Eleven-year-old Carter Doorley of Brigantine has become something of a celebrity in the Garden State after successfully surfing for 1,000 consecutive days—getting into the water even when it snowed, hailed or rained.
Dawn Doorley, Carter’s mother, says that “every day he goes out there, we’re still amazed.”
As if 1,000 straight days of surfing weren’t enough, the sixth-grader then set his sights on reaching three years of daily surfing (1,095 days), which he is expected to reach on May 24.
To stay busy when Covid-19 forced playgrounds, skate parks and other locales to shut down in early 2020, Doorley decided to set a goal to surf 100 days in a row before school began in the fall. After he reached his initial goal, he decided to keep on surfing.
Along the way, he cleaned up beaches and raised money for several charities. He has donated to SurfAid, the Humane Society of Atlantic County and the Save the Children Fund, among others. Dawn Doorley says her son has transformed since he began his journey: “He definitely sees and thinks more about doing good for people.”
Doorley says his dad taught him how to surf. “I’ve gotten so much better,” Carter says about his skills since beginning the surf mission.
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Through the sport, he has connected with several well-known members of the surfing community, including pros like Ventnor’s Ben Gravy, Will Skudin, Ian Crane and Kai Lenny. “My inner voice tells me to surf, so I surf,” Doorley said in an Instagram post, perfectly summing up his reason for continuing.
He says he has no plans to stop, adding that he hopes to someday surf in Hawaii, California, Indonesia and Nicaragua.
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