CARDIFF — The surfer statue titled “Magic Carpet Ride” has generated smiles, ridicule and public discussion since it was installed in 2007. It has also turned heads and garnered publicity for various costumes and scenarios built around it. Now a calendar devoted to the sculpture, also known as the “Cardiff Kook,” is raising funds this holiday season for the nonprofits Fill-A-Belly and the National Breast Cancer Foundation.
The calendar is the creation of artists Fred Caldwell and Wayne Lynch.
“Seems like a lot of people were brainstorming about whether or not to make a calendar,” Caldwell remembers. “Being familiar with the process, having created a calendar commemorating Encinitas’ 20th year anniversary, Wayne and I felt compelled to go forward with it.”
Caldwell shot most of the photos used in the calendar. They include the most popular incarnations of the kook, “Great White Bite” being swallowed by a large shark and “Wave Rover,” where he shares a ride with a stuffed dog. There is also the kook dressed up “Pretty in Pink” and in “Kooky Camo” wearing camouflage to mark Veterans Day.
The first edition debuted on Oct. 15 with 2,500 calendars. It sold out in five weeks. Seventy cents of the $14 price resulted in a $635 being presented to the nonprofit Fill-A-Belly on Nov.2.
“The second edition was released on Dec. 7 and is selling faster than the first,” Caldwell says. “So far that has raised $772 totaling $1,407.”
Nick Adams is the facilitator for the weekly Fill-A-Belly dinner held at Cottonwood Creek Park in Encinitas every Tuesday at 7 p.m.
“Wayne came to us one night and said he and Fred wanted to give 10 percent to Fill-A-Belly,” he remembers. “I said, ‘That’s awesome!’”
Adams estimates that the $1,367 donated so far will provide more than 400 meals to the organization, which serves meals to the homeless in Carlsbad and Encinitas.
“Wayne has been friends with the Fill-A-Belly group for a long time, and as many locals know, they are a worthy charity that puts their money where people’s mouths are,” Caldwell said. “After the ‘Pretty in Pink’ kook extravaganza appeared, it seemed only natural to include the National Breast Cancer Foundation Inc. as another charity that the calendar proceeds might benefit. That one was my idea.”
To extend donations to include the breast cancer foundation Caldwell said they increased the wholesale price by 70 cents.
Caldwell, who has done bronze sculpture himself, appreciates the many works of “Magic Carpet Ride” sculptor, Matthew Antichevich.
“From the surfboard to the anatomy, to the stone pilaster it stands on, the ‘Magic Carpet Ride’ is a realistic, world-class sculpture,” Caldwell said. “But it’s that ‘goofy-footed’ pose that made him famous.” He adds, “What at first was the object of rejection has become a cherished part of Encinitas, and a gem for Cardiff-by-the-Sea. The Wall Street Journal even had him on their cover a few months ago with an excellent story.”
Caldwell reports that a third edition will be published in the new year.
The calendars are available at many Encinitas businesses including the Cardiff Seaside Market, Hansen’s Surf Shop, Surfy Surfy Surf Shop and Queen Eileen’s Gift Baskets.
Caldwell thanks Malcolm Williamson who helped launch the website www.thecardiffkook.org where calendars can be purchased online at a cost of $14 plus shipping and tax.
For more information about Fill-A-Belly visit www.fillabelly.org. For information about the National Breast Cancer Foundation visit www.nationalbreast
cancer.org.
