Tennessee Mountains and Doing the “Dew” Wakestyle

On our way home from FL we stopped in the Nashville area to see friends and enjoyed some of the best water known to mankind. Center Hill lake was insanely smooth and so warm that it was almost too warm. Thanks to the Yawns for hosting us and Jason and Melea (and fam) for pulling us behind their Supra (and Joe for the Tige...even though we never met you while we were there?!?!).

If you are wondering about the music, the song is by the Pogues (read: my dad’s 80’s alternative collection) singing about the original Mountain Dew which was from “them there Tennessee parts” and wasn’t what it is today I’m told. Enjoy the video. I hope it makes you want to get out and ride.

World Championships of Wakeboarding 2009--1st place

It was a privilege to ride in the World Championships of wakeboarding held in Orlando. I was excited to qualify at the top of my division on Thursday and then take the overall win on Friday. My dad and I celebrated with riding the cable at OWC (video of my first 540 off the kicker is at the end of this post), surfing at Cocoa Beach, and eating sushi.

Saturday I snapped my collar bone at OWC while spinning on the "fun box." Then we spent the better part of the day in the ER where they even had to cut off my beloved Hyperlite jacket. That’s right, I said “cut off”!

The pain was excruciating, but I couldn’t pass up the awards ceremony Saturday night. The really cool thing was that Rusty Malinoski, whose pro model board I ride, helped me carry my board and HUGE first place trophy from the podium back to our table. BTW, when I say “our table,” I mean the table where Rusty and I had dinner. He was super encouraging and gave me great tips on some tricks I am working on right now. It didn’t bother me a bit when the announcer said I was Rusty’s protégé! I can’t wait to start riding his 2010 set up. It looks amazing and has the new track system for bindings to make the board even lighter. I am not sure how long the collar bone will take to heal, but am eager to get back on the water. Thanks for your support and prayers. Click here for more pics.

A Summer Wrap

Other than feeling too short, this summer has been great. We have been riding quite a bit and progressing. Lately spins have been my focus, but Scarecrows, front rolls, backrolls, and big cabs are still fun. Competitions have gone alright too. I ended up winning five for five in INT, locking in the state champion spot, and qualifying for regionals as well as next year’s nationals. Next year will also mean moving up a division or two. INT Regionals are later in September in Littlerock Arkansas. Our whole family plans on attending and my dad will compete in his division which is cool. Here is a pic of some of the NE crew with some hardware.
The WWA nationals in Oklahoma were really fun and REALLY HOT (104 in the shade!) with the only break being in the hotel pool which was freezing! The best riders in the country were present so it was awesome watching them ride. I ended up second in my division. It was pretty cool being pulled by Travis Moye who is the most respected boat driver on the planet. Equally cool was getting the thumbs up from Brian Grubb who happened to be in the boat the first day for my run (see Brian and Travis in the pic that was taken right after my run).

Second place means I qualified for the World Championships. After my final’s pass in OKC we snagged a podium picture, jumped in the car, and drove as fast as legally possible to make another comp in KS. We literally drove up to the dock, I grabbed my Marek, and rode. It made a great memory. Thanks guys for waiting/stalling!

The World Championships in Orlando later this month will be pulled by Supra boats so thanks to Omaha Marine Center we have been riding behind a Supra. The all black World’s edition looks tough and pretty much everyone feels compelled to offer props. OMC has a couple of these World’s editions so check em out!

Be cool!