Sharon Schaffer ripping it up in Puerto Escondido Mexico, the Mexican Pipeline

She competed in AAU  swimming, gymnastics, horse riding and excelled in “extreme” sports before the term became mainstream.  She was immediately drawn to just about any sport or activity requiring uncanny balance like the unicycle for example.  She went on to attend Hamilton & Beverly Hills High School and San Diego State University with an emphasis on theatre, telecommunications and film. 

Sharon’s career in professional entertainment has spanned over 25 years and includes acting, stunt work and coordinating, professional surfing, writing, producing, teaching, volunteer work, and animal rescue and activism.

Sharon is a working actress and stuntwoman whose roles have included parts in the action films, SPIDERMAN II, THE JONBENET RAMSEY MURDER MYSTERY, MONEY TRAIN, ANOTHER STAKEOUT, COLORS, and The Lifetime Channel Women’s series, WHAT SHOULD YOU DO.  She recently worked as a stunt actress in the upcoming feature film releases GRIDIRON GANG (The Rock) AND FREEDOM WRITERS (Hilary Swank).  She also works regularly on the television hit, “SCRUBS.”  Sharon auditions for commercials regularly and has booked spots from Revlon and McDonalds to Bud Lite, Toyota and Travelocity.

She has been both a host of an extreme sport variety show and a music video show.  Sharon is also a 15 year practitioner of the Chinese martial art and meditation, T’ai Chi Ch’uan under the tutelage of Master Kai Ying Tung.  Sharon is  an accomplished singer, songwriter/poet, certified massage therapist, acupressurist, and Level I Pro Snowboarder spending 3 winters teaching at the Snow Valley Ski Resort, CA.  Her teaching outreach experience with children includes T’ai Chi Ch’uan, gymnastics, music, reading, snowboarding, and surfing.

As a surfer, Sharon is the first African American woman ever to date to compete on the ASP/WQS professional circuit.  She caught Joni Martin’s eye, a fellow woman surfer/writer surfing the Mexican Pipeline, otherwise known as Puerto Escondido.  A wave of sponsorship followed after Joni had an article about Sharon published in Surfer Magazine.  Sponsored by VIBE magazine, Infinity & Anderson Surfboards, Hotline Wetsuits, Girl Star/Gotcha clothing, Envy Skateboards, Simple Shoes, Freestyle Watches,   Sharon was also to become the newest star of an all female cast of hosts on “ADRENALINE TV”, a weekly syndicated magazine show that featured extreme sports throughout the country.

Her relationship with Quincy Jones’ VIBE magazine, the nation’s leading urban, ethnic, hip-hop culture publication spotlighting professional athletes and the music industry was a 2 year long sponsorship/ad campaign making it her biggest advertising achievement.  Her duties included attending PR and media events, trade shows, ASP/WQS events and photo shoots.  Over the last several years, Sharon’s surf excursions have taken her to Costa Rica, South Africa, Jamaica, Oahu’s North Shore, and Mexico, including Puerto Escondido where she shot footage for the sizzling surf video, “PUERTO UNDERGROUND II.” 

Her favorite surf spots are Off the Wall, Little Rincon, Zero’s, Topanga, Silverstrand, County Line and her home break, Gillis.  She ultimately sees surfing as a globally unifying,  joyful activity and meditation. Sharon’s ecstatic relationship with the ocean goes back to her early childhood, when she was a competitive swimmer on the Southern California AAU swim circuit.  At the age of 11, her swimming took her to Hawaii for a meet where she caught her first wave on a friend’s longboard.

She now predominately rides a shortboard for it’s extreme rippability!.

Sharon’s other favorites include sushi, practicing T’ai Chi Ch’uan, the ancient Chinese “secret” & martial art, and running around with her handsome, frisbee catching and all around sporty dog, “BrownEar.”  Sharon’s love of animals and the earth also have also led her to spend time with the Whale Rescue Team and the Santa Monica Baykeeper as well as other non-profit animal rescue organizations.

Throughout life’s struggles including battling bi-polar disorder and problems with drugs, surfing always calls Sharon back to life and provides spiritual balance.  It is her medicine of choice, her passion and prayer.

With her high visibility, vast experience and profile within the surfing and entertainment community, she happily combines her artistic activity and surfing to inspire both joy and peace in and out of the water.   

VITAL STATISTICS

Height:  5’4 1/2”   

Shoe Size:  71/2 M 

Clothing Size:  4

Weight:  ll5 lbs.

Surfboards: 6’2”Squash/5’10”, 6’9”Swallow/6’7”Pin/6’Fish/8’10”Longboard

Stance:  Goofy Foot!