Jr. Pro Women’s Podium

Auburndale, FL (May 18, 2021) – Riders from across the central US converged at Marine Creek Reservoir as Waterski America hosted the second stop of the 2021 Malibu Boats Rider Experience and the Central Regional Championships.  Scattered rain in the forecast did not deter the anyone from participating in “Shreddin’ Saturdays” and the Regional Championship Central on Sunday.     Saturday morning began with riders taking their practice sets behind the awesome Malibu M220 and 25 LSV that were provided by the crew at Waterski America.  Joined by Malibu and Axis pro riders, Jeff Langley, Bec Gange, Chad Sharpe, and Stacia Bank, participants off all ages and skill levels received expert instruction in both wakeboarding and wakesurfing.  While they eager waited to take their turn on the water, everyone was able to enjoy the full atmosphere of the event site by playing either “Tricks for Treats” at the Lakesurf  Balance Board booth, or corn hole matches at the Waterski America tent.  Hyperlite Wakeboards had their full 2021 line-up of wakeboard and wakesurfers on display for everyone to demo, and WakeWell Ministrieswas spreading the love to everyone with their booth of fresh apparel.  The vibe was fun-filled and relaxed as everyone enjoyed a day by the water’s edge.  By 5pm everyone had taken their opportunity to shred behind the new boats, and Jr. Pro Men made the unanimous decision to run their semifinal on the sunny and calm Saturday afternoon with the looming forecast of rain on Sunday.  “We always want to listen to the riders and when it was brought to our attention that the guys wanted to run their first round on Saturday while the conditions were great, we wanted to do all we could to support that.” says Corrie Wilson, executive director of the WWA.  And after two hard fought heats, the 6 Jr. Pro Men that would be moving on to Sunday Finale was Parker Swope, Cody Hunnicutt, Tanner Higham, Jaden Reichl, Alex Albin, and Jamie Huser. Jr. Boys Beginner Podium Sunday kicked off the Malibu Regional Championships Central, and all ages and skill levels were represented in the day’s lineup.  Choosing to ride through the rainy morning displayed pure passion on the water for the younger divisions. Nine year old Becton Spencer started the day for the Junior Boys Beginner division as he competed in his very first wakeboard contest ever, and he ended up finishing in 2nd place behind the eight year old WWA veteran, Owen Smith.  Other notable divisions of the day were the always impressive Masters, led by Vic Sanchez, Eric Deegan, and Tony Allport who all landed on the podium in respective order, and the hard-fought battle of the Open Women’s Wakesurf category where Kelly Albin edged out Faith Byram and Kirby Bunner who finished 2nd and 3rd.  Women’s Wakesurf Podium The Malibu Regional Championships have always been known as the premier series for the Jr. Pro Riders and this weekend’s action was proof for the claim.  The largest division of the day contained the Jr. Pro Women who were ready to fight tooth and nail through their semifinal round of action.  As only 4 riders would be advancing to the finals, all the young ladies knew that their riding had to be flawless if they wanted to advance.  After the judges tabulated semifinal scoresheets, the four riders who would participate in the finals where Avery Ruegsegger (MN), Payton Gross (NC), Kitt Smith (MO), and the current series points-leader, Kira Lewis (FL).  Kitt Smith rode exceptionally well in the Jr. Pro Women’s Final, landing her signature two trick combo consisting of a heel side roll-to-revert followed by a switch backroll.  But Kitt’s run would barely fall short of tour series leader Kira Lewis, as she executed a wrapped KGB and a heelside frontside 540.  Avery Ruegsegger would round-out the top three women on the Jr. Pro podium.  In similar fashion. the Jr. Pro Men’s Final saw their series leader, Jamie Huser (SUI) claim another win with impressive moves like his whirlybird 540, KGB 540, and back-to-back 720s.  Alex Albin (CA) and Parker Swope (TX) rounded out the podium in 2nd and 3rd respectively.    As the 5-part series continues, the Malibu Rider Experience heads to Baltimore, MD next month as they host the Malibu Rider Experience Northand the Malibu Regional Championships North on June 19-20.  We look forward to seeing old friends and meeting new riders throughout the 2021 season!

About Malibu Boats LLC: Malibu Boats, LLC.  is the world’s largest manufacturer of watersports towboats, four of every ten performance sports boats worldwide. Malibu sells the Wakesetter, M240 and Response models — as well as the Axis Wake Research brand — through a global dealer network. With approximately 675 Malibu employees worldwide three manufacturing facilities in California, Tennessee, and Australia, Malibu builds boats to help you live a #lifewithoutlimits on the water. (NASDAQ: MBUU) | @malibuboats | #thetruthisonthewater  About The WWA:  Developed for riders by riders, the World Wake Association stands as a global network of passionate representatives dedicated to the growth of wakesports. Since 1989 our mission and values remain true to the core of our community. Our position as the authority on competitive standards has been earned through consistent development; sanctioning and producing more than 12,500 worldwide events and counting. We are the only organization solely focused on the best interests of the sport, spearheading a collective movement on the journey to discover where wake takes you. The WWA owns and operates the WWA Wakeboard World Series, WWA Wake Park World Series, WWA Wakeboard National Championships, WWA Wake Park National Championships, WWA Wakeboard World Championships, WWA Wake Park World Championships, WWA Wake Park Triple Crown, WWA Pro Card and WWA Rider Experience. For more information on the World Wake Association, check out www.thewwa.com.