WSR_June 2008 Issue

JUNE 2008 • A SUPPLEMENT TO WAKE BOARDING MAGAZINE
The Official Newsletter of the
Water Sports Industry Association
Photos: Joey Meddock
WAT E R S P O R T S
SUMMITINTHESNOW’08
“A
WSIA’S Perfect “Board” Meeting
h-ooh,” he hollers as
we head one by one
off the edge into the
open meadow of perfectly untouched powder. Dan
Meyers of WakeKite, attending
the WSIA Summit in the Snow,
had found the mother lode of
all powder sessions – it was a
beautiful knoll visible from the
chairlift just outside the Park
City Mountain property boundary. Earlier, while cruising the
groomed Payday slopes and
Jupiter Bowl area, Dan had
called HO’s Greg Dick and Dave
Wingerter to let them know of
his discovery. All day I was just
following along, so I agreed to
go check it out. Dan showed
us the cutoff under the boundary rope, and after working our
way through a dense forest
on a narrow path, there it was
-- a cleared area the size of 10
football fields with virtually no
tracks and a 60 percent pitch!
This was just one of the
many “scores” at the Summit
in Snow. The second annual
by Jim Emmons
event kicked off on Monday
evening with a cocktail hour
hosted by Surf Expo that led
into a catered dinner and the
event’s first keynote address,
delivered by Bud Denker, senior
vice-president of Penske Corp.
That explained the toy-size Ryan
Newman cars at each place
setting. You see, Penske was
quite proud because Newman
of Team Penske had just placed
first at the Daytona 500 the
weekend before. It was their
first Daytona win ever!
Denker’s presentation
shared insight into the $20
billion company’s corporate
philosophy and attitudes that
have made it one of America’s
strongest success stories. The
underlying theme was, however, that the corporate giant
puts its people first. Denker
explained several times that
the company’s best asset was
its people, and it was proud of
them. After the address and a
continuation of the open bar,
many decided to head to their
Continued on page 4
WATERSPORTS RETAILER
1
PRESIDENT’S LETTER
DearWater-SportsIndustry:
This issue is very special to me
because it celebrates our second
Summit in the Snow. For those
of you who attended the Summit,
you know exactly what I am talking
about. For those who missed it this
year, let me give you just a few
highlights. We had six incredible
speakers: Bud Denker, senior vicepresident of Penske Corp., gave us
insight into why racing has become
an integral part of its business
model. Martin Coles, COO of Starbucks, shared with us the
secrets of why Starbucks has become so successful. The
underlying theme of both presentations was “Value your
people – they are your best asset!”
Issa Sawabini of Fuse Marketing spoke about how to
market action sports, while Shon Tomlin of Fuel TV shared
the secrets of action-sports television. Add to that David
Benzel’s seminar on leadership and Roy Turner’s Internet
marketing savvy, and you had six informative and entertaining presenters. One attendee was overheard saying, “Just
one of them alone was worth the price of admission!”
Park City once again gave us some of the best snow
conditions on record. With an excess of 110 inches of base
and over a foot of fresh powder, the stage was set for the
most awesome riding and skiing anyone could wish for. The
unique ambience of Park City, with its restaurants and art
galleries, makes for a perfect backdrop. See the full story
and photo gallery in this issue.
We have already set the dates for Summit in the Snow
2009. The Summit will follow the Salt Lake City Boat
Show; the 2009 Summit dates are Monday Feb. 9 through
Wednesday Feb. 11. Plans are now in effect to produce a
“retail track,” which will give retailers a valuable incentive
to attend. Look for more information later this summer. I
can promise you it will be the most informative and funfilled event of your 2009 calendar.
WSIA President
www.WSIA.net
2
inside the industry
WWA Initiates Boating Safety
Course for All Event Drivers
Effective this year, all boat drivers
in WWA-sanctioned events will
be required to pass an approved
boating safety course. To help
with the cost of obtaining a boating safety certificate, iDrive Boats,
a safety course approved by
NASBLA (National Association of
Boating Law Administrators), will
offer a 30 percent discount off the
Internet course to all active WWA
members. This will provide basic
boating knowledge and accreditation set forth by the guidelines
that NASBLA and the U.S. Coast
Guard have created.
Safety is always the first
priority at the World Wakeboard
Association. Updating regulations
and standards enables the organizers of wake-sports events to be
on the forefront of any changes
and maintain the highest standard
of safety in the boating world.
