PINNED HIM (TYLER) DOWN!
Greetings all and Happy St. Paddy’s Day! In this issue we bring you The Tyler Marsh Story – Part Two. As mentioned, Tylers brain is razor sharp and super active and it is often a challenge to grab him and hold his attention for a sustained period of time before he is up and addressing something else. I had the great pleasure of “pinning him down” for 15 minutes – all I needed! The things I learned about him in that short time confirmed my intuitions about a true success story here. Essentially Tyler moved to Costa Rica in 1996 with very little, ‘starting from scratch’ as they say. He went on to build a business, family, home, and life down here, NOT an easy thing to do. Seems like every other week we hear something about Costa Rica – Best Retirement Spot in Central America, the Happiest Place on Earth, the Blue Zone… But these articles almost exclusively refer to us older folks, tribal elders I like to say. These are generally folks that have worked major careers, maybe have some assets, and are collecting Social Security. Many young people come here for the surf, the yoga, the beauty, lifestyle, simplicity, etc. They sustain themselves by teaching pilates, working in restaurants, selling surf photos, and the like, but earning the big money – to be able to own a car, buy property, and build a house – just can’t be done here. Tyler Marsh Did! Here’s how:
Peter: So you were born and raised in Hawaii?
Tyler: Yes on Oahu. We lived in a little town on the outskirts of Honolulu.
Peter: What did your folks do?
Tyler: Dad was a writer, he was freelance and sold advertising. Mom was a
therapist for the Cerebral Palsy Association.
Peter: When did you start surfing?
Tyler: Oh way early on, can’t remember exact year.
Peter: Where did you surf over there, Pipeline?
Tyler: I have surfed Pipeline, but I don’t like the egos and pressure there.
My favorite spots were Backyards and Rocky Point. There are so many
incredible waves on Oahu, they call the North Shore “The Seven Mile
Miracle”.
Peter: And the vibe there, pretty local and harsh?
Tyler: It was not easy to grow up a blond haired Haole over there. You had to
show respect and remain in the background until you proved yourself
in the water. Once you were accepted the Ohana (brotherhood, family)
would watch over you and encourage you to take off deeper.
Rocky Point- Tyler’s Favorite Spot in Hawaii
Peter: So how did you get here (Nosara)?
Tyler: I had a tree trimming and sprinkler business in Hawaii. When Tim went
to Costa Rica in 1995 he totally fell in love with it and called me raving
about how magical it was, green, uncrowded, perfect waves. He talked me into coming down. I came here and pretty much loved it too! I decided to move here, and came over with very few possessions, footloose and fancy free. I found work on a finca (ranch) that was eventually bought by Mel Gibson. I had been looking around for some land in Hawaii and found it was just too expensive, so when I moved here I began to look around. I ended up buying a 30 acre tree farm. The farm had 20,000 Pochote and 40,000Teak trees. Tree farms were good investments and I ended up selling my land for a profit. This became the seed money for Safari Surf School. I also built my house!
Teak Plantation
Peter: We covered the start-up of Safari Surf School in last weeks blog. When
did you meet Arlene?
Tyler: I met her through a friend in San Jose. It was love at first sight! We were
inseparable and together for 4 years before we got married. We’ve been
married now for 8 years.
Arlene & Tyler – first Son Bradley
Two Boys- Kalani & Bradley
Three Boys – At Seaworld!
Peter: You speak Spanish well, everyone understands you! How did
become fluent?
Tyler: Absorption – 100% Just being here it sort of sunk in.
Peter: Where on the planet have you surfed?
Tyler: Hawaii, Fiji, Australia,New Zealand, Maldives, Mentawais, El
Salvador, Nicaragua, Panama, Costa.
Peter: Never surfed new Jersey huh?
Tyler: jajajaja
Peter: Favorite wave in the word!
Tyler: Impossibles in Indo
IMPOSSIBLES, INDONESIA!
Peter: You are one of the rare few who found your niche here. Whats next?
Tyler: Olas Verdes will be beyond anything this town has seen.. My Guardian
Angel must be watching over me….
Peter: When, where?
Tyler: Oh My God where did you get that?
I will have to think on that!
Peter: Tell me about your new cabinas.
Tyler: Well I got to thinking about how there is often a problem finding rooms
for people in high season. I have a lot of room on my property so kinda
just went for it. I plan to add a pool and separate entrance, and they will be super private once the landscaping fills in. There was a big concert here this past weekend and I filled ‘em up!
CABINAS TYLER
Peter: Thanks man, this has been fun.
Tyler: Aloha
DON TYLER – YOUR CONGENIAL HOST
Pura vida,
Peter
