PHOTO COURTESY OF DANA CUMMINGS
Up with the sun: Association of Amputee Surfers’ Learn To Surf Clinic participants Ron Warren, Rodney Roller, Dana Cummings, Paul Hollenbeck, and John Taylor hit the waves on the morning of Oct. 24.

PHOTO COURTESY OF DANA CUMMINGS
Stoked on the water: Paul Hollenbeck received his first formal surf instruction at the clinic.

PHOTO COURTESY OF DANA CUMMINGS
The ride in: Balance and strength can create problems for amputee surfers, especially starters. Hollenbeck practiced paddling and other basics on his first day out.

"Survive, then thrive.”

That’s the motto of Greg Birkholz, aka “Pegleg Greg” who, in March 2001, survived a motorcycle accident—Harley vs. pickup truck—that broke his legs, arms, nose, and hip, leaving him with brain and lung contusions, a blood clot in his heart, and an amputation of his right leg below the knee.

He’s since recovered. And now he surfs.

Birkholz, an Arroyo Grande resident, is one of the co-founders of the Association of Amputee Surfers (AMPSURF), a Central Coast group in its first year with the goal of getting amputees and others with disabilities out on the water.

AMPSURF held its first annual Learn To Surf Clinic Oct. 23 through 26 at Pismo Beach State Park in Oceano, where amputees, instructors, and volunteers came together for three days of meeting, eating, and surf and kayak training.

The group’s other three co-founders—amputee surfers Rodney Roller and Dana Cummings and prosthetist-orthotist John Hollingshead -were also on hand.

Roller, the 2003 United States Amateur Surfing and Western Region Federation Champion in the open prosthetics division, came up with the idea for AMPSURF about a year and a half ago. A lifelong surfer, Roller kept his love of the ocean alive by hitting the waves solo even after his leg amputation. He was introduced to then-aspiring surfers Birkholz and Cummings through Hollingshead, the prosthetist they all shared. Soon after, Cummings set up a web site and AMPSURF was off the ground.

The clinic—Cummings’ idea—is one of the group’s first chances to put its goals in action.

"We’re really about helping people out and bringing awareness to the world of amputee surfing,” he said.

Being involved with AMPSURF allows Birkholz to prove his abilities even in the midst of physical difficulty.

"Society tells us we’re disabled and we can’t do this,” he said. “This is our way of saying, ‘We can do what we want.’”

Surfing is difficult enough for able-bodied first-timers. For amputees, there are added challenges: balance, necessary strength, and uncooperative prostheses, for starters.

For those with leg amputations, “You don’t have an ankle to balance,” Birkholz said. “It makes it trickier. And water and prostheses are always fun—it fills it up and makes it almost like an anchor, which slows you down.”

For some, like Birkholz, the solution lies in interchangeable appendages designed for physical activities such as surfing.

"I’m a switchfoot,” he joked.

Jon Richards, an avid surfer and student at the University of Florida, first heard about AMPSURF from its web site a few days before the clinic, and made the decision to fly out as a volunteer for the weekend. He is currently pursuing his second masters’ degree and has structured much of his research around therapy recreation.

"I was just stoked,” he said. “There are so many different benefits through the recreation. My specialty is adaptive equipment, and I have a lot of interest in disabilities surfing.

"It’s not about what you’re not able to do, but what you’re able to do.”

The free clinic was made possible largely through the generosity of several sponsors, including Central Coast Kayak, Pancho’s Surf Shop in San Luis Obispo, Nobbe Prosthetics in Santa Maria, and Hollingshead in Arroyo Grande.

Cummings hopes that AMPSURF will grow in numbers as more people find out about amputee surfing and its benefits. He says becoming an amputee has given him opportunities and perspective he never had before. He made the choice to grow stronger after his amputation last year, rather than let it destroy him.

“This has been the best year of my life,” he said.