For more information and
what to do if you are an event
driver, please check thewwa.com.
Club Malibu Partners with
WaterSki and WakeBoarding
Magazines
Club Malibu has partnered with
WakeBoarding and WaterSki
magazines to include a one-year
subscription to either magazine
as a benefit of membership. Club
Malibu is an organization of proud
Malibu boat owners who receive
a number of exclusive Malibu benefits in exchange for a yearly fee.
Membership entitles members
to their choice of a special Club
Malibu gear package as well as a
one-year subscription to myMalibu,
Malibu’s quarterly magazine, a
monthly e-newsletter from Malibu
Boats, VIP invitations to Malibu
water-sports events, discounts
on Malibu Boats gear and discounts on Malibu boat insurance
through Boater’s Insurance. The
most recent addition to this list is
a one-year subscription to either
WakeBoarding or WaterSki.
WaterSki covers the entire
world of water skiing! Whether
you’re a recreational or a competitive skier, WaterSki helps
you improve your skills with tons
of step-by-step instruction and
advice from the pros. Plus, in
every issue, you get new equip-
ment reviews, unbiased boat
tests, detailed information on the
hottest ski spots and much more.
In every issue, WakeBoarding
delivers step-by-step instruction
and photography that will have
you pulling off new moves in no
time. Plus, you get up-close and
personal interviews with the riders defining the sport, tournament
updates, travel features and the
latest, must-have gear.
E-mail clubmalibu@mailbuboats.
com with questions relating to
Club Malibu.
Pleasurecraft Engine Group
Ranks Highest in Customer
Satisfaction with Inboard
Gas Engines
For the third year in a row,
Pleasurecraft Engine Group ranks
highest in customer satisfaction
for EFI inboard engines, according to the 2008 J.D. Power
and Associates Marine Engine
Competitive Information Study
(MECIS). This is the fourth time
in the past five years PCM has
received the award.
The study shows that PCM
has the highest quality and customer satisfaction among inboard
engines. The study also shows
that inboards provide customers
with the greatest satisfaction and
have the highest quality compared
to the other engine categories
(two- and four-stroke outboards
and stern-drives).
PCM received the highest
score on the Engine Performance
Index (EPI), which is a statistical
index based on answers new-engine owners report on a variety of
performance and reliability questions. PCM ranks highest in six of
the seven engine factors studied.
PCM’s largest lead over the competition is in the reliability factor,
which has the greatest contribution to overall satisfaction.
PCM is the exclusive power of
Nautiques by Correct Craft, which
have ranked highest in customer
satisfaction with ski/wakeboard
boats for six consecutive years,
tied in 2008.
For more information, please visit
pleasurecraft.com
Nautique Earns Its Sixth
Customer Service Award
Correct Craft, Inc. is the recipi-
WATERSPORTS RETAILER
ent of its sixth consecutive J.D.
Power and Associates award.
Correct Craft has received the
award for highest customer satisfaction among ski/wakeboard
boat owners in its segment all six
years it has been awarded, tying
this year.
Correct Craft received the
highest numerical score among
ski and wakeboard boats in
the proprietary J.D. Power and
Associates 2002-2003, 2005-2008
Boat Competitive Information
Studies, tied in 2008. The 2008
study was based on responses
from 9,718 consumers measuring six ski and wakeboard boat
brands and owner opinions of
2006 and 2007 model-year boats
registered June 2006-May 2007.
This includes fiberglass boats
with highly specialized designs for
water skiing and wakeboarding,
powered by gas inboard engines.
The proprietary study results
are based on experiences and
perceptions of owners surveyed
September-October 2007.
View the full results at
jdpower.com
John Behling
MasterCraft Announces
Promotion and Additions
MasterCraft recently promoted
and added key individuals to their
marketing department.
John Behling, hired as director of
marketing in 2006, has been promoted to vice-president of marketing. This recognition affirms
Behling has exceeded expectations by taking strong leadership
roles with events, partnerships, ad
campaigns, PR initiatives, athlete
programs, dealer marketing and
product development.
MasterCraft also announces
the addition of two brand managers to head up the strategic direction of the growing line of
WATERSPORTS RETAILER
MasterCraft boats.
Jeffrey Cunningham has been
brought on board to manage the
ProStar and X-Series brands.
