We Love College Waterski Interviews

jgills88

Hi all, "We Love College Waterski" is now a weekly podcast on Youtube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google, and many more!

This week I talked to the Indiana University Waterski and Wakeboard Club. We talked about their team, wakeboarding, their first trip to Midwest Collegiate Regionals a few years ago, and much more!

Check it out if you want more of a perspective on college waterski!



https://open.spotify.com/show/57l56OQznJpzlM8Dc1wc4d

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/we-love-college-waterski/id1544822419

Clydesdale

@jgills88 this is great. I had a similar college experience back in the big 80s. A lot of kids are intimidated by the elite level of skiing at the big schools and therefore don’t consider the possibility. Lots of recreational skiers out there would love the experience but may not understand they have the opportunity. Keep spreading the word!

jgills88

@Clydesdale thanks for the encouragement! That intimidation is exactly why I wanted to do this! And it's a big reason why I wanted to talk to IU so early, they're a fun group of people who like to be on the water. Yes they like to compete and do well, but nobody on their team is an "elite" skier to the point that they might seem unreachable

Clydesdale

Maybe there is a pro skier from Indiana that could join them for a motivational practice? 😁

unksskis

@Clydesdale - Cale lives in Michigan now.

6balls

Most of our skiers at Iowa had maybe skied behind the family I/O on the river on weekends. I can only think of two with slalom course experience on arrival. I had skied one here and there but was a weekend recreational hack and one other guy came in running 36/22 (The "Fat Cat"). We had a few jumpers who had been part of show ski teams who were used to throwing gainers but now distance jumped--it was great cuz we didn't have a jump and they had experience--the rest of us learned to jump by putting on jumpers at a tourney. I had a pair of tricks and a slalom trick that my older brother John used to use--I had no idea what to do with them but knew we needed them.

Our '82 MC Prostar was donated with 2000 hours by a local attorney who had a serious house-boat on the river and upgraded. It needed help and we did our best...got her running great. Then it was tourney time for our young team! (literally just a handful of dudes trying to talk some girls into skiing with us).

5 guys did 3 events. We had 3 show team jumpers...130 ft, 80 ft, and 50 ft). We ran two guys (me and G$) who could ride over or a little more. 4 of us could run a pass in the buoys, in short order I was thru 28 off and the others could run multiple passes. We all tricked, and could do side/side, back, back, 360/360. Even without a significant women's team we did ok at collegiate tourneys and had a blast hanging with other teams.

We added some women, "Fat Cat" showed up, and we had a riot. We added a Moomba Boomerang.

The team treaded water for a while after we graduated, then had a big surge when one of the best 3-eventers in MN decided Iowa was for her academically. My nephew Mitch was a slalom stud and added trick/jump and showed up as well--he brokered a deal for a newish Prostar 197. A few show ski jumpers and a cadre of womens skiers arrived and off they went to Nationals with @Razorskier1 being basically a promo-guy for them.

It's been a dip since, but at the end of the day--collegiate skiing is where virtually all of my close friendships lie, and there have been a pile of vacations together since. You don't need experience, and many teams that are "club sports" are fragile.

As I look at it today...the teams need a community sponsor who helps organize and keep things going as kids come/go/graduate--ideally someone who could coach as well. Get something together that newcomers can use--recruiting, tournaments, practice, gear, maintenance, leadership structure.

If I moved back to Iowa City for some reason...one of my goals would be to stabilize and coach the ski team...make it renewable and grow it.

jgills88

@6balls the start of your team sounds super similar to mine! The guys who brought back Akron's team started up 3 years ago from scratch. One had skied for Ohio University (green Ohio for those unfamiliar), the other two were wakeboarders who he met and convinced to go to tournaments. Now we're at the stage with a full men's team that could have a shot at nationals (not amazing scores, but definitely par or better than some teams in the D2 tournament), and a very small women's team made up of people we know and are willing to get in the water!

I whole heartedly agree with you that having local "sponsorship" really makes or breaks a team's potential. In the Great Lakes at least, you can see the difference it makes. Ohio State, Cincinnati, and Miami all have had long term, local coaches who can help guide their teams and keep continuity that comes from building an actual program, rather than a group of friends who graduate and leave a team empty.

6balls

@jgills88 the other struggle is a "site". We ran a river course..all kinds of issues. Our own site on a quarry, a boat...a huge difference. Another reason for a sponsor because what quarry wants to give access to a group of transient college kids? They need to deal with an adult to have a chance.

jgills88

Good Morning and Merry Christmas Eve Ballers! I have another episode of the "We Love Waterski Podcast" released this morning. This week I talked to the Texas A&M Aggies about what it's like to ski in the "Dirty South", how they have built their team, and what it means to be an Aggie!



