Twiggy the Waterskiing Squirrel back in action
ORLANDO – Three months ago, it seemed like Twiggy the Waterskiing Squirrel was finally retiring after nearly 40 years of capturing the hearts of fans far and wide.
Lou Ann Best and Twiggy VIII did, in fact, retire to a quieter life in Central Florida. However, there’s more to this furry, four-legged story.
As Lou Ann was getting ready to sell the company entirely, her son Chuck Best stepped in. He thought, “What if there was a way to keep this waterskiing squirrel business going?”
After all, he had a six-year-old squirrel, nicknamed “Hollywood,” that could be trained on the skis. Chuck also just received a baby squirrel — that would be dubbed “Twiggy X” — from a former boss.
With these animals in hand, Chuck was prepared to keep the waterskiing squirrel business afloat.
“I’m like, ‘Mom, you can’t sell it,’ ” Chuck said. “There’s too much we could be doing with this. I decided to go ahead and continue the Twiggy legend.”
Since that fateful conversation in August, Lou Ann officially signed the business over to her son, who has been hard at work preparing for Twiggy’s upcoming public appearances.
In recent months, Chuck has hired two new recruits — Elizabeth Jones and Sydney Garrett — to help with marketing and operations. He’s done things to revamp the show, such as introducing a wakeboard and bringing in Roxie the dog as a lifeguard. Twiggys nine and 10 have spent countless hours training.
Chuck sold his Jeep Wrangler to get a Ford Transit van. That’s because Twiggy is going on tour.
Next year will mark 40 years of the famous waterskiing squirrel and, accordingly, Twiggy’s 40th-anniversary tour.
A lot has changed since the phenomenon started in 1979. In an effort to bring Twiggy into the 21st century, Garrett and Jones have given the squirrel’s social media presence some much-needed attention. Twiggy is now on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.
“You have to realize that we’re putting three people, two squirrels, a dog, a 24-foot pool and all of the things that come with that into this van,” Garrett said. “It’s going to be super interesting.”
It’s not often people get to see a behindthe-scenes look at the life of a waterskiing squirrel. Jones said that was part of the motivation for starting the YouTube channel.
“We’re going to show everybody more behind-the-scenes of training Twiggy, our travels with Twiggy and everything that involves owning a squirrel,” Jones said. “Obviously, waterskiing is the most exciting part of it all.”
In January and February, Twiggy will make stops at boat shows in Nashville, Tenn.; Cleveland; Indianapolis; and Fargo, N.D., with other dates to be announced. A full list of events is available on Twiggy’s website.
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