Pros Hit the Water at the 2011 Nautique WWA Nationals
Minneapolis, Minn. – The largest water-sport contest in the United States continued today in downtown Minneapolis, as the 2011 Nautique WWA Wakeboard National Championships, presented by Rockstar Energy Drink hosted preliminary rounds for its pro divisions. Riders in the Pro Men, Pro Women and Pro Wakeskate categories spent the day battling it out on the Mississippi River for the few remaining spots in tomorrow’s final rounds of action.
First off the dock today was the Pro Wakeskate division, where eight competitors squared off in two heats of four during today’s semifinal round. Among the eight competing pros was the division’s 2010 runner-up Grant Roberts, who posted a 76.67 to win his heat and advance to tomorrow’s finals.
“I got lucky; the water was super rollie and it took a lot of people down,” Roberts joked about his heat today. “The water has been pretty rough to everyone, but I managed to land a couple of 3’s and a Big Spin today, and made it through to the finals.”
Roberts hopes his luck won’t run out during tomorrow’s finals, as he’ll be competing against Brian Grubb, Stuart Shinn and Reed Hansen – all former national champions.
“The final heat is going to be crazy,” said Roberts. “All these guys are really talented. I just hope the water conditions help level the playing field.”
The 21-year-old Discovery Bay, Calif. native will look to win his first Pro Wakeskate national title during tomorrow’s finals, scheduled for 12:30 p.m.
In the Pro Men’s division, local rider Colin Ryan turned heads today, when the St. Paul, Minn. resident placed third in his six-man quarterfinal heat – good enough to advance to tomorrow’s semifinals. The part-time pro wakeboarder and full-time anesthesiology certification student credits his success today to his approach.
“I have a lot of respect for these guys; they’re the best in the world,” said Ryan. “But since I just wakeboard part time, I really have nothing to lose. I just lay it all on the line, go big and see what happens.”
Ryan’s family and friends will be on site tomorrow to watch him compete in the Pro Men semifinals, scheduled for 10:30 a.m. Should Ryan win the national title tomorrow, he will become the first Minnesota native to win the Pro Men’s division national title.
In the Pro Women’s division, all eyes were on Alexa Score to see if the Spicer, Minn. native could advance to the final round of the competition in her home state. But the rough water conditions that have plagued the competition took Score down early, eliminating her from the finals.
“The water conditions were pretty rough and I just don’t have the experience yet to handle that, like some of the other girls do,” said Score, who turned pro earlier this year. “But I had a lot of local support and I hope even more people come out to watch the rest of the competition tomorrow.”
The only pro division to crown a national champion today was the Pro Women’s Wakeskate category, when Jen GilanFarr took first place in today’s finals to win her fourth national title.
The Nautique WWA Nationals will conclude tomorrow, July 31, beginning at 9 a.m. and ending at 3:30 p.m.
The 2011 Nautique WWA Wakeboard National Championships, presented by Rockstar Energy Drink is free to the public during all five days of competition. For those who cannot attend the event in person, just “like” the King of Wake’s Facebook page (www.facebook.com/prowakeboardtour) to watch all the live streaming footage.
The 2011 Nautique WWA Nationals will also air on the VERSUS television network at 6 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Sept. 6.
Saturday, July 30 – Day 4 of 5 Results:
Pro Women Wakeskate Division
Final Round – Heat #1
1 Jen GilanFarr 100.00
Boys Beginner Division
Final Round – Heat #1
1 Mitch Allen 73.33
2 Bryson Hancock 56.67
3 Michael Buss 43.33
Jr. Women Division
Final Round – Heat #1
1 Tori Koch 76.67
2 Katelyn Fenner 66.67
3 Gianna Dinatale 53.33
4 Rachel Orgill 31.67
Pro Women Division
Semifinal Round – Heat #1
1 Melissa Marquardt 71.67
2 Hayley Smith 56.67
3 Shawna Hoffman 45.00
4 Emily Durham 33.33
Pro Women Division
Semifinal Round – Heat #2
1 Nicola Butler 78.33
2 Raimi Merritt 66.67
3 Meagan Ethell 53.33
4 Alexa Score 38.33
Pro Women Division
Semifinal Round – Heat #3
1 Amber Wing 75.00
2 Anna Hajek 63.33
3 Tarah Mikacich 43.33
Pro Wakeskate Division
Semifinal Round – Heat #1
1 Grant Roberts 76.67
2 Stuart Shinn 65.00
3 Danny Hampson 50.00
4 Brandon Thomas 30.00
Pro Wakeskate Division
Semifinal Round – Heat #2
1 Brian Grubb 73.33
2 Reed Hansen 53.33
3 George Daniels 51.67
4 Matt Hayden 36.67
Boys Division
Semifinal Round – Heat #1
1 Zach Brown 80.00
2 Nicholas Brown 61.67
3 Tyler Higham 43.33
4 Jamie McCauley 20.00
Boys Division
Semifinal Round – Heat #2
1 Mac Schramm 71.67
2 Jason Soven 66.83
3 James Loisel 63.33
4 Merrett Fay 48.33
Boys Division
Semifinal Round – Heat #1
1 Landon Kasey 75.00
2 Mitch Kappler 58.33
3 Ben Watts 40.00
Pro Men Division
Quarterfinal Round – Heat #1
1 Aaron Rathy 78.33
2 J.D. Webb 68.33
3 Kyle Rattray 63.33
4 Steel Lafferty 59.83
5 Shawn Watson 55.00
6 Adam Wensink 41.67
Pro Men Division
Quarterfinal Round – Heat #2
1 Jimmy LaRiche 63.33
2 Rusty Malinoski 57.50
3 Colin Ryan 52.50
4 Shaun Murray 51.67
5 Erik Ruck 40.00
6 Nick Jones 26.67
Pro Men Division
Quarterfinal Round – Heat #3
1 Bob Soven 91.67
2 Olivier Derome 80.00
3 Tony Carroll 71.67
4 Andrew Shearer 60.00
5 Phillip Aslinger 50.00
6 Jason Bannatyne 36.67
Pro Men Division
Quarterfinal Round – Heat #4
1 Harley Clifford 87.67
2 Andrew Adkison 71.67
3 Austin Hair 65.00
4 Kirby Liesmann 58.33
5 Clayton Underwood 41.67
6 Jimmy Trask 33.33
Pro Men Division
Quarterfinal Round – Heat #5
1 Phillip Soven 86.67
2 Dean Smith 76.67
3 Joey Bradley 70.00
4 Danny Thollander 63.33
5 Adam Errington 59.00
