Tag: surf camp

Surfing All Day in Costa Rica

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Week 2 of our three week Surf Yoga Jungle Adventure series in Costa Rica saw some serious shredding by Amigas with very little surfing experience riding some big waves all the way to shore and some more experienced shortboard shredders perfecting the art of throwing spray.

It’s so fun to have a wide variety of abilities on the same retreat. Everyone cheers and supports each other no matter where they’re at in their surfing and what they’re trying to work on. As a coach, it’s really rewarding to watch the progression.

Here’s a little taste of the action.

Amigas Score Pumping Low Tide Pavones on Day 0 of the Retreat

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[youtube=http://youtu.be/2Rje8h3hudU]
The retreat hadn’t even officially started yet, but three of the Amigas showed up on the early flight and with a solid swell running and the froth factor high, we took them to Pavones for their warm up session. It was incredible! Holly and Michelle were frothing so hard. The current was ripping along the point making it impossible to stop paddling for even a second while well overhead doubling up lefts were steam rolling down the point.

We were a little nervous taking the girls out at first. Molly is from Chicago and had only surfed one week before, during her first retreat with us almost a year ago. Luckily she’s a really strong paddler and had total faith in the instructors. She dodged the sets and scored a couple of sweet rides.

Karen is 66 years old and lives on Kauai. She is so inspirational. She paddled out through a heavy set and then out to the peak. Her goal this week is to catch some waves without going to her knees. She caught 4 or 5 of the most beautiful waves before calling it a day.

Amber is from the gulf coast of Florida and surprised herself being able to surf big Pavones, especially on the first day of the retreat. She took a gnarly wipeout on a big wave that was unfortunately not captured on video, but shook it off and got one good wave after that.

It was so unbelievably fun!amber pavones

holly pavones

holly pavones lip crack

karen pavones

karen pavones 2

michelle pavones

molly pavones

February 14th Retreat Highlights

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This particular week we had particularly difficult conditions. The tide and wind didn’t really cooperate but that’s just a part of surfing! The Amigas were mostly beginners and they stepped up, handled the tricky conditions and learned so much! We also avenged our loss from the previous week and beat the local kickball team 14-13 in a very exciting game! So fun!

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Highlights from the First Retreat of 2015

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We kicked off 2015 with an awesome group of mostly beginner Amigas with a couple of shredders thrown in. We had small waves with a few sneaker sets to mix it up. The girls were having an awesome time getting silly, charging down the beach on horseback, taking gopro selfies, and achieving their goals in the water. Check out a few highlights.

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Awesome photos by Abbey Moore. thanks Abbey!

[youtube=http://youtu.be/EeM_506BqVQ]

New Instructor for Winter 2015 – Emily Nanninga

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Two Emilys for January to March 2015? You better believe it!!! You may have already met our first Emily – now to be known as “Em-dogs” who worked with us Nov-December 2014 and is returning for another season with us starting in January. We met this Emily on a retreat in Costa Rica last year that she attended with her awesome mom. She was everything we look for in an instructor – energetic, smiling, happy, super stoked, frothing, shredding, and awesome. She also happens to be smart and skilled in lifeguarding. Bonus! Here’s what she’s all about in her own words…

Born and raised in sunny San Diego, Emily grew up loving the beach, the water, and anything outdoors. So, naturally, when her mother brought home a $10 garage-sale surfboard in the summer of 2005, Emily was hooked, ready to terrorize the San Diego beaches with her mother who, thankfully, decided to pick up surfing again after a 20-year hiatus.
nanninga surf
After graduating from high school, Emily’s love of swimming, surfing, and the ocean led her into a lifeguard tower, working the beaches every summer throughout college. During the UCSB school year, she kept herself busy surfing, rock climbing, and, beginning her third year there, working for UCSB Adventure Programs, where she led outdoor camping and backpacking trips and helped teach rock climbing, kayaking, and canyoneering classes.
 nanninga lifestyle
The years flew by until June of 2014 suddenly came, ending her time at UCSB with a tarred surfboard and an Environmental Studies degree. Upon graduating, she spent the rest of the year lifeguarding, surfing, leading camping trips, and just having fun running around the west coast. Now Emily’s excited to start the new year off in Nicaragua with Surf with Amigas!
check out this video where Emily features prominently from our trip to Costa Rica last year