Game On

A Different

Competitors of all ages compete in the New Year’s Day Barefooting Challenge on Lake Norman.

Each new year, water skiers test their skills in a “barefooting” tournament

by Allison Futterman | photography courtesy of Carolina Show Ski Team

Kind of Challenge

“It’s a lot of fun once you figure it out.”

Jeff Blair, from Mooresville, has won more Lake Norman New Year’s Day Barefoot tournaments than anyone else. The spray is from his bare feet on the water.

Waterskiing has been around since 1922, when 18-year-old, Ralph Wilford Samuelson from Minnesota created it. Since then it’s gained in popularity. For some, it’s just a hobby. But for others, it’s a competitive sport. Among water skiing enthusiasts, there’s a group of people who dispense with the skis and go barefoot. Fittingly, this sport is known as barefooting. It gained popularly in the 1950s, when competitions started being held.

cAroLinA sHow ski teAm

Based in Tega Cay, the Carolina Show Ski Team puts on weekly summer shows in Windjammer Park. The group’s mission is to promote water skiing and water safety, and they accomplish this “through water ski show performances, exhibition performances, tournament participation, and community engagement activi-

Carolina Show Ski Team

• Founded in 1992 • Approximately 80 members total, with 49 skiers • Puts on weekly shows June-August in Windjammer Park in Tega Cay, S.C. • Summer shows attracts over 55 boats and almost 200 spectators • The team’s youngest skier is 6 and the oldest is over 60. • Skiers compete in national and international tournaments, as a team and individuals, with many placing or winning in their respective disciplines.

Carolina Show Ski Team barefoot skier Hudson Fox does a Hop-dock one ski step-off start. He will drop the ski once he is up and skiing. ties.” They are only show ski team in the Carolinas. Although it’s the skiers that garner most of the attention, the team is comprised of a dedicated group of people working together to put on great show. In addition to the incredible skiers, there are boat drivers, an announcer, sound people, spotters, and other members.

crowd PLeAsing event

As North Carolina’s largest man-made lake, Lake Norman is naturally a popular destination for a variety of water sports. But there’s one especially unusual event that takes place on the lake. For more than 40 years, the Carolina Show Ski Team has held the New Year’s Day Barefoot Challenge. The event can attract up to 300 spectators, and typically has 20-25 people who participate. Past winners are welcome, as is anyone who has waterskied professionally in a show or competed on the national level. “We also try to get someone significant in the barefoot world to come,” says tournament director, Justin Landers.

One group who can be counted on for faithful attendance is a local Harley Davidson motorcycle club that stumbled upon the show one New Year’s Day. “One year a bunch of motorcycle guys showed up. They ate our chili and hot dogs and stayed to watch,” Landers says. And they’ve been coming ever since.

A cHALLenging sPort

Landers is also the tournament’s senior judge and a member of the Carolina Show Ski Team. When he first started barefooting, he found it difficult and wasn’t sure it was for him. “It was hard to do, until someone taught me,” he says. He went on to teach others interested in learning the sport. “It can be unpleasant when you’re learning, and people tend to give up.” But he says it’s worth sticking with, because “It’s a lot of fun once you figure it out.” Within the last three years he’s become “faithful barefooter.”

tournAment dAY

Competitors are not only from North Carolina. Every year, there are several competitors who travel here from New Jersey, all of whom are older than 70. And one man who returns each year is from Florida. He’s now 82 and still competes. Landers explains that once somebody learns how to do barefooting, they’re usually able to retain the ability later in life. “We get quite a few retirees.” Participants ski in a circle—which increases the difficulty level, and are awarded one point for every second they ski. They also get additional points for tricks. Endurance, stamina, strength, and body position are all important factors.

So this summer, as you’re enjoying time boating on the lake, consider giving barefooting a try. You never know—you might just find yourself ready for the next tournament!

Learn more:

www.carolinashowski.org https://www.carolinashowski.org/new-years-day-barefoot-challenge