Every Reason to not do it
You probably shouldn’t come.
At least, that’s what a lot of people think before they book.
They write us messages they almost don’t send.
They start sentences with “I’m not sure if this is for me…”
And then they list the reasons.
Too old.
Not fit enough.
Not confident enough.
Not social enough.
Sometimes all of them at once.
I want to talk about those reasons. Not to convince you otherwise. But to look at what’s actually behind them.
“I’m not very social”
This might be the most misunderstood concern.
A lot of people hear surf camp and imagine forced bonding. Icebreakers. Constant interaction. No space to be quiet.
So if you’re someone who needs time, who observes before speaking, who doesn’t love small talk, the instinct is often to pull away.
But being social isn’t the same as being present.
Some of the strongest connections here happen without effort. Sitting at the table after dinner. Walking back from the beach. Sharing silence after a long day.
You don’t have to be loud to belong.
You don’t have to perform openness.
In fact, people who worry about being “not social enough” are often the ones who connect most honestly — because when they do engage, it’s real.
They don’t dominate the space.
They contribute to it.
“I might be too old for this”
This comes up more often than you’d think.
Usually not as a number, but as a feeling.
A sense of being out of place. Of arriving somewhere and realizing everyone else seems to belong more than you do.
What’s interesting is this: the people who worry about being too old are rarely the ones who struggle in a group.
They’re usually the ones who don’t feel the need to prove anything.
They don’t feel pressure to do every activity.
They choose what feels right for them.
We’ve had guests in their 40s, 50s, and beyond. Some joined most surf sessions. Some joined none. Some stayed back and ended up having the deepest conversations of the week.
Age was never the thing that stood out.
Presence was.
The fear of being “too old” is rarely about age itself.
It’s about not wanting to take up the wrong kind of space.
And that kind of awareness matters more than anything else in a shared environment.
“I’m not fit enough / good enough / surfer enough”
This one is quieter, but heavier.
People look at surf content online and feel like they’re supposed to arrive already shaped for it.
Strong. Tanned. Confident. Smiling through wipeouts.
Then they look at themselves and see everything that doesn’t match.
What rarely gets said out loud is that most people at a surf camp are negotiating something.
Fear.
Limits.
Energy.
Confidence.
Surfing makes that visible very quickly.
Some days you paddle out.
Some days you don’t.
Some days you sit on the beach and watch.
At Kyuka, that’s not a failure. It’s simply a choice.
The people who worry about not being “good enough” tend to be the ones who listen to their bodies. Who don’t push just to keep up. Who don’t turn the week into a performance.
They respect the ocean.
And they respect the group.
That matters more than any level of fitness.
What all these doubts have in common
If you look closely, these thoughts aren’t really about surfing.
They’re about awareness.
About asking yourself:
- Will I fit into this group?
- Will I take away from the experience or add to it?
- Can I be myself without pretending?
People who ask these questions before they arrive usually arrive with care. With humility. With respect for others.
And that’s the foundation of everything we try to create here.
So why you maybe shouldn’t come
If you’re mainly looking for a place to prove something to others, this might not be what you’re searching for.
If your ideal week is partying every night and disappearing all day, a hotel or a different kind of trip might suit you better.
And to be clear: if you need space, if you don’t want to be “on” all the time, that’s completely fine. The spirit here isn’t about constant interaction — it’s about connection, even if it’s slow and quiet.
But if you’re hesitating because you’re thinking about how you’ll affect the group…
If you’re unsure because you don’t want to be a burden…
If you’re reflecting instead of assuming…
That reflection alone tells us more than any skill level, age, or confidence ever could.
You don’t have to decide now.
You don’t have to convince yourself.
Just know this: doubt isn’t a disqualifier here.
Often, it’s the opposite.
