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The Goatherders at Opto-Rock 2000

on November 12th, 2009 | Filed under Optoblog

So, I was transferring some old files onto a new hard drive and rediscovered this lost gem. Pacific University College of Optometry has a talent show called Opto-Rock. In the year 2000, a few of us then first year optometry students got together and performed a “fusion of music and dance” which won first place and $100 prize.

From left to right we have:
David Langford, O.D. of VisionHealth EyeCare in North Logan, UT
Jared Walker, O.D. of Drs. Gary and Jared Walker in Twin Falls, ID
Nathan Kohler, O.D. of Parkway Eyecare in Shelley, ID
Ben Marske, O.D. of Eye Center of Northern Colorado in Fort Collins, CO
David Graf, O.D. of Valley Vision Clinic in Richfield, UT
Nate Munson, a (buddy) of mine that I roped into doing it.

There is actually an interesting story behind the routine. I was told its genesis was at BYU. Then I read that someone created it in Heber, UT first. My involvement begins when a guy named David Fuhriman brought it from BYU up to Beaverton-Hillsboro, OR and taught it to me, Nate, a guy named Mark, and others. We performed it at a church talent show in the fall of 1999. Then I ported it over to the Opto-Rock talent show in April 2000. We were still short a guy, so I asked Nate (the guy who gets tossed) to help us out.

Well, everyone at Opto-Rock loved the (as David Fuhriman called it) “fusion of music and dance,” so they asked us to do it again for the incoming first year optometry students during a part of their orientation in August 2000.

Meanwhile, Mark apparently got a group together to do it again at a church talent show after I left because here is the link to another performance he was part of on the same stage where I first learned the way of The Goatherders.

If you look on YouTube, there are tons of performances of guys doing the whole Goatherders routine in various iterations. It’s kind of like the telephone game where it gets changed along the way.

If you want to win your next talent show, I suggest doing this routine. Here’s a cheat sheet to help you remember your next move in rehearsal:

Bye Bye Bye (It may look like we were out of sync, but it was all planned.)
Groove on
Taking it all off!!
Leap Frog
YMCA
The Bobs
Step-Kick
Horseback
Fall and Pickup
3 Man weave
Headbonks
Spinning Kicks
Oompa Loompas
Hand stands
Hoky Freestyle
Jumping Jacks
Opera
Launch!
Ultimate Freestyle
Peek-a-Boos
Rockettes
Pick-up
Summersaults, Cartwheel, Flip
Pyramid
Drop
Go Crazy
Oompa Loompa thank you

Oh, by the way, I know some of you react to me typing “The Goatherders” like nails on a chalkboard. We all know it’s supposed to be “The Goatherds,” but think of The Goatherders as a brand name. I think someone needs to start a FaceBook page for any and all alumni of Goatherders performers.

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