Wakeboarding’s best demo at Anderson
The water temperature was only 59 degrees but that didn’t stop
two of the top wake boarders in the area from performing a few
tricks out at Morgan Hill’s Lake Anderson last Saturday for Malibu
Boats’ national demo day.
Wakeboarding’s best demo at Anderson
The water temperature was only 59 degrees but that didn’t stop two of the top wake boarders in the area from performing a few tricks out at Morgan Hill’s Lake Anderson last Saturday for Malibu Boats’ national demo day.
The local Malibu dealership, Salinas Valley Marine, was assigned to demo its boats and equipment at Anderson and chose 18-year-old Jordan Casas, a senior at Palma High, and 26-year-old Jason Shehan of San Jose to test the new boats and equipment.
“That was probably the flattest, nicest water I’ve ever seen out there,” said Shehan, who took to the cold water without a wet suit. “A lack of winds and boats made it perfect. It was cold though.”
All of the recent rains are also expected to enhance the experience for boaters this summer throughout all of Northern California since most lakes are now near or at their capacity, which means that water sports enthusiasts will be able to enjoy some of the best conditions in years.
“The water level is way up there – completely full,” said Casas, who competed in a number of wakeboarding tournaments last summer. “It was as nice as you could ask for out there. It’s 45 minutes away from me, which makes it great for a day trip.”
The Santa Clara County Parks Department agrees.
“I don’t know about fishing, a lot of them went down stream,” said Spokesperson Tamara Clark-Shear. “But for boating, it’s going to be one of the nicest years. There’s a lot more lake to boat on now obviously, and it’s just gorgeous out there.”
The official start of the boating season is Memorial Day weekend, which is still a month away. But with temperatures expected to break the 80-degree mark today and pushing 90 inland, interest in area lakes is expected to rise quickly.
“Boaters are still in hibernation right now,” said Clark-Shear on Tuesday. “When the temperatures go up, peoples’ behavior starts to change.”
During the demo day event, Casas and Shehan, who has competed in numerous wakeboarding events and won several tournaments, performed a number of maneuvers in the glass-like conditions.
“My favorite maneuver is the scarecrow,” said Casas, who doesn’t plan to compete much more in order to pursue playing baseball – a sport he received a scholarship in to play for Long Beach State next fall.
The scarecrow involves a front roll with a 180 spin in it.
“It’s my favorite because it’s one I can do,” said Casas. “Wakeboarding is a lot of fun because it gives me something to do and cool off while having fun with buddies.”
Although he’s now a project manager for PG&E in San Jose and doesn’t have as much time to compete anymore, Shehan is a seasoned veteran of the sport. He started water skiing when he turned 6 and switched to wakeboarding around the time he turned 14. While in college at California Polytechnic – San Luis Obispo, Shehan competed in a number of wakeboarding tournaments on the International Novice Tour.
His favorite maneuver involves a backward summersault. This weekend, he is competing for the first time in a few years in a tournament in San Luis Obispo.
“I’m working on a lot of different moves right now,” said Shehan. “I’m just starting to get back into it a bit more. I like wakeboarding because it’s more extreme, and you can do a lot of things that you can’t do on a ski.”
In addition to Anderson Dam personal watercraft and powerboats are allowed on Calera Reservoir in south San Jose and Coyote Lake in Gilroy.
All of the waterways in Santa Clara County are open from 8 a.m. until a half-hour before sunset. To launch a boat at any of the local lakes costs $6 and another $5 to park.
