| Camp Founder/Owner |
 | Ashley Blaylock is the founder of CHICABRAVA™. Born and raised in a large family of 8 children in Houston, TX, Ashley came to Nicaragua in 2003 and immediately fell in love with San Juan del Sur. She is the reigning 6-time National Nicaraguan Surf Champ, holding competitive title as National Women's Champion in the Nicaraguan National Surf Circuit for 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011. Ashley competed for the Nicaraguan National Surf Team, obtaining 4th over all of Central America in 2007. Ashley has surfed all over the world including the Mentawai Islands and Bali in Indonesia, Spain, Mexico, Oahu, Maui, Kauai, California, Panama, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala and Nicaragua. Ashley is a licensed attorney in the State of Texas and resides full time in Nicaragua. As we've grown, her role as camp founder/owner has led her to become more involved in the administration/ development side of things and less able to be involved in the day-to-day operations of the camp. However, she does still keep in close, direct contact with her staff throughout camp and tries to hang and get in the water as often as possible! |
| Operations/ Marketing Manager |
 | Candace Pattillo was raised on the sunny beaches of southern California and fell in love with the ocean and surfing at an early age. Candace completed her Bachelor's degree in Fashion Merchandising and Marketing from Cal State Long Beach in 2007 and then set out in search of perfect surf. She has traveled along the entire coast of California, and through Australia, Mexico, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Levanto, Italy, and Nicaragua! Candace came to CHICABRAVA in March 2010 originally as a surf instructor, then became Products/Merchandising Manager with an offsite location in San Clemente CA in 2011, and returned to San Juan Del Sur in March 2012 as our Camp Manager in charge of Operations and Marketing. |
| Camp Operations Coordinator/Lead Surf Instructor/Camp Host |
 | Sarah Powers comes to us from Sunny San Diego, where she earned her BA in Psychology at Point Loma Nazarene University in 2006. Sarah learned to surf when she was nineteen and her experience includes surf instructing with Ob Surf Camps and La Jolla Shores's Soul Surfers and personal fitness training for small women's groups in Redding, CA. She also spent time volunteering with an organization that helps girls in San Diego come out of prostitution and is currently leading up a similar project through CHICABRAVA and House of Hope here in Nicaragua. Sarah joined the CHICABRAVA team in Summer 2011 and believes it's a "catalytic place where women leave not only surfing, but truly inspired in a new way from their personal breakthroughs." She plans to continue her education in psychology to become a counselor, with a special focus on working with women and girls, helping them to restore broken hearts. Sarah loves to share her passion for life and her excitement for surfing with everyone who is with her!
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| Surf Instructor/ Camp Host |
 | Sarah Proffitt was born and raised in the small surfing town of Saint Augustine, Florida, near where she later earned her Bachelor's degree in Psychology at Saint Leo University in 2011. Sarah began surfing with her dad at the young age of 10 years old and has been hooked ever since. She’s traveled the coasts surfing in Florida, Costa Rica, and her favorite, Nicaragua! Sarah’s coaching and instructing background includes teaching gymnastics and karate in Florida and North Carolina. She’s stoked “to have the opportunity to work for CHICABRAVA and share her passion for surfing with women from all over the world!” In her spare time, Sarah volunteers at the local library in San Juan del Sur. She is also in the process of continuing her education to one day become a holistic practitioner. |
| 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 brings invaluable local knowledge and energy to the team. In addition to surf instruction in English, Elsi offers bilingual surf instruction for our guests who would like to learn some of the commands in Spanish while they're here! Elsi is also currently pursuing a bachelors degree in Tourism at UPOLI University in Rivas. |
| Yoga Instructor |
 | Vanessa Pattison is our beloved yoga instructor. Born and raised in California, she moved to San Juan del Sur with her husband in 2005 in search of a different way of life. She spent years as the town's only yoga instructor and is certified by School of Yoga out of San Francisco. Vanessa is passionate about yoga and is always expanding her knowledge of the art, taking classes and participating in retreats which exposes her to different teachers and styles. Her teaching style at the camps is to cater to the specific needs of each group. |
| Bookings Manager |
 | Colleen "Mama Brava" O'Leary Blaylock is from Houston, Texas, she's the owner's mom and our booking agent! There is a reason why we call her "Mama Brava". Colleen keeps all the balls in the air. She dots all of our I's, crosses all of our T’s, and makes sure that no man, woman or child is left behind, stranded or out. Colleen is a professional organizer who honed her skills by successfully raising a family of eight (yes successful, they all got out alive, didn't they?) and as president of an aerial mapping company serving the Real Estate development industry. She gets her high energy spicy personality from her fun-loving Irish heritage. Colleen rolls with the punches and the waves. It is to our tremendous advantage that she brings her diverse bag of tricks to CHICABRAVA™ as booking manager and collaborative marketer/organizer. She answers the phone quicker than a flash and checks her blackberry in museums, restaurants, movies and yes...the car. She can allay your fears, ease your concerns and answer your questions. We might be able to run the business without her but it wouldn't be as much fun and let’s face it... we'd rather surf. |
| Surf House/Storefront Manager |
 | Fabiola Solis was born and raised in San juan del Sur. At age 17, she began working with the store "Variedades Joseph" as a store clerk. Fabiola studies Finance and Banking at Uhispan University in Rivas, and studied English at Orlington language school. Fabiola joined the CHICABRAVA team in Summer 2010 as our storefront clerk. We were stoked to be able to promote her in Summer 2011 and she now works as Manager of the Storefront and Surf House facilities! |
| Surf House Storefront Clerk |
 | Yahoska Palacios is from the capitol city of Nicaragua, Managua. She's a responsible, honest and hardworking addition to our team. Her educational and work experience was formed mainly in Managua although she's worked in various places including her own clothing store since her move to San Juan! Yahoska is fascinated by the beauty of her country and takes time out each day to learn something new - first on the list is surfing! She joined the CHICABRAVA team in the Summer of 2011 and loves being able to listen to cool music, watch the waves, and help chicas pick out cute clothes in the store! |
| Surf House Cook and Housekeeper |
 | Walquiria is our amazing Surf House cook and housekeeper. She is a local from San Juan del Sur and married to our awesome camp driver Tomas! We've known her since the beginning and she is loved by us all. We were only just recently lucky enough to get her to join the CHICABRAVA™ team in 2011 once her sweet baby girl was old enough so she could come back to work! Walquiria has a tender heart and spent years providing in-home personal nurse services. She is an amazing cook and is always smiling! |
| Night Caretaker |
 | "Tio" Jose is another San Juan del Sur, born and raised in the small community of Las Delicias. Tio Jose has worked for years as a caretaker during day and night and joined the CHICABRAVA™ team in May of 2010 as a nighttime caretaker and guard. |
