Date: 9/27/04
Author: David Williams

I was fortunate enough to get some time out on the water yesterday. This is a really busy time of year for me, so I'm thankful for any pulls I can get. Unfortunately, the day started off with a major downer that moved me to sit down and write this.

As I made my way down to the dock, I noticed a friend of mine, Geoff, was talking to one of the rangers in the parking lot. As I approached the two, I could tell something was wrong. Geoff's face was noticeably swollen and his fat lip was split. There was dried blood on his face and lips.

At first I thought that he had taken a bad spill and was explaining his bad run of luck to the ranger. Unfortunately, I was wrong. Geoff was a victim wake rage.

I'm sure we've all experienced a day on the water that included a run-in with somebody that brought a little too much anger with them to the lake. I've seen middle fingers, heard shouting and even seen people intentionally cutting off another boat or sending rollers in the direction of their nemesis. These occurrences are rare, but they are bound to happen, especially on crowded lakes.

To be honest, I can't say I've never expressed myself in one way or another to other boaters. One of my pet peeves is when another boat follows too closely to the rider that I'm pulling. This probably goes back to my near-death experience when a guy was riding my tail while I was wakeboarding and almost ran me over when I fell. I'm not proud of it, but sometimes I get pretty angry when the safety of my rider or crew is threatened and I'll usually verbalize my displeasure.

Anyway, most wakeboarders that find themselves participating in this kind of behavior are simply trying to send a message. It's usually accepted or rejected by the receiving party and both boats continue with their day. No big deal.

This is what it looked like Geoff was in for on Sunday. A simple disagreement in the wakeboarding area raised some blood pressure and raised some voices. Geoff decided it best to head out of the area in search of greener pastures. Despite another confrontation on his way out, he was able to separate himself from this other boat and head out to the open lake.

After tying up to a buoy in a corner of the lake, about as far away from the wakeboarding area as you can get, and spending some time just relaxing in the southern California sun, Geoff noticed that the other boat had tracked them down, apparently not willing to let bygones be bygones. As they nosed into Geoff's boat, Geoff and the two guys on board with him were surprised to see three of the four guys leap onto their boat.

What followed was the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard happen on a lake. Geoff sustained a series of blows to the face and head that lasted until these three felt that justice had been properly administered. When they were done, they simply hopped back to their boat and went on their merry way.

Now I'll admit that I've only heard one side of this story and I'm sure these modern-day pirates would have another version that would, in their eyes, put them in a better light. However, I can't think of any situation that would justify hunting someone down, boarding their vessel and giving them a beat down.

I probably wouldn't have given it this much thought if my eight-year-old daughter wasn't holding my hand when I first saw Geoff's face. As soon as we walked away the questions started.

• What happened?
• Why did they hurt him?
• Aren't they grownups?
• What's wrong with them?
• Will the policeman put them in jail?

Unfortunately, I didn't have any good answers. In fact, I felt like a complete idiot trying to explain this kind of behavior to her. The fact is, I couldn't explain it. I stumbled through the answers the best I could. Her conclusion was that "maybe doctors can do a special operation for people like that."

That made me laugh and a little happiness managed to supplant the knot in my stomach that had been there since I first heard about the incident. My daughter, myself and the other five people on board put it behind us as we spent the rest of the day on the water. Chris showed me his recently landed back roll, Brad got up on a wakeboard for the first time, Ben tried his first Raley and paid dearly for it, Jackie learned the definition of the word 'faceplant,' I went old school and rode the oldest board I own without fins and my daughter discovered that heater tubes are the greatest invention man has ever come up with…even when it's hot out.

That's what wakeboarding is all about: time on the water enjoying the sport with family and friends. Let's try to remember that when somebody power turns across our path or that guy takes too much time on the ramp. It's easy to get riled up about the small stuff, but try to keep it all in perspective. If you're out on the water participating in this sport in the first place, you should count your blessings. Keep it positive and we'll all have the best opportunity for the pursuit of H20 happiness. There will always be some that don't get it, just make sure you're not one of them.

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