Photos: Arizona furries invade Buc-ee’s in Goodyear

Buc-ee’s mascot beaver wasn’t the only lovably fuzzy creature found at the wildly popular Valley travel center this past weekend.

On Saturday, members of Arizona’s fursuit community gathered at the Buc-ee’s in Goodyear for an evening-long hangout that included socializing in the parking lot, posing for photos and strolling through the store.

The event, called a “furmeet,” was organized by Mesa resident Matti Wusky, who says it was aimed at supporting the fursuit community in Arizona. He estimated that 80 people attended Saturday’s event, more than double the turnout at a previous furmeet at Buc-ee’s during the travel center’s grand opening on June 22.

Fursuiting is one of the most visible parts of the furry fandom, whose members create characters known as “fursonas” and often express themselves through artwork and costumes. Not every furry owns or wears a fursuit, though.

Fursuit enthusiasts frequently attend local geek events like Phoenix Fan Fusion or stage informal public meetups of their own. The gathering offer a social outlet outside major furry conventions, where thousands of fans sometimes spend entire weekends.

Wusky says he began organizing furmeets at Buc-ee’s in June because of a lack of furry fandom gatherings on the westside.

“Buc-ee’s was a great opportunity since there’s no other meets for furries out here in the West Valley,” Wusky says. “I was like, ‘Why not do Buc-ee’s? Everyone loves Buc-ee’s. There’s tons of space to meet, so why not?’”

Arizona resident and fursuit enthusiast Moxie Claws, who has more than 45,000 followers on Instagram, attended the first furmeet at Buc-ee’s in June with friend and fellow enthusiast Helios. She says local fursuit enthusiasts caused a stir during the travel center’s grand opening.

“It was so packed. We were both suited up,” Moxie Claws says. “People took lots of pictures. Everybody was just shocked to see us.”

Moxie Claws says she and Helios returned for Saturday’s furmeet because they enjoyed the chance to connect with others in the fandom.

“A bunch of our friends are here and it’s a chance to meet new people,” Moxie Claws says.

Saturday’s gathering gave local fursuit enthusiasts a chance to show off their characters. Attendees began arriving at the Buc-ee’s in Goodyear during the early evening. Some posed for photos with the statue of Buc-ee’s beaver mascot while others gathered in the sprawling travel center’s parking lot.

Wusky was surprised by Saturday’s turnout, which he says was “a bit overwhelming, but it’s fun.”

“I just did a quick headcount and I think we reached (at least) 60 people, which is a lot more than I expected,” Wusky says.

Eventually, fursuit enthusiasts headed into Buc-ee’s, where the sight of several costumed creatures roaming the aisles attracted attention inside a store already known for spectacle.

A few shoppers snapped photos while other gawked. The store’s management asked that costumed fursuit enthusiasts remove their masks in the store because of safety concerns, but didn’t ask anyone to leave.

Wusky wasn’t bothered by their request, though.

“I understand because we’re a big group and that can become a safety hazard,” Wusky says. “Because last time we were here on opening day, it wasn’t really an issue. There were like three (or) four of us and it was really crowded.”

Wusky says fursuit enthusiasts weren’t staging a takeover of Buc-ee’s.

“Furries don’t do takeovers,” Wusky says. “We just want to be silly, whimsical and have a good time. We’re not about trying to cause a ruckus or anything. That’s not what we do. We just want to have fun.”