Deerfield Beach, Florida (May 11, 2002) – “Awesome!” was the word heard most often all day with the birth of world-class cable wakeboard competition in the United States, as the USA Cable Wakeboard Tour was officially launched Saturday at Ski Rixen in South Florida.
Excitement filled the air all day as the first stop of the four-stop Tour was received with great enthusiasm by a large crowd of spectators and over fifty eager riders ranging in age from 7 to 42 who came from as far away as Texas, North Carolina, and Canada, as well as Florida, ready to test their skills in the first competitive cable wakeboarding and wakeskating series in the USA.
Already well-established and immensely popular in Europe, Asia, and Australia, competition wakeboarding on the cable is finally taking root in the United States, and is rapidly gaining in popularity.
“It simply could not have been better!” said David Cornwall, founder and director of the Cable Wakeboard Tour. “We started the Cable Tour to give riders the opportunity to finally catch up and compete on an even keel with their peers around the world, to ride on a true international level in organized competition across the globe. Enthusiasm for the Tour so far has been incredible!”
Riders competed head to head in eight divisions, the largest of which was Open Men, where sixteen of the top cable riders in the country dazzled spectators with huge crowd-pleasing maneuvers both in the open water and on the obstacles. The crowd was treated to innovative tricks rarely seen behind the boat such as the switch Double S-Bend, 911 Blind360, 313, Hoochie to Blind, 90210, and to-the-moon KGB. The Finals ended with Rob Mapp taking top honors, followed by Donald Shelbrick and Keith Lidberg.
The future of Open Men looked even more promising, as riders in the Junior Men and Boys divisions surprised spectators by throwing tricks such as S-Bend to Blind, Roll to Blind, and Moby Dick off the kicker.First place honors went to Jeff Pollack in the Boys division, while Campbell Smith took the top spot in Junior Men.
Wakeskaters also proved the popularity of this new form of skateboarding on the water, impressing the crowd with high platform dock starts and360 shuvits off the kicker. Ty Benfield took first place, with Canadian Daniel Mavrey taking second, and Kyle Hyans finishing third.
Affiliated with the American Wakeboard Association and USA Water Ski, the Tour is dedicated to promoting and building the sport of cable wakeboarding in the USA, and would not be possible without the support of its generous sponsors both in and outside the industry, as well as from local businesses, parents, and loyal fans.
The next Tour Stop will be June 8th at Smith Lake Water Park in Fayetteville, North Carolina, followed by the Orlando Watersports Complex on August 3rd. The Finals will be held at the last Tour Stop September 14th at the brand-new Texas Ski Ranch in New Braunfels, Texas.Check out www.cablewakeboardtour.com for more information.
If you are visiting or live in South Florida, call Ski Rixen of Quiet Waters in Deerfield Beach at 954-429-0125 for more information on how you can join in on the fun!
Final Results
OPEN MEN
1 Rob Mapp 89.43
2 Donald Shelbrick 75.56
3 Keith Lidberg 72.83
4 Chad Forrest 70.00
5 Brad Federspiel 67.50
JR BOYS
1 Forrest Schaker N/A
BOYS
1 Jeff Pollack 71.56
2 Greg Heunis 62.55
3 Robert Graves 52.77
JR MEN
1 Campbell Smith 73.61
2 Rob Jacques 47.77
3 Won Bemis 38.90
MEN
1 David Santacroce 75.57
2 Brian Rackleff 68.59
3 Doug Schumacher 56.67
MASTERS
1 David Cornwall 65.00
2 Steve Cozone 56.67
3 Alex Emmermann 50.00
OPEN WOMEN
1 Kaylee Peete 50.00
2 Michelle Pollack 40.00
3 Jillian Moss 30.00
WAKESKATE
1 Ty Benfield
2 Daniel Mavrey
3 Kyle Hyans