Cunningham has served as marketing coordinator at The North
Face and most recently marketing
director and national sales manager at Mammut Sports Group.
He brings expansive knowledge
of marketing and brand planning,
product development, athlete
management and retail strategy.
David Eckern has been tapped
to manage the MariStar and
Saltwater Series brands. Eckern
has a background in both engineering and marketing, working
mainly for Johnson Controls and
most recently Sea Ray Boats.
Eckern will be key in accelerating
the growth projections for the
MariStar and Saltwater brands.
The U-Build It Contest
CWB Board Co., in conjunction
with WakeWorld, MasterCraft
and Oakley, present the U-Build
It Contest.
CWB Board Co. manufactures
wakeboards in the United States.
This on-site production enables it to
build its own molds, adjust lay-ups,
continually fine-tune every single
board and control quality on a daily
basis. From shooting the foam core
to drilling the inserts, it is done at
the factory, one board at a time. The
contest can be entered at ridecwb.
com or wakeworld.com. The drawing will take place on July 4,, 2008.
The grand prize is a trip for the winner and a friend to the CWB factory
in Washington (includes airfare,
hotel and meals) to hand-build their
own personalized CWB wakeboard.
The winner will also be given a pair
of CWB Hinge Tech boots, a CWB
vest and a Proline rope and handle.
Oakley and MasterCraft have also
added some gear.
When the board is finished
they will put on our Oakley
shades and take the winner out
riding behind the CWB X-Star.
David Williams from WakeWorld
will also be on hand covering the
story. All of this will be filmed for
a section in an upcoming episode
of CWB_TV. All entries must be
received by June 30, 2008.
See complete entry details at
ridecwb.com.
Byerly Toe Jam Wake Skate Tour
O’Neill has signed on as the official apparel/wetsuit sponsor for all
four events of the Byerly Toe Jam
Wake Skate Tour. The Toe Jam is
going International this year, and
O’Neill is teaming with O’Neill
Canada on the Wasaga Beach
event. The dates for the tour are
as follows: Toe Jam 1 -- Orlando
(The Projects) April 19-20; Toe
Jam 2 – Texas (Texas Ski Ranch)
June 14-15; Toe Jam 3 – Canada
(Wasaga Beach) Aug. 23-24;
and Toe Jam 4 -- Orlando (The
Projects/cable) Sept. 20-21.
WWA Wake Park World Series
The World Wakeboard Association
announces event dates and locations for a five-stop Wake Park
World Series to be held in 2008.
This professional series is the
first of its kind, and will continue
to open the door for competitive
wakeboarding in the wake-park
segment of the sport. With the
success of last year’s domestic
wake-park series in the United
States, the WWA has responded
to the broader market with this
new series by encompassing Asia
and Europe.
Riders from around the
world will gather at five events
in 2008 to compete and accumulate points for the series title.
There will be an overall cashprize bonus of $17,500 to be
distributed to the top five overall
winners, in addition to large cash
purses at each event.
The event dates and locations
are as follows: Protest Pro Am
Stop 1, Toulouse, France, May
8-11; WWA Wake Park World
Championships Stop 2, CWC,
Philippines, July 1-6; Ukrainian
Wake Park Open Stop 3, Kiev,
Ukraine, Aug. 8-10; Copenhagen
Wake Park World Series Stop
4, Copenhagen, Denmark, Aug.
15-17; and T-Mobile Extreme
Playgrounds Final, Hamburg,
Germany, Aug. 23-24.
For more information regarding
the series, travel and registration
details, watch thewwa.com.
MasterCraft Receives J.D.
Power and Associates Award
MasterCraft announces that it
is has earned a top honor from
J.D. Power and Associates and
is ranked Highest in Customer
Satisfaction with Ski and
Wakeboard Boats in a tie.
“Since 1968, MasterCraft has
been raising the expectations and
standards of design, performance
and quality for the towboat industry,” says John Dorton, president
and CEO of MasterCraft. “So it
is fitting that we have met the
consumer’s expectations, according to J.D. Power and Associates,
and received this very significant
recognition from such a respected
and world-renowned institution.”
According to the J.D. Power
and Associates study, MasterCraft
was the sole company in the ski
and wakeboard category with
customer satisfaction improvement from the 2007 study, with
MasterCraft’s Boat Performance
Index (BPI) score rising 15 points.
