This article is from page 3 of the 2011-09-20 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 3 JPG
IRELAND’S first National Dog Surfing Championships look set to take place in Lahinch early next year, following a successful trial of the emerging sport in north Clare over the weekend.
Miltown Malbay native Mark Flynn and Lahinch businesswoman Raquel Noboa took their dogs Jessie and Bruce for a surf on Sunday, while also showing any interested dog owners the techniques required for successful doggy surfing.
Raquel, who has just founded the MyPetReview.com website, is now hopeful of hosting the National Dog Surfing Championships in Clare next year and even an international event in the future.
“My own dog started doggy surfing a few months ago and really likes it so when we went looking for someone in Ireland who was an expert in doggy surfing, we were surprised to find them down the road in Miltown Malbay,” said Raquel.
“There are two types of doggy surfing – one when you go surfing and you put the dog on the board with you, and the other is with the dog on the board by themselves.
“It has really taken off and we will host a few more training lessons in Lahinch.
“We are pretty sure that Mark’s dog Jessie is the best surfing dog in Ireland – she is the best that we have come across anyway.
“The plan after that is to host a national championships in Lahinch next spring.
“We have spoken to some people in San Diego in America and doggy surfing is very big over there. So, if we manage to get sponsorship, we will also look at running the first ever doggy surfing world championships down the line in Lahinch.”
Earlier this year, Raquel set up the MyPetReview.com website, which aims to identify which areas of the country have the best facilities for pets.
“It is like a TripAdvisor for pet services. You can go in and search for pet services in different areas, like vets, as well as reviews for the places listed.
“The idea is that this will highlight the people who are doing a good job for pets and also the people who are not going well,” continued Raquel.
“This would be great for people who are planning holidays and want to know where best to leave their animals.
“It can be a very stressful time when you have to leave your pet in a kennel that you don’t know anything about.”