How Jessie Carnes from Surf Simply decided to come to Nosara
Jessie Carnes describes how working three jobs while living with his father at 19-20 motivated him to take a gap year in Costa Rica. He initially planned to spend three months in Playa Negra but fell in love with Nosara's lifestyle and proximity to great surfing, ultimately deciding to stay and eventually founding Surf Simply.
Summary
At 19-20 years old, Jessie Carnes was working three jobs while living with his father and felt unhappy and disconnected from surfing, which had been central to his life growing up through competitive surfing. When his father pressured him about adult responsibilities like car insurance, health insurance, life insurance, and moving out, Carnes realized he wasn't ready for that conventional path. He discovered that taking a gap year was a common practice in other countries, so he continued working his three jobs to save money for a trip to Costa Rica with an initial three-month plan to stay in Playa Negra, a small town of about 50 people at that time. However, when he arrived in Nosara, he experienced an immediate connection to the area, drawn to the early-to-bed, early-to-rise lifestyle, the quality of the local wave (Ostia), and the convenient 20-minute proximity to excellent surfing conditions. This experience led him to decide that Nosara was where he wanted to be, marking the beginning of his journey that would eventually lead to founding Surf Simply.
Key Insights
- Jessie Carnes was working three jobs at age 19-20 while living with his father because he was not ready to take on traditional adult financial responsibilities like insurance and apartment rental.
- Carnes discovered the concept of gap years as practiced in other countries and decided to finance a Costa Rica trip by continuing to work his three jobs and save money.
- Playa Negra, the original intended destination, had a population of only about 50 people nine years prior to this interview despite having an incredible wave.
- Nosara attracted Carnes because of its specific lifestyle rhythm (early to bed, early to rise), the quality of the Ostia wave, and its convenient 20-minute access to great surfing conditions.
- A three-month gap year plan transformed into a permanent relocation decision after Carnes fell in love with Nosara upon arrival, leading him to establish Surf Simply in the area.
Topics
Transcript
[0:00] when i was like 1920 in school full-time i worked three jobs i was living with my dad not very happy i wasn't surfing and i grew up surfing competitions all that stuff so i just like wanted to be in the water as much as possible and i remember i got home from working like two different shifts at two different places come home and my dad's like it's time you gotta get car insurance health insurance life insurance you need to get that apartment like time to move out and i was like i'm not ready for this found out like other countries were really good at doing a gap year and i was like i need…
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