Top ASP surfers catch up with the inspiring Thomas Dow
It is rather difficult to say who felt more ecstatic at the meeting between the two on March 20 in Newcastle, Australia: the Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) surfers Taj Burrows, Adrian Buchan and Coco Ho, or the inspirational local surfer and
star of the YouTube video ‘Tom’s surf extended’, Thomas Dow.
Dow showed up at the Merewether beach to catch the exciting ASP surfers in action at the finals of the four-star Burton Toyota Surfest. As soon as ASP surfers’ representative Kieren Perrow got the hang of the news that the 24-year-old Dow is in attendance,
he wasted no time in alerting fellow ASP surfers at the event about the opportunity to catch up with the inspiring surfer and human being.
“When I first saw Tom it was via his youtube surfing link and I was nothing short of amazed and inspired by his courage and determination to live his life to the fullest - To see his passion for surfing was awesome and I really wanted to give him the chance
to experience professional surfing and to be part of our life for a moment," said Perrow.
Smith, along with the other organisers of the event, made it possible for Dow to have the best possible view of the final at Merewether beach. The handicapped surfer was beaming with happiness as some of the surfers really went out of their way to make sure
that he had a great time.
Coco was seen chatting with the Dow just before she went out and won her final. ASP world number2 ranked male surfer, Burrow, greeted Dow after winning his heat. Buchan met with him just prior to his quarter-final. ASP world number two ranked female surfer,
Fitzgibbons, also spent some time with the Newcastle local surfer.
Dow became such a centre of attention on the weekend because of his positive attitude towards life and dealing with his handicap. He is suffering from Leigh’s disease, which is a rare neurometabolic disorder that affects the central nervous system. The patient
suffers from degraded motor skills, before eventually meeting death. Dow has already lost his sister to the same disease.
Dow has lost his ability to talk but understands everything clearly. He gets his message across with the help of an alphabet board with great facial expressions and hand gestures.
Instead of giving up on life, Dow has chosen to live his life to the fullest. He is a member of the Disabled Surfing Association at Belmont south of Newcastle. He remains active in the surfing scene, attending different events, and getting on the surfboard
himself. He makes two trips to Nobby’s Beach in the summer months with his group of friends. It is assumed that it was these friends who filmed the infamous and inspiring ‘Tom’s surf extended’ that is found on YouTube.
Dow’s perseverance and energy did not go unnoticed by the world and that is why he managed to impress the biggest names of the surfing community. His beaming face clearly showed his excitement to meet some of the best surfers in the world and being part
of the Surfest final. To remove even the slightest bit of doubt, he gave a thumbs-up.
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