Sun and Salt Collective
Was started in 2019 by founder Cassandra Keller. After years of growing up surfing the local breaks here in Santa Cruz, she decided to create a community for women interested in starting their surfing journey as well as those already “salted”. It started out simply, hosting all inclusive surf and yoga retreats here in Santa Cruz and then expanded to provide personalized coaching, surf meetups, as well as other complementary offerings to help support women in the water and out.
Sun and Salt Collective has grown to include many different contributors since then from within the surf and wellness community and beyond. Sun and Salt Collective aims to enhance and support each woman’s unique connection to the ocean, creating a fun, challenging, and safe environment to do so.
MEET THE SUN AND SALT COLLECTIVE TEAM
SANTA CRUZ, CALIFORNIA PRIVATE SURF LESSONS, SURF MEET UPS AND ALL INCLUSIVE SURF AND YOGA RETREATS
Cassandra Keller
Founder of Sun and Salt Collective
Born and raised in the Santa Cruz Mountains, Owner and creator of Sun and Salt Collective -Cassandra grew up surfing the waves of Santa Cruz over the past 26 years. Her passion has brought her around the world exploring different waves and cultures. Through these experiences she gained a broader perspective on the path to a satisfied life; the willingness to “travel light”, needing less and experiencing more. She has a deep love for the ocean and the connection it brings to her soul as well as finding peace and solace in the natural world through backpacking, and snowboarding.
When teaching she holds a calm, practical and encouraging space for her students to progress within. Certified in hypnotherapy, she understands the power of the mind to help or hider and she utilizes these skills to coach people towards healthy mindset practices in the water and out.
Always up for an adventure and navigating through life with an intuitive, heart centered approach, she utilizes her own experiences of healing to hold a container for others to walk through their fears and towards their truth.
Fantine Capron
Co-Owner, Surf Coach and Board Shaper
Born and raised in the Picardy Forests north of Paris, Fantine, has followed the path truest to herself. As a French grom, she spent summers visiting her maternal family in Southern California and caught her first wave on the golden coast at the tender age of 8. Under the watchful eyes of her Aunt Alisa Schwarzstein and Uncle Ian Cairns, both legendary former professional surfers and coaches. In 2018, she moved to California to realize her childhood dream of surfing everyday of the year.
She then pursued a Yoga Teacher Training at a local Studio in Laguna Beach led by renowned Instructor Liz Campbell. Simultaneously, she entered the hustle of LA and quickly shifted gears into hands-on fabrication for large Art Installations. With her new found skills of fiberglassing, sanding, woodworking and metalworking; she made the transition to Almar Surf Works in Santa Cruz to focus only on surfboard building -mentored closely by the legend shaper Michel Junod and Jon Henderson (STRIVE Surfboards).
She founded Atelier Qualia Surf in 2020. A woman owned surfboard and apparel brand forever rooted in love, art, passion and respect for the ocean. She builds her surfboards, from start to finish, here in Santa Cruz.
Emily Meehan
Retreat Surf Coach, Movement Facilitator
A seasoned surfer native to California, EM appreciates a good laugh, a good wave and a good time both in and out of the sea. She has 16 years of wave-riding experience in Santa Cruz and 7 years coaching others. A lifelong athlete, dancer, and professional artist, her approach to surf instruction blends embodiment techniques with creativity, presence, joy and self-trust.
After learning to surf at Pleasure Point in Santa Cruz in 2011, she has since traveled to and resided on many coasts - riding a diverse range of boards and waves from Australia to the Azores.
EM loves to share her knowledge with any and all surfers looking to progress and evolve in their wave-riding abilities.