WWA Wake Park World Series
3
Summit in the Snow cont’d from page 1
rooms or at least head out.
Park City offers so much,
and many enjoyed the party
life well into the night. Tuesday
started with a breakfast
sponsored by World Sports &
Marketing and a presentation
from Shon Tomlin of Fuel TV.
Shon’s presentation led the
audience into an understanding
of the network’s strategies and
missions. Fuel TV focuses on
only a few sports – wakeboarding being one of them! By 9
a.m. everyone headed to the
mountain to get their share of
a fresh dose of powder from
the night before.
The storm had passed,
leaving the mountain blanketed with snow. Earlybirds
included Pat Panakos, Drew
Ross, Shaun Murray and
the Hyperlite guys, Andrew
Adkison and the MasterCraft
crew, and a cameo appearance
from Charlie Patterson and
Nick Weinaker. It seemed as
if everywhere you went you
would run into someone associated with the Summit. Gordy
Holmes and Tony Finn took me
into some private tree stash
off McConkey’s lift. Greg Dick
took me to a double diamond,
where he showed us that
“Shaun Murray came flying in
at Mach speed and then never
made a single turn -- he just
skipped all the way down!”
The events’ first breakouts
were held at 3:30 p.m. on
Tuesday. Many of the attendees slid right up to the back
door and came in knocking
snow off their boots. WSIA provided hot coffee, cocoa, water
and snacks to help keep everyone focused. First up was Dave
Benzel and his “Leadership”
presentation. This was followed
by Roy Turner’s “Internet 101”
presentation. Both made a
repeat appearance from last
year because of their popularity,
and from the early reviews we
may see them again next year,
since these were two of the
best presentations of the week.
Later that evening Surf
Expo provided another cocktail hour for the more than
130 attendees (including
a dozen or more walk-ins),
where industry reps had
the chance to network once
again. Manufacturers, dealers,
athletes, media and service
providers -- all were working in
unison. After dinner, the crowd
was addressed by Martin
Coles, COO of Starbucks.
Starbucks had been dealing
with a sliding stock price for
the past several months and
we weren’t sure what Coles
would deliver to the eager
group. Once again the underlying theme of the presentation was “the value of the
people asset.” In two nights,
leaders of two multibilliondollar corporations each delivered a message based on the
value of their employees. It
was clear – in today’s world,
if your business touches consumers, you need to put your
people first and make them
your strongest asset. After
the address Surf Expo held
the bar open, and later that
evening, Mark Overbye was
overheard saying, “Got to go,
there’s another 40,000 feet
of vertical waiting for me out
there tomorrow!”
On Wednesday, everyone
convened at the Legacy Lodge
Attendees
ALLIANCE MAGAZINE Bill McCaffray; Corey Marotta BILLABONG Chris Heffner; Kitty Heffner
BOATING WORLD Steve Rosenberg CABLE WAKE PARKS Mike Olson CONNELLY Gordy
Holmes, Blaine Roberts CORRECT CRAFT Jesse Daniels; Greg Meloon CORRECT CRAFT
MIDWEST Adam Wensink; Thomas Bates CWB Jay Quam FINELINE (Centurion Boats) Les
Clark; Beth Clark; Jennifer Clark FOX RIDERS Todd Hicks FRIEND OF INDUSTRY Mark Overbye
G-CODE Paul Christiensen GATOR BOARDS Erik Lutgert; Scott Patterson; Jeremy Jones; Arian
Antonucot; Julie Richardson, Melissa Patterson GEIGER MEDIA Bill Geiger GLOBAL INSURANCE
Jim Stanley HO SPORTS Dan Meyers; Alice Meyers; CJ Vlahovich; Greg Dick; Wade Cox; Dave