I've also done something a bit different this week and made a pair of highlights for the episode if you want a taste of WLCW:




In addition to the video version of the podcast, you can also listen to it on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, and many more platforms!

https://open.spotify.com/show/57l56OQznJpzlM8Dc1wc4d
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/we-love-college-waterski/id1544822419
https://www.google.com/podcasts?feed=aHR0cHM6Ly9hbmNob3IuZm0vcy80NDM0YjBiOC9wb2RjYXN0L3Jzcw==

jgills88

This week I talk to my old team the University of Cincinnati! I brought in Brayden Patton, Drew Bigler, and Conner Hoagland to cover their team, the strong connection that they have to their alumni, the volunteer work that they do, and then we finish out the podcast talking about one of the Midwest Region's oldest traditions



https://open.spotify.com/show/57l56OQznJpzlM8Dc1wc4d

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/we-love-college-waterski/id1544822419

https://www.google.com/podcasts?feed=aHR0cHM6Ly9hbmNob3IuZm0vcy80NDM0YjBiOC9wb2RjYXN0L3Jzcw==

AmandaLR

Just listened to your recent Cincinnati podcast. Fun to hear how other collegiate teams are structured and operate. Keep up the interesting podcasts!

jgills88

@AmandaLR thanks so much for the encouragement!! If you (or anyone else reading) have anything that you'd like to see, please let me know!! I'm always looking for ways to improve the podcast

jgills88

This week on “We Love College Waterski” I interviewed THE Ohio State University’s most recent recruiting class. They talked about what the first year is like on a ski team, goal setting, and some of their favorite memories from their freshman year!

Find them on Instagram: @OSUWaterski
Here are a few highlights from the episode!


You can also listen to the podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google, and more platforms!

https://open.spotify.com/show/57l56OQznJpzlM8Dc1wc4d

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/we-love-college-waterski/id1544822419

https://www.google.com/podcasts?feed=aHR0cHM6Ly9hbmNob3IuZm0vcy80NDM0YjBiOC9wb2RjYXN0L3Jzcw==

jgills88

For this week’s episode of We Love College Waterski I talked to KJ Miller from Cal Poly! We talked about her waterski experience, Olympic aspirations, and all of the effort that went into hosting the 2019 NCWSA Nationals!

You can find her team on Instagram: @CPWaterski

Episode Highlights are now hosted on Instagram at the podcast’s new account: @WeLoveCollegeWaterski

You can also listen to the podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google, and more platforms!

https://open.spotify.com/show/57l56OQznJpzlM8Dc1wc4d

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/we-love-college-waterski/id1544822419

https://www.google.com/podcasts?feed=aHR0cHM6Ly9hbmNob3IuZm0vcy80NDM0YjBiOC9wb2RjYXN0L3Jzcw==

jgills88

This week’s episode of "We Love College Waterski" features three teams Ohio University, University of Dayton, and my school the University of Akron. These three teams do everything together, both at tournaments, and in the off-season.

If you want to hear more about the social side of collegiate skiing, you can find the full episode on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Google Podcasts

https://www.instagram.com/tv/CKTudZvhKz1/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

Episode Highlights are available on the podcast's instagram account @WeLoveCollegeWaterski


https://open.spotify.com/show/57l56OQznJpzlM8Dc1wc4d

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/we-love-college-waterski/id1544822419

https://www.google.com/podcasts?feed=aHR0cHM6Ly9hbmNob3IuZm0vcy80NDM0YjBiOC9wb2RjYXN0L3Jzcw==

jgills88

This week on We Love College Waterski, I talked to the founder of Oklahoma State's Waterski Team. We talked all about the process that goes into starting a team, the help he received from skiers across the country, and what it was like to compete as a young team!

This one has been my favorite interview by far, so there were enough highlights to warrant two videos. You can find both sets of highlights at the podcast's instagram page @WeLoveCollegeWaterski

Highlight #1 https://www.instagram.com/tv/CKlzW1bhA1Y/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

Highlight #2https://www.instagram.com/tv/CKkUkushYYB/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

You can find the full podcast on youtube (linked above),

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/57l56OQznJpzlM8Dc1wc4d,

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/we-love-college-waterski/id1544822419

Google Podcasts: https://www.google.com/podcasts?feed=aHR0cHM6Ly9hbmNob3IuZm0vcy80NDM0YjBiOC9wb2RjYXN0L3Jzcw==

jgills88

I did something a little different in addition to my normal interview this week. Watch at three teams from across the Midwest compete to answer Ski Jeopardy questions!

jgills88

This week on "We Love College Waterski" I talked to Collin Spradlin from Connelly Watersports! We discussed skis, college programs, and possible future events for waterski as a sport!

