Goat vibrations: Animals teach surfers in California

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Goat vibrations: Animals teach surfers in California

This one-year-old ruminant is an integral part of their lesson on Pismo Beach

Published: September 06, 2023 10:05 AFP and Compiled by Nilanjana Javed, Editorial Liaison Manager

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Surfing Goats owner Dana McGregor walks Chupacabrah (C) and Grover toward the beach in Pismo Beach, California, on August 29, 2023. For more than ten years, McGregor has built his reputation by throwing his goats into the water. The crazy idea came to him in 2011, after acquiring a goat to get rid of poison ivy and weeds that invaded his mother's house. Once the pasture was cleaned, the animal was initially to end up on a barbecue. But the surfer — On an inflatable surfboard in prime California waters, first-time surfers Rebekah Abern and Elizabeth French paddle out to catch a wave under the watchful eye of their unusual instructor: Chupacabrah, a small black goat. Image Credit: AFP

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Elizabeth French, 25, and Rebekah Abern, 41, surf with Chupacabrah the goat while taking a lesson in Pismo Beach, California, on August 29, 2023. For more than ten years, McGregor has built his reputation by throwing his goats into the water. The crazy idea came to him in 2011, after acquiring a goat to get rid of poison ivy and weeds that invaded his mother's house. Once the pasture was cleaned, the animal was initially to end up on a barbecue. But the surfer — This one-year-old ruminant is an integral part of their lesson on Pismo Beach, effortlessly demonstrating the relaxed stance necessary to ride through the churning foam. "The goat surfed way better than I did," laughed Abern. "She had the positioning and you can tell she had done it before... you could tell she was digging it." "Who gets to surf with goats? It's like out of this world," said the 41-year-old tourist from Montana. Image Credit: AFP

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Surfing goat Grover stands on a board in Pismo Beach, California, on August 29, 2023. For more than ten years, McGregor has built his reputation by throwing his goats into the water. The crazy idea came to him in 2011, after acquiring a goat to get rid of poison ivy and weeds that invaded his mother's house. Once the pasture was cleaned, the animal was initially to end up on a barbecue. But the surfer — An animal that prances effortlessly up and down precarious mountainsides is far better suited to the task. "They have incredible balance," he told AFP "They've got those hooves that just enable them to cling to the board." Image Credit: AFP

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Surfer Dana McGregor, who runs a Surfing Goats business, takes a break with his goat Chupacabrah, in Pismo Beach, California, on August 29, 2023. For more than ten years, McGregor has built his reputation by throwing his goats into the water. The crazy idea came to him in 2011, after acquiring a goat to get rid of poison ivy and weeds that invaded his mother's house. Once the pasture was cleaned, the animal was initially to end up on a barbecue. But the surfer — Over the years, McGregor, a former Major League Soccer player, has had a number of goats with which he has enjoyed aquatic adventures. They've also starred in YouTube videos and even two children's books, with McGregor perhaps inevitably earning himself the local nickname "The Goatfather". "My calling is to bring joy to people. And it's through goats and through surfing," he says. "People find inspiration. They're like: 'Oh, if a goat can do it, I can do it'." Image Credit: (Photo by DAVID SWANSON / AFP)

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Surfer Dana McGregor, who runs a Surfing Goats business, heads into the water with his goat Chupacabrah, in Pismo Beach, California, on August 29, 2023. For more than ten years, McGregor has built his reputation by throwing his goats into the water. The crazy idea came to him in 2011, after acquiring a goat to get rid of poison ivy and weeds that invaded his mother's house. Once the pasture was cleaned, the animal was initially to end up on a barbecue. But the surfer — McGregor is a well-known figure in his town of 8,000 people, accompanied almost everywhere he goes by his goats - in a car with the license plate SRFGOAT. In the ocean, the animals are a calming influence for first time surfers. Image Credit: AFP

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Surfer Dana McGregor, who runs a Surfing Goats business, stands with his goat Chupacabrah in Pismo Beach, California, on August 29, 2023. For more than ten years, McGregor has built his reputation by throwing his goats into the water. The crazy idea came to him in 2011, after acquiring a goat to get rid of poison ivy and weeds that invaded his mother's house. Once the pasture was cleaned, the animal was initially to end up on a barbecue. But the surfer — "When you're first starting out, you're really focused on things like, are my feet right? Am I doing okay?" said Abern, a crop insurance agent by day. "But then when the goat's there, she's just confident and going with it. And you're like, alright, yeah, I'll go with it too." Sometimes, the goats even surprise McGregor. Image Credit: AFP

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Surfing Goats owner Dana McGregor walks Chupacabrah (top) and Grover toward the beach in Pismo Beach, California, on August 29, 2023. For more than ten years, McGregor has built his reputation by throwing his goats into the water. The crazy idea came to him in 2011, after acquiring a goat to get rid of poison ivy and weeds that invaded his mother's house. Once the pasture was cleaned, the animal was initially to end up on a barbecue. But the surfer — Pismo, a white-haired expert on the waves, managed to stay upright after her owner lost his footing on a two-meter-high wave, continuing her ride solo. Image Credit: (Photo by DAVID SWANSON / AFP)

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The license plate of Surfing Goats owner Dana McGregor reads — If she could manage that, McGregor thinks one day a goat might just be able to conquer the greatest surfing challenge of them all - a barrel wave, where the swell breaks over the top of the surfer. Surfing in a tube "is just an amazing feeling," he said. "A goat inside the barrel would be epic!" Image Credit: AFP

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