Every surfer has a story and this is the latest installment of our Surf ATL Community Spotlight series where we will feature surfers and those part of the surf culture in the Atlanta area. Check out our previous spotlights on Thomas Roginsky, Spencer Broome, Anthony Kennedy, Nick Bramwell, the Merlo Family, Mike Dobbs, Kristian Erik Bjerke, Jamie Eichler, Doug Paul, Brandon Spivia, Robert Hanson, Liam Spoon, Eric Ilustrisimo, Susan Bond, Jason Smith, Garrett Gilfillan, Silvia Saey, Scott Mennicke, Tammie Dalrymple, Wes Espinosa, Peter Gudbrandsen, Kelby Graham, Kayvon Nazarian, Abigail Pierce, Clark Campbell, Katy Harrison, Sam Burrafato, Maggie Maziarz, Erik Barron, Erin Keith, Jenny Serwitz, Adam Hunter, and Joyce and Mack.
Introduce yourself!
My name is Jackson Kearns. I’m 32 years old from Gainesville, Ga, and now living in Costa Rica (Central Pacific).
Do you ocean surf, wake surf, river surf, paddle surf? Any or all of the above?
I have endless energy and passion for surfing in every form, performance shortboarding in overhead waves, paddle surfing in the whitewash, or wake surfing on the lake with my friends.
How did you get into surfing? In Atlanta or somewhere else?
I started snowboarding and wakeboarding when I was 11 and the rest is history. The first wave I ever rode was at Makaha Beach in Hawaii when I was 13.
My love for surfing really started to develop when I got into wake surfing all the time in high school here on Lake Lanier.
Where and how often do you surf?
I surf every day, it is my life, my spiritual path. It's where I go to connect with a power greater than myself. That power is my source of strength and a guiding force in my life. Feeling the energy of a wave completely in sync with your own is a sacred thing.
I live on the central pacific coast of Costa Rica, I mostly surf anywhere between Playa Hermosa to the north, down to Playa Dominical in the south.
What is your favorite thing about surfing?
My favorite thing about surfing is how much self-expression is involved. I feel like an artist where the wave is my canvas and the board is my brush.
What do you do to advance your surfing?
The best thing I found to advance my surfing (outside of more practice) is to spend time with other surfers who are better than me, ask questions, try board designs and watch A LOT of surfing videos.
What are your hopes for the Atlanta surfing community in the future?
I would love to see a surf community grow and develop in the Atlanta area. I want to encourage and inspire others that no matter where you are from, where you live, or what age you are, surfing in all its forms can absolutely bring happiness, balance, and joy into your life. I will never stop riding because to me it's more than a fashion, it’s a feeling.
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