Our Staff
| Owner | |
 | Ashley Blaylock is the creator of ChicaBrava. She competes locally and internationally for the National Nicaraguan Surf Team, holds title as National Champ in Women’s surfing in Nicaragua for 2006, 2007, 2008, and 4th in Central America in 2007. Ashley has surfed all over the world including the Mentawai Islands and Bali in Indonesia, Mexico, Spain, Hawaii, California, Panama, Costa Rica, and Guatemala. Originally from Houston, Ashley is a licensed attorney and resides full time in Nicaragua. |
| Camp Operations Manager/Surf Instructor | |
| Charity Barkwell was born and raised in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada where she spent all of her leisure time canoeing, sailing, windsurfing and water skiing on the northern lakes. After completing her studies in Outdoor Recreation and Business Recreation, Charity decided to head west to the mountains of Fernie, British Columbia to pursue her dual passions of skiing and mountain biking. During her 13 years there, Charity began making yearly pilgrimages to mainland Mexico to surf which finally led her to travel to San Juan del Sur and stay. She's been proud to call San Juan her "home" since October 2008. | |
| Surf Instructor / Yoga Instructor | |
| Heather Olsen-Seabourne was born in Vancouver, Canada, and raised in New Zealand from age 3 to 19. She traveled throughout the tropical south pacific as a child. Heather fell in love with the ocean at a young age, catching her first wave in Waikiki when she was 14 and has been hooked ever since. Heather holds a Bachelor's degree in Photography, a Master's in Humanities, and taught at the University level for 5 years in Canada. She is an avid snowboarder, BMX biker, skateboarder, and surfer - a true CHICABRAVA! Heather moved to Costa Rica in 2009 and started surf instructing there at Playa Samara. She joined CHICABRAVA in June 2010 and says she is overjoyed to mix her love of the water and surfing with her love of teaching. "It really is a perfect job!" | |
| Surf Instructor | |
 | Elsi Marin is a full-on local chica, born and raised in San Juan del Sur, Nicaragua. She surfed as representative for the women's division of the National Surf Team for 2006-2009. Elsi is one of the first Nicaraguan women to ever surf in Nicaragua. A pioneer in women's surfing in Nica and a true example to the other local women and girls, she bring invaluable local knowledge and energy to the team. Elsi lives at the Surf House and offers bilingual surf instruction for our guests who would like to learn some of the commands in Spanish while they're here! |
| Surf Instructor | |
| Anne de Zeeuw comes to us from the chilly shores of Holland. She started windsurfing in 1996 and began instructing in 2000 in Holland as an established windsurfer. In 2005, Anne traded in her sails for a surfboard and jumped into her VW van with her best friend to travel and surf up and down the Atlantic coast of France and northern Spain. Anne's favorite surf spots are Mundaka, Spain, Scheveningen, Holland, and Nicaragua! Anne joined the CHICABRAVA team in June 2009 and is "loving it!" | |
| Yoga Instructor | |
 | Vanessa Pattison is our beloved Yoga Instructor. She moved to San Juan del Sur from Ventura, CA. and now teaches yoga locally. Vanessa is certified and her classes are highly sought after. |
| Bookings Manager | |
| Monica Anzoatequi was born and raised in California to Nicaraguan parents. She holds a bachelor's degree in Economics and Business from the University of Colorado at Boulder and has worked in numerous positions from sales and operations to administration and management. She relocated to her native Nicaragua in 2008 to open and manage her family's hotel in Granada as well as oversee other family businesses. Monica joined the CHICABRAVA team as bookings manager in May 2010 and we love her! In her spare time, she loves to travel, have fun with friends and be active. She has recently started playing golf and is loving it! | |
| Surf Shop Sales | |
| Brenda Cárcamo is another awesome local chica on the CHICABRAVA team. Born and raised in San Juan del Sur, Brenda worked in administration for her family's hotel Villa Mar at Marsella beach, near the famed Maderas surfing spot. She's an awesome chica and an even better sales-person so watch out if you like to shop - you could wind up with the whole store when you visit us! | |