Wingerter IBOATS Bill Gius IDRIVE Shannon Starling INT Rick Stocks; Jacqueline Stocks; Nanette
Stocks KEN COOK CO. Laura Landergott; Tom Morris KENT SPORTING GOODS John Archer
LCI SOLUTIONS Dave Clark LIQUID FORCE Tony Finn; Don Wallace, Allison Millenacker MALIBU
Lani Farmer; Paul Singer; Chris Crysdale; Ted Bevelacqua; Steve Clothier MASTERCRAFT Scott
Crutchfield; Parker Stair; Matt McDevitt; Norm Kraus; John Dorton; Aarne Clow, Chris Owen; Zane
Schwank; Don Reid; Glen Morris; John Behling; Jeff Cunningham MARINE PRODUCTS Randy
Casper MMIA Matt Belter OAKLEY Jack Blodgett O’BRIEN Jeff Bannister; Pete Surrette REAL
KITEBOARDING Jason Slezak ROLEX Doug Meine SESITEC Christian Lerchenfeld; Clarissa
Lerchenfeld SKIERS CHOICE Dan Miller SPORTSSTUFF Rick Hull STEP UP PRODUCTIONS
Ryan Davis SQUARE ONE Brian Gardner, Chris Sullivan, Nick Jobe, Janine Keblish SURF EXPO
Lori Kisner; Doog Becker; Roy Turner; Cullen Poythress; Vicki Vasil; Amy Hornby; Chris Hornby;
Matthew Loveless; Jen Tillikka-Birdsall TEXAS SKI RANCH Blake Hess; Paul Rialick; Steve Present
TITAN WAKE ACCESS Scott Sax UPC Dan Levine USAWS Steve Locke WAKE PARK PROJECT
Pat Panakos WAKEBOARDING AND WATERSKI Jim Emmons; Cindy Eckert; Kevin Michael;
Jason Bingham; Todd Ristorcelli WORLD WATERSKI FESTIVAL Paul Melnuk; Dan Velcic WORLD
SPORTS & MARKETING Tom & Karen Weber; Sean Dishman; Chris Bischoff; Priscilla Scollin,
Parks Bonifay WWA Shawn Perry; Jimmy Redmon; Danielle Crawford; Matthew Cotton WSIA Larry
Meddock; Jan Meddock USAWS Leon Larson, Steve Upp To learn more, go to www.WSIA.net
4
once again for our last official
presentation of the week. Issa
Sawabini, vice-president of
Fuse Marketing – a co-creator
of the Dew Action Sports
Tour -- led the group through
an insightful presentation on
sports marketing. Breakfast
was sponsored by World
Sports & Marketing, creators
of the Wakeboarding Pro Tour
and the King of Wake Series.
But the Summit was far from
over, as everyone headed back
out to the mountain for another
day of action. I made my way
over to the Motherlode lift to
catch up with the guys from
Malibu. Paul Singer and Ted
Bevelacqua, led by veterans
Steve Clothier and Scott Sax,
had already scored some of the
best sets of the day. Perfect
bluebird conditions, mild temperatures and groomed slopes
gave some of the speediest
runs of the week.
Props go to Jan and Larry
Meddock, who have led the
WSIA for more than five years
now. Their unending efforts
to make this Summit the
best ever proved well for us
all. The organization, quality
and attention to detail – they
provided each attendee with
a personalized thank-you card,
and a bottle of wine in the
room — helped make this
event a true success.
But clearly the best
score of the week was the
mountain and the wintertime
fun had by all. One Summit
zealot was overheard saying,
“There’s no place better to
do business than in a chairlift,” and after scoring the
out-of-bounds wonder of
that meadow with Dan
Meyers and the HO guys,
I know exactly what he’s
talking about.
The WSIA Summit in the
Snow was sponsored by:
Chubb Custom Markets,
MMIA, Surf Expo,
WaterSki, WakeBoarding,
Boating World, World
Sports & Marketing and
USAWS.
WATERSPORTS RETAILER
1
2
3
4
5
6
1. Dave Benzel delivers his Leadership presentation at David Holland’s Resort. 2. Left to right former
WakeBoarding staffers Mike Reilly, Jeff Barton, with Aaron Grace and Don Wallace of Liquid
Force enjoying the nightlife in downtown Park City. 3. Penske’s Bud Denker delivers the first keynote
speech to the Summit in the Snow ’08. 4. WakeBoarding’s Kevin Michael and Nick Jobe of Ronix.
