San Diego surfer swallowed by massive Great white shark!

We can see locals call this statue the Cardiff Kook...and over time it looks like its taken a fair amount of abuse in various forms but this prank is a classic. Heres the story:

"The statue named 'Magic Carpet Ride', created by artist Matthew Antichevich sits located on Coast Highway 101. This morning it was surrounded by a sculpture of a great white shark. The often-abused statue of a surfer in Encinitas was turned into a Jaws-dropping artwork early Saturday morning by a group of unknown pranksters.

Nearby campers at San Elijo State Beach said they heard a ruckus near the statue about 4 a.m., but didn’t see or hear how the pranksters were able to put the giant shark around the surfer. The shark didn’t appear without warning. Large sharklike fins had been placed on the other side of the highway earlier this week then, over the course of the past two days, the fins moved closer to the statue, as if the shark was circling in on its prey.

A large seam along the shark’s jaw indicates it was transported in two large pieces and then stuck together with a foamlike sealer that also made it look like the beast was bursting through the surface of the ocean.

The statue, called "Magic Carpet Ride," was made by artist Matthew Antichevich and erected in 2007 at a cost of $120,000 paid. It was said to be the first to honor surfing in San Diego County. But the reaction from local surfers was cool at best, and heated at worst, as they found the surfer to fall short of the image they thought their sport should project.

Criticism since before it was unveiled back in July of 2007 ranged from; "I'm not impressed with it," in a 2007 interview, to "It looks more like a dancer than a surfer to me." For years, many have seen the statue as an unrealistic depiction of a surfer. "Sometimes he's called the 'Cardiff Kook.' Sometimes 'Fairy Mary.' He's little 'fem' and the surfers don't really care for him," said a Cardiff resident.

The “Cardiff Kook,” has routinely been dressed in different costumes by snarky locals. At various times, the statue of the young male surfer has been adorned with a ballerina’s tutu and luche libre wrestler’s mask, a woman’s bikini and other costumes, most recently a tennis outfit with racket. But the shark attack took pranks on the statue to a new level.

That may be why so many have already signed a petition taped to the side of the display to keep the shark up."