The practice runs the night prior to the event were a bust, not for lack of riders though, the gusts of wind were horrible, only one rider was able to get out before we called it no good, and they kept blowing till the sun went down. Probably the most beneficial part of having the WakeUtah.com team out there was the ability to chat with an actual judge of wakeboard competitions. If you have ever had questions about your run or what they are looking for the guys who showed up the night before took advantage of that opportunity and learned something that might have given them the edge, Marc Glover was there, he rode in Outlaw for the first time this year and he took 3rd…
The day of:
The day didn’t start out ideally, cold and wet, for a wakeboarder wet is ok, but cold, that’s tough! The consolation was that the lake wasn’t too choppy, and other boaters stayed away. Most riders I talked with had only been able to get out and ride 2 or 3 times because of the weather prior to the event, so I was worried about the level of skill I would see, but everyone did fine despite the short warm up season.
The morning was the only sore spot, by 11:30 the sun came out and warmed spectators as riders began their runs. Beginners went first and all did a great job, many finished their runs standing up, they did a great job. Then women’s with Jenacee Jackson first, then a newcomer to the Utah scene from Virginia, Nikki Willhoite. Then finishing out the division was Brook Bagley, all three had stellar runs. There is going to be some good completion on the water from the Women’s division this year.
Intermediate and Advanced divisions both got great water and all had great runs, as the tricks get harder the action gets better. The sun was shining and the spectators were cheering as the riders did their best to compete for the top spots.
As typical competitions go, Mother Nature threw out some wind, and more boats on the water throwing rollers, as Outlaw took the stage. Andrew Wallace volunteered to go first and got the best water, and came out on top with the best run.
From the moves I saw on the water last weekend, I can tell you, it’s going to be a great year, if only the temperature would rise a bit so we can get out and ride some more.
