Surfing dogs are a novelty that never really grows old. They’re a little piece of awesome that will likely stand the test of time. I’ll bet when millions of people wake up on January 1, 2099, they’ll nurse their New Year’s Eve hangovers by watching viral videos of some stubby-legged fat bulldog hanging on for his life on a two-foot roller. That’s how timeless and endearing surfing dogs are. If anybody agrees with me, clearly it’s NBC’s Al Roker.
I’ll have what Al Roker is having. #YES #YES #YES #floatgasm 😳 pic.twitter.com/j9R3MyGHFD
— LP (@l_p_348) January 2, 2017
“Yes! Yes! YES! Oh man,” Roker declared. “Oh, the wind’s blowing this way, I smell wet dog. That was fantastic!”
Eloquent words. Spot on, Al.
The astonished Roker was kicking off 2017 at the Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena, California. If you’re American, you know the parade is a New Year’s Day staple, so it’s fair to assume Roker’s response was similar to the reactions of people across the country. “WHAT? Surfing DOGS?!” The Surfing Dogs Float making its way through the parade route turned out to be an award winner in this year’s event, winning the Extraordinaire Trophy for the most spectacular float. It’s also now a Guinness World Record holder. At 148,250 pounds and 125 feet long it’s both the heaviest and longest float in parade history. The main attraction of the float: a 90-foot, 8,000-gallon wave pool (not Kelly’s wave, don’t get too excited). Behind the scenes, the dogs were transported back and forth at the end of their rides in a mini cable car system.
The float was created by the Lucy Pet Foundation, a mobile pet adoption shelter and spay & neuter clinic in major cities across the United States. They suited the dogs up in life vests (and even threw some shades on one pup) as part of a country-wide search for the best surfing dogs.
Bawwww!