5. Team Malibu – Chris Crysdale, Scott Sax of Titan, Paul Singer, Steve Clothier and Mark Gibbs.
6. Jeremy Jones and Gator Lutgert of Gator Boards.
Continued on page 6
WATERSPORTS RETAILER
5
Summit in the Snow cont’d from page 5
1
2
3
6
5
4
7
8
9
1. Shon Tomlin of Fuel TV speaks on the action sports TV market. 2. The MasterCraft team
including Aarne Clow, Jeff Cunningham, Don Reid, Glen Morris, John Behling, Chris Owen, Mark
Overbye of Iridium, Norm Carlson, Scott Crutchfield, Parker Stair and Zane Schwenk. 3. Shaun
Murray, Pat Panakos and Matt Loveless enjoying the networking hours. 4. Martin Coles of
Starbucks explains how “people” are your most important corporate asset. 5. Jason Bingham
of WakeBoarding discovers fresh terrain at Park City Mountain. 6. Issa Sawabini of Fuse Marketing addresses the crowd on sports marketing in 2008. 7. The group looks on while the snow
piles up outside. 8. Dave Benzel with Larry Meddock of WSIA and new executive director Steve
Locke of USAWS. 9. Mark Gibbs having fun with Lani Farmer of Malibu.
6
WATERSPORTS RETAILER
1
2
3
4
5
7
6
8
1. Bill MacCaffray of Alliance and Jason Bingham of WakeBoarding discuss market conditions with
Corey Marotta of Alliance. 2. Malibu’s Paul Singer, Ted Bevelacqua, Steve Clothier and Scott Sax
of Titan with Jim Emmons publisher of WaterSki & WakeBoarding. 3. Jennifer Clark and Les Clark
of Fineline, Mark Overbye of Iridium, Beth Clark and Gordy Holmes of Connelly/CWB. 4. Park City
Mountain on Tuesday February 26 – empty! 5. Paul Melnuk of the World Water Ski Championships
with Drew Ross and Dan Velcic. 6. Jim Stanley of Global Marine, Jackie Stocks of INT, Rick Hull from
Sportstuff and Nanette and Rick Stocks of INT. 7. Shaun Murray cutting it up in the food line. 8. Allison
Millenacker of Liquid Force, CJ Vlahovich of Hyperlite and Corey Moratta of Alliance.
WATERSPORTS RETAILER
7
Summit in the Snow cont’d from page 7
1
2
4
3
5
6
1. Shawn Perry of WWA finds some “stash” powder. 2. Led by Sean Dishman and
Chris Bischoff World Sports & Marketing hosted its annual Sponsor Summit at the
Summit in the Snow. Todd Hicks of Fox listens in. 3. Seattle locals Pete Surrette
of O’Brien and Gordy Holmes of Connelly/CWB relax after a day of riding. 4. Liquid
Force President Tony Finn and Team Manager Aaron Grace. 5. Melissa and Scott
Patterson along with Julie Richardson of GatorBoards. 6. After overcoming technical
difficulties, Roy Turner does his internet marketing seminar in record time.
8
WATERSPORTS RETAILER
LEADERSHIP PROFILE By Eric Michael
BUILDING TRAFFIC
HOW THE TEXAS SKI RANCH IS DRAWING MORE
AND MORE CUSTOMERS TO ITS RETAIL SHOP,
DESPITE BEING IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE
N
ew Braunfels,
Texas, is in no
way a retail hot
spot. Located
between the major cities of
San Antonio and Austin in the
rural hill country of Central
Texas, the town of slightly
more than 50,000 residents
is the Comal County seat and
home to a well-known water
park and one of the world’s
shortest rivers, the Comal.
But despite its isolation here,
the Texas Ski Ranch has been
able to carve out a successful niche in the water-sports
retail arena. And it’s for that
feat that the action-sports
attraction was chosen as
Breakout Retailer of the Year
by the 2007 WSIA Industry
Leadership Awards. The
award, which is voted by
manufacturers, honors the
“outstanding dealer who has
gained an exceptional awareness of market influences,
resulting in a significant
increase in sales.” The Board
Shop at TSR has achieved
those accolades in a place
that manager and founding
partner Blake Hess affectionately describes as “the
middle of nowhere.”
“When we first opened
Texas Ski Ranch, we wanted
the shop to be a part of it,”
remembers Hess. “But it’s
a lot different from a normal
strip-mall shop, where it goes
in and you automatically have
traffic. We have a 70-acre
tract of land between Austin
and San Antonio that is developing around us, with subdivisions going up everywhere.
So we’ve had to build the
traffic for our shop.”
