think you're right, because each of them individually, and and the emotions are so funny, and I'm can never be but talking to my daughters now, having a glass of whiskey as they're older, is that the emotion that day that it happens is a combination of happiness, fear, and you know, there's a weird as they talk about it now, they felt super proud, you know, in a way. They felt super proud that this next thing was coming, terrified of what it all meant. Because I think for the first women have to go through this dudes get it so easy because at that age, women have to go through this transformative, real life mature thing. While the the the boys are just still fucking around. Women go through this thing that's permanent, it's real, it means something in the universe. But um, I I just think it's it's interesting to me, like the emotions that come with it. Um like, what was your emotion? I sounds like you're super supportive. Nobody's stoked when they start bleeding. What was like your emotion when you had your first period?
SPEAKER_03:Well, this might be a little bit more. I love this conversation.
SPEAKER_00:I love this conversation, yeah.
SPEAKER_03:Me too. An L dog, you riding with us for this?
SPEAKER_01:I want to talk about that last while at Morrow Rock. But uh we can we can go for a couple more answers.
SPEAKER_00:We gotta say we'll let we'll close this one out, we'll get back to it.
SPEAKER_03:Um, so my first period, I was actually a really, really late uh bloomer. So I was almost 15 and I had, you know, came out of my awkward horse girl phase at this point, you know, I was into boys, she's back into surfing. So I was just like counting down the moment. You know, my mom told me, hey, I was late. You'll probably be late too.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah.
SPEAKER_03:Um, so when it came, it was like, okay, thank God. Finally, you know, let's ride. Yeah.
SPEAKER_00:It's so funny. It's um, and I think as much as much as we, and I'm sure this is on brand with you too, it's like, I just feel like, you know, talking about it this way, there's gonna be with he gets hundreds, if not thousands, of people eventually listening and downloading this podcast. Nelly does, um, guaranteed there's gonna be a 12-year-old, 13, 14-year-old listening to this because they just listened to Isla Hardy, they listen to these different ones. I just think it's as important when we have somebody on here talking about their road back from addiction, that it's gonna help somebody, that it has the same standing in the universe that maybe there's a 12 or 13-year-old girl waiting for their period, waiting for it. There's nothing to it kind of but to do it. And it's the more we talk about it that way, I think we can kind of like ease away some of the, as we said at the beginning, stigma.
SPEAKER_01:So that everybody has to go through it, right? It's just like, you know, it's exactly it.
SPEAKER_00:Kind of takes the brief brief commercial. Totally. That break was sponsored by um who's one of you, who's your tampon sponsor?
SPEAKER_03:We'll we'll get we'll throw Marlowe tampons and they're lubricated tampons.
SPEAKER_00:Oh, I'll I'm playing, I'll play some bumper music in there and we'll do a little in and out for that one. Nelly, how about we uh go back to surfing down there?
SPEAKER_01:I want to go, I want to go, I want to quiz you a little bit about it.
SPEAKER_03:When was your last two held on?
SPEAKER_01:It's been a while.
SPEAKER_02:So good.
SPEAKER_01:But talking about the surf Diva Cup, like uh I want to find out how you would sign up for it and what kind of advice you'd have to young girls wanting to start surfing and stuff like that. Like, how how do people get involved with this diva cup and where can they follow you? And like give us some info.
SPEAKER_03:Awesome. Yeah, absolutely. Um, so we launched the whole Diva Cup just off of Instagram. Um, we now have, you know, with Femme Futures, we have a website, so wwwfhemfutures.org. It's got tons of info on, you know, everything from our music events to our surfing. Um, signups for this year are full, but our alternate list is still open. So I always encourage people, hey, like, you know, there's short board, there's log, there's a pro semi-pro log division, um, men who need 12 and under, legends 15 over, and then the men in heat. So um pop on the alternate list. A lot of different things. I'm looking at people are in this contest. Uh about a hundred.
SPEAKER_00:Wow. Yeah, it's right. I'm looking at your site, Kira. Write down right.
SPEAKER_01:Send them Cayucas, right?
SPEAKER_00:Yep.
SPEAKER_03:It is, yeah.
SPEAKER_00:November.
SPEAKER_03:And uh yeah. The 22nd. Um, and follow along on Instagram at Diva Cup underscore surf. And if you're a young girl that wants to start start surfing, um, we actually, this is a pillar of our our nonprofit, the Fen Futures, we do Diva Surf Days where we pair up uh an experienced surfer with someone who's new to surfing, and we all just go out, we have you know, snacks, we circle up, we talk about etiquette, and then we get in the water, and you know, we say even if you cry in the water, it's a win. It's just about knowing that you can just get out there and don't have to be alone doing it.
SPEAKER_01:No way, that is so epic. That is so rad that you do that. Um, so you're just praying that the swell is not like last week at uh because I I saw some photos of Moira Rock. It looked like it was like 30 foot this last weekend.
