SURF PUPS

DOGS HAVE BEEN RIDING WAVES AS LONG AS PEOPLE, AND NOW THEY HAVE THEIR OWN CHAMPIONSHIPS

It’s been around nearly as long as modern surfing itself. And unsurprisingly, dog surfing has been catnip for spectators for just as long.

The sport — wherein a dog hitches a ride on the front of its master’s board or goes solo down a wave with the help of a push — appears in newsreel footage from the 1920s showing locals surfing Waikiki with their mutt, Spot. In 1944, National Geographic published a full-page photo of a surf dog named Rusty, and publications from the New York Times to the BBC and Surfer have all followed suit. It officially became competitive about 10 years ago with the advent and subsequent spread of dog surfing contests up and down California. The biggest, the World Dog Surfing Championships, will be held in Pacifica on Aug. 4.

At its heart, dog surfing is a simple affair, says Michael Uy, owner of champion dog surfer Abbie. Uy started surfing with Abbie, an Australian kelpie he adopted from a shelter in Santa Clara, 11 years ago. The pair paddle out to the breakers, with Abbie on her custom board and Uy kicking from the rear. Then Uy pushes the sheepdog onto a wave and Abbie happily coasts along.

In contests, dogs are judged mostly on style and their ability to stay on the board. Otherwise, Uy says, the competitions aren’t too regimented: “There is no drop-in rule in dog surfing,” he says. “It’s dog eat dog.”

Uy says the sport has become surprisingly competitive since its creation a decade ago. Dogs like Abbie ride custom boards, competitors pay “ringers” — skilled local surfers — to take their dogs out and choose the perfect wave, and the top dogs are spon-