Growing enough traffic to
ensure retail success meant
focusing
their sales
efforts on the
thousands
of potential
customers
drawn to
the Ranch’s
skate park, motocross track
and rock-climbing wall that
complement the TSR’s
original cable park. But just
because you build a massive,
15,000 square-foot space and
fill it with the latest hardgoods
from Liquid Force, Hyperlite
and Ronix, and apparel, shoes
and accessories by Volcom,
Billabong, Hurley, Quiksilver
and Nike 6.0, success is never
Continued on page 10
WATERSPORTS RETAILER
9
LEADERSHIP PROFILE cont’d from page 9
guaranteed. For Hess, making
The Board Shop work hinged
on finding the right staff.
“The people who work
there are people who love
the sport,” Hess explains.
“You’re not getting somebody who’s working there
because it’s close to their
house or their school or
something. Everybody who
works at the facility is very
passionate about action
sports. And they can answer
just about any question,
whether it pertains to riding
the cable or the equipment in
the pro shop. You don’t find
that at some shops.”
But even with top product
and a great staff on point,
Hess and company knew that
in order to maintain consumer
interest, they must reinvent
the store to keep it fresh and
relevant. So after six years
of steady growth, The Board
Shop underwent a makeover
during the winter off-season.
Much of the redesign was
inspired by feedback from
industry reps.
“They see stores day in
and day out, and dream about
their ideal store,” says Hess.
“So we picked their brains
and made decisions on what
changes we wanted.”
The transformation altered
the store layout and traded
dated fixtures and displays for
an updated, custom look that
features corrugated tin with
cedar trim.
“We’ve got a big projection screen up,” Hess adds,
which at 8 by 14 feet will
be a major point of inter-
10
est. And, of course, it will
show action-sports videos
nonstop. “Unless we hook
up the Wii or something,”
he says, “or Guitar Hero and
things like that.”
The transformation will be a
continuous process, says Hess.
“We’d like to do more specifically designed spaces, like
build-outs for different companies so they can express their
own vibe in their area. We want
to bring in some of the core
brands and let them personalize
their space.”
Another part of The Board
Shop’s growth strategy is to
continue to produce unique
promotions, something that
Hess credits for helping the
store, and the park, gain valuable exposure.
“We do all kinds of promotions, but the biggest thing is
probably the events that we
host,” he says. “We do 14 to
15 events per year. And they
bring people out to the facility
and expose them to TSR and
our retail shop.”
PRODUCT NEWS
Among those events are
a stop on the Byerly Toe
Jam Tour and TSR’s annual
Cablestock, both of which
draw national attention, something that benefits the entire
water-sports industry.
“Texas Ski Ranch is a
combination of facilities with
a good retail plan,” says
WSIA Executive Director
Larry Meddock. “It’s a classic
case of having a solid idea,
recognizing a need in the
marketplace and backing it up
with a kick-ass pro shop. It’s a
perfect combination.”
Hess says the support of
the industry has been instrumental in the success of
The Board Shop. And it’s the
relationships with TSR’s vendors that are helping it grow:
“Maintaining relationships is
vital, because there are so
many advantages and so many
things we can work together
on, whether it’s marketing or
helping with events. If you have
good relationships, it’s way
more beneficial to everyone.”
Gator Boards
Ryan Doyle
Wakeskate
The 41-inchlong,
16-inchwide Doyle
is the newest shape
in the Gator
wakeskate
line. Ryan
Doyle,
one of the
industry’s
rail masters,
knew exactly
what he
wanted in a
compressionmolded
wakeskate
— a large-radius
base edge, with small tracking lines
parallel to the outer profile of the
board. A huge flat spot in the middle
helps a rider on any obstacle. This
compression-molded board has
skateboard-style tip and tails. It’s
designed to ride high and feel like
a bilevel but have the strength of a
PBT compression single board. The
deep channel will give you a little
extra grip when jumping wake to
wake. This board can be ridden by
anyone in any aspect of the sport —
wake, flat or rails.
For more information visit
gatorboards.com.
Synthesis Handle
The Proline Synthesis wakeboard handle has been given an
overhaul for 2008. It still sports the
triangle shape that fits perfectly
in the anatomical grooves of the
rider’s hands, but for 2008 CWB
softened the EVA foam grip and
rounded each corner, adding
increased comfort. Constructed
with a 15-inch lightweight 6060 T6
aircraft aluminum core bar and 1/8inch Dyneema PRT coated line. A
die-cut logo was added to the grip.