SPEAKER_03:Oh my god, that was our first year. It was insane. Freaking just pumping, two broken boards. Girls were basically trauma bonding. It was just trauma bonding. One thing that's pretty cool that I'm really proud of that we did. So the first year it was just, you know, kind of a fuck around and find out. The second year, we were looking at the heat sheets, and uh Sierra pulled me aside and she was like, man, KJ, it just seems like looking at this, I can already kind of tell you tell who's gonna be in the final, and that sucks. And you know, she had a really great point because there's some of us that have been competing our whole lives and are really comfortable with it. And right with this newer community of women that are newer to surfing, it's horrifying to do a contest, you know. It's it's really nerve-wracking. So we added a pro semi-pro division for log to kind of level the playing field, smart, which has been so sick. Yeah, it's just been so cool because you know, our main log division, it just really takes away that barrier to entry for for girls that want to do a comp. You know, you don't have to be at this level, you don't have to just get destroyed. You know, you can be learning about how the comp works and about the etiquette along with other girls. Um, but it's their first time too.
SPEAKER_00:So you had to do is what you had to do is in in the world, you had to create a contest for inclusiveness and equity. And then within the contest, you had to readjust for inclusiveness and equity within the divisions. It's it's like it's like Horton, here's a who you keep on going down lower and lower, but I think that's totally does open it up. So the whole goal of this is just to feel like you know, this comfort level going there and that you're welcome. And yeah, I love it.
SPEAKER_01:You gotta bring this up here to Santa Cruz, Kara, because we need this, we need this kind of competition. Has it become your round of inclusiveness and totally?
SPEAKER_03:Well, we haven't we have girls come down, we've got a lot of girls come down for it.
SPEAKER_01:I've talked to a lot of people, you know, abuse Amelia Business and a bunch of people, Tessa, and you know Nelly's lobbying for a tour store.
SPEAKER_03:So yeah. Yeah, I mean it would be rad to bring it other places. I mean, I am definitely eventually, you know, it's like people were joking, like, oh, you couldn't just throw a comp. Last year we did Diva Topia after, so we had four bands, DJs all night. It was just this huge mini fest. Um, so the music element's really big. Um, but you know, this year really trying to lean into wellness as well. You know, like I'm in my 30s now. I can't I can't quit party like I used to. Uh I still can party pretty properly, but you know, like we're we're tapping into the sauna sponsor this year, California Sauna Club.
SPEAKER_00:Now you're talking.
SPEAKER_03:Yeah. So post heat, you get to go hit the sauna with your heat after, and there's a big glass window so you can keep watching the other heaps, which is so rad. Um, we're also doing round robin style, which uh I'm sure you guys are familiar with the log jam up in Santa Cruz. Yep.
SPEAKER_00:Love it. Yeah. Has this become full-time care? Has all of this become like between the two? Is this your is this your life right now, the the foundation in Diva?
SPEAKER_03:This right now is. Um, it's been pretty tricky to try to make it work as you know a new nonprofit, especially with you know, tons of grants getting cut, things like that. Um, so it's you know, it's been quite the journey. But yeah, right now this is full on all day. Diva, fun features, and um, yeah, I'm really grateful to be.
SPEAKER_00:Well, it's a special guest on the Nelly's Magic Moments podcast. The one thing you don't know about it is this is under the Santa Cruz Vibes Media tent. And the one thing about Santa Cruz Vibes Media, it's a TV network, a print magazine, podcast management, and all of that. And so the media company generates about three and a half million impressions a year. And here's the good news for a nonprofit: 20% of all of our platforms we gift to nonprofits. And so we can connect after and we can get this on our TV network. We can definitely get it in the magazine. Um, you know, I'm assuming there's a year-round vibe to this whole thing. We might have a, you know, we're out of a cycle for the November competition in the print magazine, but we can definitely give it a ton of love on all of our other platforms. And um, there's no string attached, that's just part of what we do. And so um we can definitely connect off air and and make sure we do our part up here, and then um it puts us in a good position to rally for Nelly's tour stop up here for the Diva Cup.
SPEAKER_02:Yes.
SPEAKER_03:Oh well, that's that's so generous. Thank you so much. It's so so appreciated.
SPEAKER_00:For sure. Nelly, got any closing?
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, I I just have a couple more questions. Um you know, first off, is Corey your kind of right hand woman? Like she she works with you closely, correct?
SPEAKER_03:Corey Barnick? Um Corey actually, she was like my OG surf hero here on the central coast.
SPEAKER_02:I love that.
SPEAKER_03:Um, she was a couple years older than me. And aside from my mom, I didn't really have anyone to look up to in the water.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah.
SPEAKER_03:Um, and that besides that was Corey, you know. So not only did people mix us up, uh everyone thought I was Corey or Corey was me.
