Phil, Harley, & Bob are #2, #3, and #4 at Wakestock!
Collingwood, ON — The final day at Wakestock was highlighted by sunny, hot weather and calm water although
an early morning thunderstorm threaten to put a damper on the days festivities. Once the storm
cleared, the day kicked into high gear as the worlds best wakeboarders and wakeskaters took to the water
of Collingwood Harbour to battle out the final rounds of the WWA World Series for an overall prize purse of
$25,000 and the coveted Wakestock belts.
The action got under way in the Malibu Boats Pro Wakeskate Championships with a 6 man semi final. Leading
the way into the final round was past Wakestock wakeskate champs, Stuart Shinn and Brian Grubb. They
were also joined by Wakestock rookies Grant Roberts and local Ontario rider Dan Brown. In the end, it was
Grubb walking away with the win; his 5th Wakestock title overall.
Up next was the Billabong Pro Wakeboard Championship, which saw a 16 man quarterfinal cut down to an 8
man semifinal. Canadians made and strong showing by filling up half of the field with Rusty Malinoski, Aaron
Rathy, Olivier Derome and Raphael Derome all advancing.
The 4 man final was comprised of the hottest riders in the world at the moment: Phillip Soven, the WWA
World Series overall points leader, Aaron Rathy, the King of Wake overall points leader, Harley Clifford, the
PWT overall points leader and Bob Soven, the Jr. Men’s PWT point leader. Buoyed on by the hometown
crowd, Aaron Rathy had 2 flawless passes, which included a Heelside Wrapped Back 7 and a Toeside Backside
Offaxis 5 to take home the Wakestock title.
“This is unreal; I’m super stoked to win Wakestock,” claims Rathy. “Especially considering how good everyone
was riding here. The Wakestock crowd is so big and so close it really makes riding a lot of fun. Rusty
[Malinoski] told me that I’m only the third Canadian ever to win along with him and Jeff Heer so it feels good
to be in that company.”
Wakestock is presented by Monster Energy; in association with Billabong, Malibu Boats, Coors Light, Gordon
Bar Marine, Paris Marine, SBC Skateboard Magazine and SBC Wakeboard Magazine.