liquidforce.com blog

Orlando, Fla. – The top wake athletes on the planet took to the waters of the Orlando Watersports Complex in Orlando, Fla. today for the opening rounds of the 2009 Air Nautique Wake Games, presented by ROCKSTAR. The four-day-long pro-am wakeboard event kicked off today with qualifying rounds for several pro and amateur divisions, eliminating a majority of the competition in the process.

Only the crème of the crop survived the opening rounds, earning them an invitation to the Wake Games Team Draft and advancing onto their respective division’s following round in the contest.

At the Wake Games Team Draft, ten preselected team captains will draft qualifying athletes to field a ten-person team. Athletes will contribute points toward a team score based on their final placement in their respective divisions. The team with the highest score will take home the team title and prize money.

Nearly 50 riders within ten heats hit the water today for the Pro Men’s division qualifiers. Only the top-two riders in each heat advanced, sending a majority of the competition home. Canadian young gun, Olivier Derome posted the high score of the day with a 97.25 to advance along with the 19 other riders to the following round and invitations to the draft.

Raimi Merrit (Lantana, FL), Dallas Friday (Orlando, FL) and Nicola Butler (Bournemouth, England) led each of the three heats in the Pro Women’s division today with Butler posting a perfect score. The three leaders plus six other riders from today’s qualifiers will enter the draft and compete in semifinals on Saturday, April 25.

17 athletes fielded the four heats of the Pro Wakeskate division qualifiers today. Each heat featured at least four athletes and only the top-two from each heat advanced. Three-time Wake Games Pro Wakeskate champ Brian Grubb, who led his heat of five today, will be joined by seven other semifinalists in the draft. Pro Wakeskate semifinals will be held on Saturday.

The Pro Women’s Wakeskate division took to the water today for their quarterfinals with only the top-three shredders in the five-woman heat advancing onto Saturday’s finals. All three finalists will be drafted.

West-side rider Ricky Gonzales paced the Pro Veterans division today with Glen Fletcher and Gregg Necrason joining Gonzales in the finals on Sunday, April 26.

Ten young, talented shredders hit the water in two heats of five for the Amateur Wakeskate division qualifiers today. Only the top-two athletes from each heat advanced, setting up a four-man final for Matt Haydon, Aaron Perkins, Patrick Mulvaney and Forrest Risner on Saturday.

The Wake Games will continue tomorrow, April 24 with 14 amateur division competing before the Team Draft is held.

The Air Nautique Wake Games presented by ROCKSTAR is a four-day carnival of water-sports action. But not all of the action takes place on the water. On land, fans will experience tons great food and music, athlete autograph signings, chances to win freebies, and shopping at the most cutting-edge stores offering water-sports equipment including boats, wakeboards, wakeskates, sunglasses and the latest in wakeboarding and surfing fashions.

Tickets are available online at www.allisports.com, and at the gate: $10.00 (GA); $5.00 (ages 6-12); Free (ages 5 & under). The event will run from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on all four days.

Thursday April 23rd, RESULTS
Air Nautique Wake Games Presented By Rockstar

May 9th, 2009
11am - 3pm

Location: The Wakeboard Camp, Clermont, FL

Sponsored by: Liquid Force, The Wakeboard Camp, Monster Energy Drink, Sports On Tap

Liquid Force invites you to come out to The Wakeboard Camp on Saturday, May 9th for a laid back day of bros, boarding and barbeque. No contest, no pressure, no hype, just a fun day of wakeboarding with our Bros and yours. Liquid Force pro rail master Kevin Henshaw is hard at work concocting two one-of-a-kind rails that will be the center of attention as the likes of Watson, Shane, Lyman and the entire LF team session the rails for your enjoyment. If you have the skills, come prepared to enjoy Kevin’s handiwork yourself. That’s right, wakeboarding is not a spectator sport. Jump right in line with the team and take a turn.

Not quite ready for a turn at the rail? No worries. The Wakeboard Camp will have boats in the water, and every Liquid Force setup imaginable will be at your disposal if you want to try out our gear.

Sports On Tap will be at the event cooking up wings, burgers, dogs and all of the goodies that no respectable backyard BBQ would be without. We’ll also make sure you’re amped up with all of the free Monster Energy drinks you can handle!

Mark your calendar, gas up the car, and get ready to head to Clermont! It’s going to be a good time and you don’t want to miss it. If wakeboarding’s your thing, you’ll want to be here. Whether it’s boats, rails, pros, autographs, or just relaxing with some good eats, the LF crew promises you’ll have a good time!

IMPORTANT: Signed liability waivers will be required both to participate, and to enter the event site. No waiver, no rails or boat!

Two weeks in Mexico

The past two weeks in Mexico with my girlfriend Carla have been quite possibly the most interesting weeks of our lives. It was filled with coaching, riding, eating, adventure and a lot of crazy.

It started off on a beautiful lake in Acapulco where I coached for the Mexican Wakeboard association. Seven students in all on the flattest lake you could ever see. It was located about 200 meters from the ocean and so we rented a beach house to enjoy the perfect life, Salt and fresh water.

Lunch times were spent body surfing and evenings spent in one of our two pools. Acapulco was great and I can’t wait to return there next year for an even larger and longer clinic. After the clinic we head to Bonfil for some surfing and relaxing on the beach.