You can find podcast highlights on Instagram: @WeLoveCollegeWaterski: https://www.instagram.com/tv/CK33e8chCux/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

You can also listen to the audio version of the podcast on Spotify, Apple, and Google Podcasts

https://open.spotify.com/show/57l56OQznJpzlM8Dc1wc4d

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/we-love-college-waterski/id1544822419

https://www.google.com/podcasts?feed=aHR0cHM6Ly9hbmNob3IuZm0vcy80NDM0YjBiOC9wb2RjYXN0L3Jzcw==

jgills88

This week on "We Love College Waterski" I talked to Dorien Llewellyn, who at the time of recording was the NUMBER 1 Overall Skier in the world! We talked about potential growth, com-peting, College skiing vs professional, waterski tips, first jumps, sponsors in skiing (Redbull and Akquire), and much more!. There is a lot covered in this interview, so please check out the time stamps if you do not have the time to watch the full hour interview:

You can find Dorien on Instagram @Dorienllewellyn

Interview Highlights: https://www.instagram.com/tv/CLa_VU-B-St/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

You can find the video version on Youtube, and the audio version on Spotify, Apple, and Google Podcasts:

https://open.spotify.com/show/57l56OQznJpzlM8Dc1wc4d

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/we-love-college-waterski/id1544822419

https://www.google.com/podcasts?feed=aHR0cHM6Ly9hbmNob3IuZm0vcy80NDM0YjBiOC9wb2RjYXN0L3Jzcw==

jgills88

Time Stamps:

Introduction (0:00​) -- 1:53​
Starting Skiing: (1:56​) – 4:35​
Hockey, Lacrosse, and Other Sports: (4:36​) – 7:09​
Potential Growth of Waterskiing: (7:10​) – 8:20​
What is Dorien’s Favorite Event?: (9:12​) – 12:00​
Gap Year: (12:00​) – 12:54​
When We Com-Pete We Strive Together: (12:55​) – 14:00​
Collegiate vs Pro Skiing: (14:10​) – 15:35​
What Does It Take To Be a Pro in All Three Events?: (16:13​) – 19:39​
Trick: (19:40​) – 23:50​
First Jumps: (23:53​) – 27:40​
Skiing for a National Team: (28:45​) – 30:59​
Ski Tips: 31:00​ – 38:00​
Which Event Can Most Help the Other Two?: (31:00​) – 33:15​
What Event Should You Start a New Skier On?: (33:16​) – 34:24​
Advice for Three-Event Skiers: (34:25​) – 36:18​
Trick Tips: (36:19​) – 37:56​
Team Atmosphere Rollins vs Lafayette: (38:00​) – 41:20​
College Recruitment: (41:25​) – 42:53​
Joining College Waterski: (43:00​) – 44:10​
Redbull: (44:18​) – 45:19​
Akquire: (45:20​) – 46:00​
Redbull pt2: (46:01​) – 47:50​
Non-Ski Sponsorship: (47:51​) – 50:00​
Waterskiing, a Hidden Gem: (50:01​) – 51:25​
Favorite Part of Skiing Collegiately: (51:26​) – 52:57​
Favorite On The Water Memory: (52:58​) – 56:00​
Why College Ski is Important: (56:27​) – 57:27​
Outro: (58:10​) –59:10

jgills88

This week on We Love College Waterski, I sat down with three members of the Western Michigan Waterski Team! We talked all about how their team runs, their favorite events, and some of their more unique traditions!

You can find their team on instagram @WMU_Ski

Podcast highlights can be found on the WLCW instagram page: @WeLoveCollegeWaterski

https://www.instagram.com/tv/CLuCK2khu8x/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link


The audio version of this podcast is available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Google Podcasts

https://open.spotify.com/show/57l56OQznJpzlM8Dc1wc4d

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/we-love-college-waterski/id1544822419

https://www.google.com/podcasts?feed=aHR0cHM6Ly9hbmNob3IuZm0vcy80NDM0YjBiOC9wb2RjYXN0L3Jzcw==