Competitive Water Skiing On Its Way to a Comeback (Part 1)

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Reading through the pages of comments on SkiFly, it would be easy to get the impression that water skiing is a dying sport.  This website is one of the primary resources available to skiers across the world as means of direct communication, but the anonymity allowed on its message boards results in a measure of unreliability in a number of the posts.  I see the sport in a different light than some of that which is portrayed, and I think competitive water skiing is on the verge of a comeback in a big way.

To clarify, I don’t think the recreational aspect of the sport ever saw a major decline in participation.  Now more than ever I see slalom skiers on the water cutting mellow arcs back and forth through morning glass.  Sure, people wakeboard as well, but the two sports work together in getting people involved with water sports and enjoying their time at the lake.  Most of these skiers are in the dark, however, when it comes to competitive water skiing, especially that of the professional level.

I wasn’t around in the glory days when water skiing was on ESPN, but I think that the same level of professionalism can be reached in the immediate future.  Webcasting is a great way to promote events to an audience around the world, but in itself, this will not gain new viewers.  The tournaments themselves have to do this in their own local region, and they’ll have to be innovative to do so.

Successful examples are the Louisiana Night Jump and the Big Dawg Series.  From what I’ve seen online after these events, they have both taken new angles in order to amp up the level of excitement.  Without a doubt the most exciting water ski events I’ve been to, however, have been collegiate tournaments.  Whether it is a standard weekend tourney or Collegiate Nationals or All-Stars, these events are a blast for spectators and competitors alike.  The team spirit has something to do with it, but it’s also simply bringing so many people together in the anticipation of having a good time.  The collegiate division is a window that can be learned from by the other disciplines, and used to grow the sport as a whole.  How can collegiate events benefit professional water skiing?  By having collegiate skiers volunteer to host Pro Stops themselves.  Not tied down by full time careers, collegiate skiers are in the perfect position to be effective tournament organizers.  The following Google map will include the locations, websites, images, and videos of all 80 or so collegiate water ski teams.  Currently it is limited to a portion of the Western Region, but looking at the extensive reach of the collegiate water ski network when the map is complete, will give you an idea of how easy events could be spread throughout the US.

Keep an eye out for Part 2 of this post, in which I’ll detail exactly how a collegiate team can host a Pro Tourney.

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Come to a Collegiate Ski Tournament Near You

Collegiate water ski teams on the west coast have, on average, five tournaments each fall and each spring at some of the most pristine man-made ski lakes in the country.  Some of the competitors are beginners, and some are world ranked competitors.  At each tournament, there will be up to 20 teams vying for the top positions, and regardless of your own ability level, each one is a blast to watch.  The interactive map below lists all the tournament ski sites used by teams in the West, and includes descriptions and photos to give you an idea of what collegiate skiers get to experience week in and week out.  Keep an eye on NCWSA.com and this blog for tournament dates and locations for the upcoming spring season.

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WaterSki Still Has Room to Improve

The cover of WaterSki Magazine's November issue features Canadian team skier Whitney McClintock.

In the magazine section of any bookstore near you, there are hundreds of publications that cater to every hobby and sport imaginable.  Except for water skiing.  For this niche sport, there are all of two sources of entertainment for the literary-minded to choose from.  One of these is USA Water Ski‘s monthly publication, The Water Skier, and the other is WaterSki Magazine.  WaterSki takes the approach that you would see in any other extreme sport’s coverage.  Like Surfing or Wakeboarding Magazine, it is heavy on pictures and ads, with typically shorter articles.  Some of WaterSki’s most interesting pieces highlight some of the sport’s best athletes and most scenic locations around the world.  In the magazine’s latest issues, stories include an inside look at the 2009 pro ski tour , information on two of the country’s top new ski schools, reviews of the latest ski videos on the market, and among other things, plenty of sick photo-space.

The biggest problem I have with the magazine comes not from the decisions made by its editors, but from the lack of competition it faces from other publications.  Because the only other magazine available, The Water Skier, is already provided free of charge to every member of USA Water Ski in the country, this one does not have to try and outsell WaterSki.  Instead, it has a newsletter-like feel that sets it in a less exciting category beneath its more unique counterpart.  Consequently, WaterSki has developed inside of its own safe groove with a style that rarely sees much change.  Although the magazine continues to be entertaining each month, I think the editors should be pro-active in keeping things new and exciting, despite the lack of outside pressure to do so.  I think one of the best ways to do this would be to have specialty issues every so often, that focus on one specific aspect of the sport and related intricacies that they aren’t able to fit into two page articles.  Sure there is the annual boat buyers guide, but this one can only be kept in the bathroom for so long.  Here are three ideas to help them out:

Collegiate Ski Teams: With the National Collegiate Water Ski Championships just around the corner, now would be the perfect time for this issue.  The ever-developing Pro Ski Tour has its stars, but the lack of cohesion here leaves a huge gap in material for hungry fans that could easily be filled by the rivalry and action found at every college tournament.

Big Dawg Coverage: I don’t know anything about these over 35 year old competitors, except that they are generally bad ass.  This is another series that could blow up in popularity with more coverage on its skiers and their lifestyles.

Trick Skiing: Sure, not everyone trick skis.  But this issue will be huge with those that do trick, and perhaps some of those who do not currently will be interested enough to get into it.  This magazine could be a collector’s item for the lack of information on tricking already out there.