October 19th – 21st 2007
Cancun, Mexico

Thursday October 18th 9:40am - Right about now American Airlines Flight 2184 is pushing back from the terminal with me and a handful of wakeboarders and wakeskaters on board. Brian Grubb, AJ Racinelli, and “Danno the Manno” are on this flight to Miami for a quick change of planes before jumping the puddle to Mexico’s Eastern-most point, a little place called...Cancun. As we make our approach all we can see of Cancun from ten thousand feet is the turquoise blue water and white beaches. After passing through security and regrouping, we hop on a shuttle bus from the resort and begin our 20-minute drive through the heart of Cancun: T-shirt shops, restaurants, night clubs, all chased by miles of white beaches.

We arrive at the host hotel, The RIU Caribe, and the lobby is packed with familiar faces. Everyone is already in board shorts, zinc under the eyes and beverage of choice in hand. The wakeboarding and wakeskate industry has just taken over Cancun.

The first night is like a reunion of sorts; it has been a month since the last contest and even though we all live in the same city, it seems that we are more of a family on the road. After checking in, everyone makes their way to the pool to await the next teammate’s or industry friend’s arrival. Rusty and Lindsy (spelling?) show up with Rusty’s signature welcome sign—flexing with the “hang loose” hand signals waving in the air. The big bear hug to leaves no doubt he is here. Eric Ruck looks up over the bar tipping his sunglasses with a nod to let you know he’s glad to see you. Aaron Rathy comes charging through the lobby with the grin on his face like he just pulled one over on someone and is stoked to see you. JD Webb makes his splash approach into the pool smiling from ear to ear, always looking for a good time. Jimmy LaRiche Jr. and Sr. stroll out to the pool giving “hi-fives,” making a point to say hello to everyone. It’s good to see family again and this reunion is just getting started. Besides the scenery and good times ahead, Team Hyperlite has just one thing in mind: “VICTORY.”

All the Hyperlite boys did well. AJ and Jimmy both won their heats for Jr. Men, Julian Cohen advanced as well as several others. The pro qualifiers went well also; Chris O’Shea won his heat with a beautiful pass. Others that made it through were Danny Burnstein, Austin Hair, and Danny Thollander. The event finished up early today but it was nowhere near over. Upon getting back to the hotel, everyone agreed to meet in the pool and regroup. Rockstar Energy Drink hosted a social out on the patio by the pool and we enjoyed appetizers and some conversations. Then the hotel turned into a freeforall party ground.

Friday October 19th 6:30am - I am standing at the front desk in my basketball shorts and sweaty t-shirt trying to do whatever I can to get some A/C in my room. That’s right… I’m in Mexico, and the A/C in my room is broken. Didn’t sleep a wink. Ended up lying in the bathtub for two hours to cool off. Anyway, I get some breakfast from the never ending buffet and head out to the site. After a ten minute ride the cab drops me off in the middle of the most popular outdoor shopping mall in Mexico (so they say). The tournament site is riddled with banners and pop up tents. Local TV is there along with the Mexican Rockstar girls in their one-piece jumpers. The site couldn’t be in a more perfect venue for the fans.

All the Hyperlite boys do well. AJ and Jimmy both win their heats for Jr. Men. Julian Cohen advances as well as several others. The pro qualification also goes well; Chris O’Shea wins his heat with a beautiful pass. Others that make it through are Danny Burnstein, Austin Hair, and Danny Thollander. The event finishes up early today but it’s nowhere near over. Upon getting back to the hotel, everyone agrees to meet in the pool and regroup. Rockstar Energy Drink is hosting a social out on the patio by the pool and we enjoy appetizers and some conversation. Then the hotel turns into a free-for-all party ground.

Saturday October 20, 2007 9:00am – This morning the competition gets started early because there are more divisions riding today. It all starts off with Women Wakeskate rolling into Amateur Wakeskate then Pro Wakeskate. Brian Grubb takes 2nd place in the Semi Finals this morning moving him into the finals tomorrow. Some other exciting divisions today are Jr. Men, Pro Women and Pro Men. Jimmy LaRiche, AJ Racinelli, Danny Burnstein and Julian Cohen are the Hyperlite Jr. Men moving on to the Finals on Sunday.

In Pro Men Chris O’Shea has a amazing run to start things off. The format is a bit different for this competition: It is in “skins” format consisting of four-man heats with the winner of each heat moving to the next heat for chance to keep winning skins. After two rounds, the rider with the most “skins” wins the Overall Championship. Rusty Malinoski, JD Webb, Chris O’Shea, Austin Hair, and Danny Thollander are among the Pro Men representing Hyperlite. Aaron Rathy is on site for Team support while he awaits surgery on his knee after a mild injury a couple weeks ago. The conditions are very nice today as the wind stays down and the sun isn’t too overbearing.

Saturday night starts off with everyone re-congregating in the pool to relax for a few before the night gets started. On the schedule for tonight is the Miss Reef Contest at Daddy O’s Nightclub right in the heart of Cancun’s tourist area. Industry people show up in swarms by taxi, van, and even scooters. Ten of Mexico’s finest ladies show up for a tough competition chasing the title of Miss Reef Mexico. The judges panel consists of Reef Team riders such as Tino Santori, JD Webb and many others. After all is said and done, the gorgeous young lady from Mexico wearing the number 10 is crowned the winner. Now it’s back to the hotel for a nightcap and Danno the Manno entertaining everyone in the lobby with his rendition of “Hotel California”. It’s always a good time with this crew of friends, reps, riders, sponsors and everyone who makes it happen.

Sunday October 21, 2007 8:45am – Another buffet breakfast to start the day and I’m off to catch another taxi for a speedy trip down the road to “La Isla” (nothing short of Mr. Toads Wild Ride”) for the Tige Pro Am Championship’s final day. Today is already a bit gloomy—a clear indicator of how the rest of the day is going to go. Cloudy, rainy, windy and whatever can go wrong is about to go wrong. You name it: the boat having some trouble, an injured rider known as the “Muffin Man” dislocating his shoulder, knots in the rope, food poisoning, sleep depravation, language barriers, no normal food, pesos translating to dollars, and still no of A/C!

Despite the entirely negative perspective I just gave you, it has been a very successful day. After it’s all over, Brian Grubb has taken the 3rd spot in Wakeskate, while Jimmy LaRiche takes 3rd in Junior Men, leaving the 1st Place finish to AJ Racinelli. This gives him the opportunity to finish an amazing season on top. In Pro Men, Phillip Soven has a record setting weekend by winning every single heat and “Skin” to go with it. 2nd place goes to Danny Harf and 3rd to Andrew Adkison.

This is also the last stop for the “King of Wake” series. “King of Wake” is a points-based series that has nine events. The rider with the most points at the end of the season is crowned “King of Wake”. Phillip Soven and Rusty Malinoski have gone head to head all year long, seesawing back and forth in the points standings. After this weekend in Cancun, Phillip Soven comes out on top and now carries the crown as the 2007 “King of Wake”.

Team Hyperlite congregates by the pool for a couple hours talking about the season and reminiscing on what we have done and accomplished over the past year. It’s quite amazing to sit around with a group of superstars and realize what they do and have done for this sport. Their hearts, minds, body and souls are in it, just like it should be for anything that you love!

2008 is going to be exciting and Team Hyperlite is ready in a very big way. Until then, don’t stop believing...