ABOUT US
THREE EVENT WATER SKIING
So, this whole waterskiing thing? What even is it? Our team here is a competitive in slalom, trick and jump. We have qualified for Nationals for two consecutive years and counting (does that make us competitive?) Slalom is the most well-known. You’ve got a course of six buoys and two sets of gates, basically get through the gates and around the buoys at each speed to keep skiing! Trick is the next event. Each skier is scored based on the tricks they can do (spins, flips, jump, etc.) Each trick has a certain point and based on how well you do, well you get more points! Jump is a fan favorite. Who wants to throw their body off a 5-foot ramp? PURDUE SURE DOES!!! That’s jump, skiers will ski over a 5-foot ramp (don’t worry mom, we wear helmets and padded suits). The furthest jump wins. We recommend watching videos of these events. Just so you can SEE what the hype is all about. Our team consists of an A and B team. A team is considered to be our competitive skiers. They are the top scoring skiers of our group. The B team is a more relaxed team while still going out and totally shredding, they are learning the ropes and continue to improve and eventually compete on our A team. A and B teams both go to tournaments. Remember, this is the PURDUE waterski team. Not the A and B team.
Practice
It’s Indiana, man, where are the lakes? Our team skis on a lake about 30 minutes southeast of campus. Not ideal, we know, but we make it super fun and who wouldn’t want to spend the day at the lake after class? Our lake is a private 3-event lake that was actually built by the farmer who owns the land. Classic Indiana. And don’t worry. He can totally shred too. Since our lake is a drive away, we set up carpools to and from the lake. You can just sign up for the car that fits best into your schedule and get ready for a fun day on the lake! A lot of our teammates will bring homework, swim, hang out with other teammates or ride in the boat. Oh, and also rip it up on the water. Don’t let the drive scare you. We all do it and LOVE IT. It’s a part of our culture, if you will.
Tournaments
AH! Our favorite part!!! We travel ALL over the Midwest skiing with not only our friends on our own team, but friends from schools all over. (Whoever said there was an IU-Purdue rivalry was lying!) For most tournaments we set up carpools leaving Friday after classes. (The exceptions being Regionals and Nationals where we get excused from class, yippee) Once your driver gets you to the beautiful flat-land state, you will most likely set up your camp stuff. Camping is another fan favorite (besides the skiing, relax). Then, after a great weekend of shredding, camping, sun burning and (maybe?) sleeping, you’ll pack up and count down the days until you do it again. Sounds sweet, right? Yeah, that’s why we do it.
