This was one of the funnest (not a word, but should be) land events I've ever been to even with only about 20 minutes of actual wakeboarding!!
The area they hold it in is perfect. It's a block of bars downtown with an alley at the end, so it can accommodate a ton of people and there is plenty to do even without the wakeboarding event. You only have to show ID to get into the block, so you are free to wander outside and from bar to bar with drinks in hand if you so desire. Plus, they only check ID one time. Unfortunately, that was one time too many for Kaesen as he lost his fake ID only two weeks before his 21st birthday!
I said this last year and I'll say it again, the combination of a DJ (this year it was Grammy-winning Rockwilder) and an incredible drummer just mercilessly pounding on the skins makes for the coolest music I've ever heard!
The place was stacked with pro riders, many of whom were up on the stage gettin' jiggy the entire night. I know that we've got some great pics of the craziness!
It was great to meet Kyle Alberts and watch him get psyched up to do the jump. He's a super cool guy and knows how to work up the crowd. I was impressed with how he thanked everybody after he was the one that put his butt on the line. He did three jumps and the last one was a grabbed three, which was pretty damn impressive!
Thanks to Step Up Productions for putting this together, Kyle for tearing it up and Arun for taking the pics!
Here's a video of Kyle's last jump:
http://wakeworld.com/Galleries/GetImage.asp?GalleryID=600&ImageID=36 Kyle and Step Up's Kevin Little...