The Shawano Ski Sharks are hoping to make some noise this weekend at the 50th annual Wisconsin State Water Ski Show Championships held in Wisconsin Rapids. There’s excitement with this year’s team, as some of their younger talent is really starting to come into their own.
“These kids are really stepping up their talent, said Dave Passehl of the Ski Sharks. “They’ve been with us now for three, four, five years, but they were never really big kids, so our confidence level is very high right now with the way the show has been executed. Clean, non-fall acts, creative and entertaining show scenes and I think we’re going to fare very well.”
Although they’ve had some strong individual performances in the past, Passehl believes this is one of the more complete units they’ve put out on the water.
“It’s going to be different than it has been in the past because typically we’re dealing with a very young team, but we have several adult women, like my wife etc, that are putting in the time into this alternative summer sport. We’re going to see it all come together and again, couldn’t be happier with what’s happening down here, very excited about it.”
Passehl suffered an injury earlier in the season, but that hasn’t kept him from watching and enjoying the talent from the shore.
The Ski Sharks compete in Division 3-the lowest at state tournament-and they feel they’ll be able to bring back some accolades, but they’re also excited to bring home new ideas.
“We get the pleasure of watching the monster teams after us, just seeing what those huge teams can put on the water,” Passehl said of the tournament. “If we put 30 people on the water with one act, they’re putting on 60 or 70. It’s just such amazing stuff that you get to watch. We stay all weekend, take all the shows in and bring home a lot of good ideas.”