SPEAKER_01:While they're watching you surf or you mean just in person, you guys look alike or both. Both. Wow.
SPEAKER_03:Yeah, the award ceremony for you know, that someone would be like, oh, good job. And one of us like didn't place the other did. Everyone was always confusing us. Um, but she actually it was it was really special to have her reach out because you know, she was someone that I always looked up to in surfing. And uh, you know, she moved down south and really just you know explored a lot within the surf industry. And um then she reached out this year and and she just said, Hey, I've just been so stoked on what you're doing, and I would love to get involved. She she surfed in the first year's Diva Cup, and I was just blown away. I I hit up the team and I was like, You guys, my OG surf hero. Yeah, she was like, I have no idea. So you really don't know the impact.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, that's what I was gonna ask next is how your success has impacted you know, women surfers and just women in general. It's it's been uh obvious that it's impacted a lot of people. So I mean, do you have any words on that?
SPEAKER_03:I mean, I I definitely think that, you know, sometimes when people hear about a femme movement, um, there's it's misinterpreted as, oh, to empower women, you need to put down men or man shame or something like that. And I think it's really important to be clear that it's it's a collective vision and we're celebrating the feminine, but it's it's all about inclusivity and it's all about, you know, the like we couldn't do this without our male supporters, you know.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, I know up in Santa Cruz it's there's a huge women's movement right now, especially in surfing, but like, you know, over half my subjects that I shoot now are women, and that wasn't the case back in the day at all up here. You know, the line the lineup was controlled by men up here, and there was a few women that ripped, and now it's just crazy, you know. And um we've got these up and comers from Santa Cruz now that are just like mind-blowing, and it's really cool to watch, and it's really cool to be a part of their lives and and see things from a different perspective. I've been shooting photos for a long time now, you know, and uh yeah. You know, uh anyway, it's just uh it's powerful. Yeah, it's powerful to see that kind of um you know presence in the lineup.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_03:Yeah, the kind of the kind of shift.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, you're doing amazing things. And we're gonna wind it down here. Um, Kira, probably maybe we even kind of jump back on for like a post post you know, diva cup kind of results, even if it's a jump in on a regular episode for a few minutes, kind of get an update. Um that was a great last question. I think you're doing, like I said, um you're doing the good work right now. And I think a lot of the to answers Nelly's question for you, I think a lot of the results from this are years down the road. It's almost like raising kids when you do something like a foundation or something this big. Um you're you're in the you're in the moment right now. And I think you you're really set up for a couple, you know, DMs and letters down the road of like how this changed our life 12 years ago. I think that's that's sort of the long game you're in. So I think you're doing really good work. Yeah, I agree.
SPEAKER_03:Oh, that's the kind of stuff that makes me tear up. So thank you.
SPEAKER_00:Did you have any? We got the we got the um all of this stuff for the site, the registration. We'll kind of drop those links in the show page. Um, what about like casual like handles and stuff to get you in the real world, like for like Instagram and things like that, so people can check out?
SPEAKER_03:Oh yeah. For sure, for sure. Um for myself personally or for the all of it, you know, whatever we're getting people towards you.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah.
SPEAKER_03:Yeah. Cool. So um my social media uh Instagram is at Kira K-Y-R-A, Joseph, J-O-S-E-P-H underscore. And uh then we got Femme Futures, which is at Fem F-E-M-M-E underscore futures. F-U-T-U-R-E-S underscore. Um I think I already hit you with Diva Cut Surf.
SPEAKER_02:Yep.
SPEAKER_03:Um and we've got FemmeFutures.org. We also have uh tons of music events that we do uh for people that they can stay tuned to. Um really fun shows where we have mostly female but sometimes male too performers. And uh we've actually got our first art show coming up um in two weeks.
SPEAKER_00:Amazing.
SPEAKER_01:So if someone if someone wants to donate, Kira, product or money, where would they go?
SPEAKER_03:They would go to www.fmfutures.org and uh hit the donate link. They could also shoot an email to info at fmfutures.org and um awesome yeah, email or just go straight to the website.
SPEAKER_01:So good cause. Let's for sure.
SPEAKER_00:Right on. Kira, so nice meeting you, and again, we'll see you in person at some point or the other, but also have you back on here. But this was a fantastic conversation. I really enjoyed it.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, thanks, Kira. And I also want to shout out, I want to shout out Corey and Kiala and Tessa and Amelia and everyone else who's uh talked to me about Femme Futures and and the Diva Cup. And um so thank you.
SPEAKER_03:Oh, well, thank you guys so much, and shout out to the girl dads, you know.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, keep keep ripping it up, Kira.
SPEAKER_00:Shout out to the girl dads. Take it easy, Kira. Thank you.
SPEAKER_03:Will do. Thanks, guys. Have a good one.
SPEAKER_00:See ya.
SPEAKER_03:Cheers. Bye bye. Bye.
