Surfing dogs were the spotlight at Linda La Mar Beach in Pacifica, California for the 2023 annual World Dog Surfing Championships.
Owners and their talented pups competed for “paw-fect” scores as they rode the waves on Saturday, Aug. 5.
The popular competition had four weight classes, from small dogs to extra large dogs, as well as a human-dog tandem and dog-dog tandem category.
The event started in 2017 and was skipped in 2020 and 2021 due to the pandemic, so this was the fifth time it’s been held. The event helps local charities raise money by sponsoring a contestant or a team, with a portion of the proceeds going to dog, environmental, and surfing nonprofit organizations.
An estimated 1,000 spectators attended this year. Several attendees and surfing dog owners shared their thoughts with The Epoch Times.
“We’re here to see one of the greatest [phenomena] in surfing; it’s dog surfing. It’s the world championships,” said attendee David Weir.
“Cute dogs, California Coast, what could be better?” said an attendee who went by the alias “Snow Bike Mike.”
Spectator Joan Chang said she was looking forward to seeing “some beautiful dogs, and they have some, maybe, great outfits.”
“My roommate’s dog is a corgi. Yeah, corgis should be able to do that,” spectator Yujie Ding said when asked if she knew any dogs that might be able to surf.
“There’s one dog that has the mohawk, and it matches their owner. And boy, when they get tandem on that surfboard, they’re unstoppable,” said spectator Leah N.
She was referring to none other than Kentucky Gallahue and his goldendoodle, Derby California.
“Derby and I have been surfing for seven years. He’s 11 years old. We moved to San Diego seven years ago; never thought this would be something we would be doing. I wanted to learn how to surf, he kept following me out there, so I put him on a board. Found out there were competitions, started entering them,” Mr. Gallahue said.
Kentucky and Derby also have a children’s book called “The Adventures of Derby California.”
“It’s about how Derby and I meet, move to California, and start surfing in dog surfing competitions. Cool thing about our book is, there are QR codes throughout the book; if the kids take their parents’ phone, it’ll take them to a three-minute video of us doing what’s on the page,” said Mr. Gallahue.
He and Derby earned first place in the extra-large dog category and second place in the human-dog tandem category. Derby also competed in the dog-dog tandem category and won second place with dog partner-in-crime Teddy.
Homer Henard has been surfing his whole life. When he got Skyler, a Queensland Heeler, he knew she was ready to hit the waves.
“She just ran and jumped on the board, had good balance, and I could tell she was ready to go. So your dog either likes it or doesn’t,” said Mr. Henard. “It’s one of those things; you can’t make your dog surf. If it doesn’t like it, it’ll run away, but if it’s into it, then it’s cool. You’ll have a good time bonding with your dog in the water.”
Mr. Henard and Skyler retained their undefeated status in the human-dog tandem category at the World Championships by taking home the gold again this year. Mr. Henard said that Skyler is now 15 years old and will be retiring soon.
Another fan favorite was Dan Nykolayko and his French bulldog, Cherie.
“Cherie is partaking, I think, for the fifth time. She won in 2019. We’re hoping to win one more time because she’s in the midst of a retirement tour. We’ve been surfing since 2013, and we’re looking to have an exciting adventure of a day,” Mr. Nykolayko said. “Seeing people get excited seeing our dogs do this silly thing, it means a lot. People walking across the beach going, ‘Oh, I’ve followed Cherie for so many years, and I’m so happy I get to see her surf,’ it’s very, very cool.”
Cherie came in first place in the medium dog category and third in the top dog overall championship.