Next Carla and I headed to Teques for a couple of nights with WakeMex President Marcos Torres. The time was well spent sleeping in and hitting the lake for some wake surfing to beat the heat. I can’t imagine there are too many places hotter than Teques.

The second week was suppose to be spent in Mexico City hitting Museums and being the good boyfriend.. But on our first night Marcos called us from Hidalgo where he was a part of a government funded expedition through the province. Of course we were keen to join in even though I had no real idea of what I was getting into. I didn’t even have my board, but after a quick couple of phone calls, a local shop had leant me a LF board and boots and we were off.

We were picked up from the city by the crew and headed to Pachuca, Hidalgo. We were greeted by the director and it was only then I got a clue of how massive of a production was going on. There were Trophy Baja truck racers, Freestyle, 4 Wheeler and Enduro Moto riders and Marcos and myself on the wake side of it. A convoy of approx 15 vehicles.

They were making a two hour show on an expedition across the area to promote it by using extreme sports. It involved going to insane locations with 5 am breakfast calls and not getting back till 9pm each day. On the second day in St Christo we were taken to the most insane lake that had never had anything on it other than the local fishing boats. It was so far out that after 3-4 hours of trying we couldn’t get the boat in. So we just flipped a fishing boat on the side of the river and got pulled over it by a 4 wheeler moto.

A trip of this magnitude was a first for me, A lucky opportunity that saw us staying in a 300 year old castle eating awesome food and going to locations that I should never have seen. We could never have done it without your initial support and backing. Thank you very much.

I am now back in Clermont where I will spend 3 days sleeping before I head on the next trip to Waco, Tx and Leon Mexico.

I hope this finds you safe and well, will keep you updated on the next adventure.

BILLABONG’S OUT OF THE POND WAKE FILM DEBUTS AT
NEWPORT BEACH FILM FESTIVAL TUESDAY, APRIL 28TH

“Out of the Pond,” a New Groundbreaking Wake Video Makes Its West Coast Premiere at the Lido During the Prestigious Film Fest With Stars Attending

Irvine, CA. – Billabong debuts their new wakeboard video “Out of the Pond” at the prestigious Newport Beach Film Festival at 6:15 PM Tuesday April 28th at the famed Lido Theater, as part of the Action Sports Film Series. On hand will be the director and several of the wakeboarders who star in the movie, who will sign autographs and interact with the audience in a Question & Answer period directly after the film finishes Tuesday night.

“We are really happy with how the film turned out and getting a chance to premiere it here in the heart of the Boardsports community is a great opportunity,” says Chris Heffner, the film’s director and head of the Billabong Wake Program.

The Newport Film Fest is one of the largest and most well-attended film festivals on the west coast. The festival is celebrating its 10th Anniversary this year.

“We are excited to have a Wakeboarding film in the program, says Leslie Feibleman
Senior Film Programmer / Director of Special Programs & Outreach at the NBFF. “We are also very happy to have Billabong involved with our Action Sports Film Series.”

Exploring the contemporary progression of wakeboarding, the film will feature radical action, unique travel locations and many key personalities of the exploding sport.

A core team, which includes some of the best in the world, have been filming for more than a year now, traveling, setting up new situations, and trying to capture the most radical maneuvers many of which have been either invented or elevated by the boarders themselves.

“We’re definitely trying to push the envelope and include some things that have never been seen before,” says Shawn Watson, who stars in the film. “You know, we’re trying to be different – just like everyone else.” That, say many who have witnessed the footage, would be an understatement.

There are still tickets available but the premiere is expected to be a sell out.
Check out our web page and the Action Sports Films on NBFF Bside website pages – http://newportbeach.bside.com/2009/films/outofthepond_newportbeach2009

Lake Powell Resorts and Marinas was just voted one of the “Top 5 Marina’s you Gotta See Before You Die” in the May issue of Boating Magazine! Come and check it out June 12-14th for this year’s BROstock!

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www.liquidforce.com/boards_fly.htm

The summer is finally here, the ladies are at the beach for spring break, and the weather is warming up! It’s time to head into your local shop or www.liquiforce.com to pick up a pair of the new Liquid Force boardshorts! Always at the forefront of both fashion and function, these are the only boardies on the market designed specifically with the wakeboarder in mind. Ergonomic stretch panels to always hold your comfort, both in and out of the water. You’ll be styling when hitting the beach or on your next trip to the river with any pair of LF boardshorts this summer…
22” Outseam

www.liquidforce.com/apparel-spring09_board-shorts.htm

April 6th 2009,

UGP welcomes Ben Greenwood to the team. Its now official Ben Greenwood has joined Rookie of the year Kyle Alberts, Nick Weinacker and close friend Kyle Schmidt on the UGP wake team. The Florida based rider and apparel company have joined forces, with a Greenwood signature line in the pipeline, look out for big things from UGP in 2009. UGP’s Cason Lehman said “Ben has already brought some fantastic ideas to the table with his naturally creative style, on and off the water. For what we are trying to build here at UGP, we felt he was a perfect fit with his strong fan base and amazing video parts and photos.” Alliance Magazine’s 2005 Rider of The Year had this to say; “I have always looked at UGP as a cool brand with a ton of potential. I am more than pumped to get involved and help UGP continue to grow in the sport that they have been a part of for years. They obviously love wakeboarding as much as I do, and that is important to me.” Ben will be rocking UGP from head to toe throughout the 2009 season, for more info check out http://undergroundproducts.com/ben.