Meet The Founder
How His Deep Love for Surfing and Skating Evolved into a Fulfilling Coaching Career
Hola, I'm Juan Felipe
I’m a surfer and surf-skater and for more than 10 years, I’ve been surfing and surfskating across places like Australia, Colombia, Spain, England and France. Over the years, I’ve taught myself a ton of techniques, manoeuvres, and hard-learned lessons and now I’m stoked to share everything I’ve figured out with you.
I’ve coached all sorts of people, from beginners just starting out to advanced surfers working on tricky manoeuvres.
My goal is to provide a fun and supportive coaching experience that helps each person find their unique style and reach their personal goals. I want to encourage you to improve your surfing and surfskating skills while building confidence.
For me, it’s not just about getting better, it’s about having fun and enjoying the process. Whether you’re here to master the basics, learn new manoeuvres, or just feel more comfortable on your board, I’ll be with you every step of the way.
Let’s ride and hit those goals together!
Since the first day I tried surfing, I’ve been obsessed with getting better. I didn’t learn as a kid so surfing wasn’t natural for me.
That’s why I’m always trying to figure out simple things that we can do, to help us improve.
My Goal Is To Help You Reach Yours
Have you ever felt stuck while surfing – frustrated in the water, struggling to improve, and almost ready to throw in the towel?
We’ve all experienced moments in our lives when we feel like we’re not progressing toward where we want to be.
We become so frustrated that we consider giving up and abandoning the process. It’s completely natural to feel that way, but the important thing is to get back up after each fall and never give up.
I fell in love with surfskating back in 2018 after I bought a surfskate to commute to work with.
I had just moved to Australia from Colombia, and was on a big budget. So I bought the cheapest skateboard I could find to save on public transport… Little did I know that this was going to change my life!
The board I found was sold to me by a 6-year old kid (and his dad). The deck was way too small for me and I had never used a board so loose before.
I couldn’t afford a new skateboard at the time, so instead I taught myself how to upgrade the different parts. I ended up changing the bearings, wheels, trucks, grip tape, and even spare parts of the thruster.
I used the board everyday to go to work, and soon realised that the fastest way to get there was to pump. I fell so many times, got so many bruises. But I was a student on a budget and the only option was to get back up and keep on going!
I was very new to surfing too but I soon realised they went hand-in-hand. The more I practised on land, the better I was getting in the water…
Fast forward a couple of years, and I went on a surf trip to Bali…
One week after I landed, the borders closed due to covid. And like many other tourists, I was “stuck”!
So when the beaches were closed, we hit the roads and I taught my friends to surfskate.
I started MAKO as I wanted to help share what I’ve learnt with everyone
Over the years, I’ve spent a crazy amount of hours teaching myself to get better. I’m still on my journey (does it ever end?)
Thank you so much for being here!
COACHING
Experience coaching surfskating to multiple students (private and group) in Indonesia over the past 4 years, and surfing over 7 years
EXPERTISE
With Juans 20 years of skating and 8 years surfing, you’ll learn from someone who really understands surfskate.
COMMUNICATION
Native Colombian and fluent in English so whether you speak English or Spanish - we have you covered.
BECKY
Thank you so much Mako! I really appreciate you taking the time to look at my videos and provide detailed advice! I’ll take a look at all of them and practice using your tips. I’m motivated to do better now 😬. Thank you again!!
Your tips are worth gold! Thank you very much for the specific cues. I’m so appreciate your kindness. It is not obvious. You are professional. I’m glad that YT shows me your tutorials. Surfskating Among the things I most enjoy doing. Thanks for helping me. Today evening I’ll go to practice what you wrote. I hope to succeed. (Sorry about my English🤪)
ESTI
Meg
This is absolutely incredible. Thank you so much for the instruction and thorough detail. Can’t wait to practice today! Thank you for being so generous with your time - I’m really loving your videos!
Wauw thank you so so much for your detailed feedback Mako. I really appreciate it 🙏. The tips are all very helpful.
