2023-09-02 22:47:44
“It’s incredible!” Rebekah Abern exclaimed when surfing the California waves for the first time with an unusual instructor: Chupacabrah, a black goat who accompanies her to the firm in the sea.
One-year-old Chupacabrah played a key role in Abern’s sea raid, teaching him that despite the ups and downs of the sea, you have to relax to keep your balance.
“She knew how to position herself, it’s obvious she has practice,” Abern told AFP in Pismo Beach, a resort about 285 km from Los Angeles. “You can tell she was having a good time.”
The idea of incorporating goats into surfing came from Dana McGregor, a 44-year-old instructor from California who saw the characteristics of the species as an opportunity for learning.
“They have incredible balance,” McGregor said. “They have hooves that allow them to hold on to the board.”
Abern couldn’t be more excited: “Surfing with goats? It’s crazy!” she laughed along with her friend Elizabeth French, who also jumped into the sea with the calm Chupacabrah.
McGregor’s relationship with these quadrupeds began in 2011 when he bought a goat to eat the weeds that invaded his mother’s house.
The animal’s destination was the grill, but the surfer became fond of it and adopted it as a pet.
On one of his birthdays, McGregor had the idea to take Goatee surfing, and to his surprise, the goat rode his first wave with no issues.
“I felt like heaven on earth, like something supernatural had happened. I thought ‘wow, this animal would never have had a chance to surf’.”
Goatee passed away some time ago, but the emotional bond with the species remained, and the surfer adopted other goats with whom he has shared endless aquatic adventures.
Animals are protagonists in his social networks, as well as in the two children’s books he wrote, as well as being regulars in his surf classes.
“My vocation is to bring joy to people, and I do it with goats and surfing.”
In Pismo Beach, a seaside city of about 8,000, McGregor became something of a local celebrity whom everyone calls “Goat-father,” a pun that translates to the godfather of goats.
This blonde-haired, light-eyed man is seen with his goats on the beach, in the supermarket and everywhere he goes.
The license plate of his car – which has a small goat on the hood – is also another play on words that combines animals and sports.
But beyond the lifestyle, these animals are useful in their lessons, the instructor insists.
“People find inspiration. They think if a goat can do it, so can they,” McGregor said.
“It relaxes you, it makes everything more natural,” said Abern, 41, from her perspective as a student.
“When you’re starting out, you pay a lot of attention to details like the position of your feet or if you’re doing it right. But when the goat is there, with his confidence and calm, you think ‘ok, I’m going to let myself go’.”
McGregor believes that this animal has even more potential in the sea.
On one occasion he caught a wave of more than two meters along with one of his goats, but Pismo -as the proud ruminant is called- pulled him off the board to dominate the crest by himself.
Since then McGregor dreams of crossing a tunnel of waves with one of his four-legged companions: “It would be epic.”
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