Jesse Melson brings goat yoga to The Garage in Amarillo
With The Garage event space, Jesse Melson is hoping to bring unique experiences to Amarillo’s Historic Route 66 District. His most unique experience may be Goat Yoga, which is not goats doing yoga poses like downward-facing dogs, but humans doing yoga in the presence of goats.
According to goatyoga.com, this yoga with goats originated in 2015 in Gilbert, Arizona, as the creation of April Gould and Sarah Williams. This bizarre combination was a product of Gould being a goat owner and Williams being an avid yogi. With this, Gould and Williams thought there was a harmony with the lively and playful nature of goats and yoga. According to its founders, it was a very therapeutic interaction that also brought a link to nature. Other sources cite Lainey Morse as the creator of the practice of Goat Yoga in 2016 to deal with the stress she was going through.
Gould, a two-time contestant on "American Ninja Warrior," was known for featuring her goats in her training sessions and interacting with them.
Melson hopes to continue to grow the phenomenon that has gained popularity throughout the country, combining the relaxation of yoga with the fun of being around small goats. He has held goat yoga on two occasions in Amarillo and feels the response has been tremendous.
“It is pretty cool to see people excited to do this," Melson said. “I just wanted to think of something really weird to do on Sixth Avenue, and I had seen events like this in Austin before that looked really fun, so I was like, let's try it here.”
According to Melson, the community response has been positive for all who have had the experience.
“Sometimes people just come for the goats and the fun of being around them," Melson said. “This is for fun, not so much serious yoga.”
He plans to hold many more goat yoga sessions in the future. The sessions typically last over an hour, and classes have been filling up at $30 a session. He also plans to hold special events that may offer special discounts.
For people who have never done goat yoga, Melson recommends that they try it.
“It's just funny doing this around the goats and seeing their interactions and sounds, which make for a wonderful experience,” Melson said. "It's really relaxing and a way to connect with nature in a unique way.”
For more information on The Garage and upcoming events, go to https://www.facebook.com/thegarageon66/ .
This article originally appeared on Amarillo Globe-News: Jesse Melson brings goat yoga to Amarillo's historic Route 66 District