For more information visit
ridecwb.com
WATERSPORTS RETAILER
Kicker Redesigned Square Subs
Meaner than ever, Kicker SoloBaric-Loaded sub boxes carry a
sizzling new look – not to mention
a redesign of the pulverizing patented square subwoofers. Throw
the brand-new DS12L7 into the
lineup – the first dual-woofer box
to transport
the extreme Solo-Baric L7 subwoofer – and you’ve got a bass
bonanza of enclosure choices for
whatever the need. Three dual-sub
boxes, three single ones and two
slim-profile boxes provide the biggest Kicker bass available.
An extra-tough, carbon-fiber
look lines the front of the newest Kicker solid wood boxes,
which also sport an embroidered
Kicker logo for an intense-looking
enclosure. Ten- and 12-inch,
new-for-2008 Solo-Baric L7 and
L5 subwoofers, redesigned with
additional heat dissipation and fullcoverage back bracing, are fortified even further within the box.
All eight models of Solo-Baric sub
boxesfeaturethecustom-designed
combo vent/terminal cup, where
the impedance designator (2- or
4-ohm) and oversized port share
the same space.
For more information visit kicker.
com or soundgate.com.
JetPilot Kids Neo Vest
JetPilot announces the release of
its all-new, all-Pink S-1 Kids Neo
Vest. This fashion-forward U.S.
Coast Guard-approved
vest utilizes a custom
designed, handbag
inspired, all-over print.
This high-visibility
vest includes two
heavy-duty belts and
buckles, simple and
comfortable front-zip
entry, highest-quality
foam core and durable
mesh drainage gussets.
Child’s vest includes a
safety crotch strap so the vest
WATERSPORTS RETAILER
won’t ride up and over the child’s
head. The infant vest includes
both a neck support/safety pillow with strap and the safety/
crotch strap.
The Pink S-1 Kids Neo Vest is
sealed tight with tons of hugs and
kisses, something you want while
protecting your young misses.
Pink S-1 Neo Vests are available now in infant, child and
youth sizes. So protect your
little princess in JetPilot Pink,
on land, sea and everywhere
in between.
For more information visit
jetpilot.com
O’Brien Alias TT Wakesurfer
Blurring the line between surfing
and skating, O’Brien’s new Alias
TT wakesurfer is a true symmetrical twin-tip board. Designed to
be ridden centered on the board,
the deck is fully dished out to give
the board the feel and control of a
concave skate. This cutting-edge
board is designed with a squash
bite for most riders, but advanced
riders can choose to run a single
center fin or no fins at all. For more
information visit obrien.com.
World Industries Battle Wakeboard
The Battle wakeboard is designed
for youth riders of
all levels weighing up to 130
pounds. This
124 cm lightweight twintip free-ride
wakeboard
will help riders excel at
the sport. The
continuous
rocker is fast
and forgiving, with
smooth pop.
Performance
and durability
are packed into
this price-point
board. It’s RIM
molded with a PU
core, fiberglass reinforcement, PBT
top and sublimated graphics. Two
removable fiberglass-reinforced
nylon fins provide excellent tracking and carving.
For more information visit
airhead.com.
Monster Tower Dealer Displays
Lead to More Sales
Give your shop a shiny new look
and enhance the experience of
your customers with a Monster
Tower display. Available in two
sizes to best fit your floor plan: The
tree display has a small footprint
with multiple points for accessory attachment; and the larger
full tower display showcases a
Monster Tower and accessories.
Both feature a brushed aluminum
finish and colorful graphics to
tip and tail to ensure ultimate
versatility when riding the wake.
The twin-tip design also accommodates surface 360s, lip slides
and switch riding for all those who
want to show off their skills. Quad
side fins give just the right edge
capture customers’ attention and
showcase the Monster Tower products you sell.
You’ll close more sales when
your customers can see, touch and
experience Monster Tower products in your shop. Contact Monster
Tower at 877-778-6937 or at sales@
monstertower.comtofindouthowto
add a wakeboard tower display and
a wide variety of other top-quality
wakeboard towers and accessories
to your product offering.
MasterCraft CSX 265
MasterCraft introduces the new CSX
265 from the Cross Sport Xtreme
(CSX) line. At 26 feet, 5 inches, the
CSX 265 is able to pull wakeboarders, wakesurfers and tubers with
its infamous wakes and twin V-8
direct-drive engines that offer up to
800 total horsepower. However, this
completely new, modified deep-V
hull, while great for towing, is also
meant to hit the big waters. The 265
will do fine on intracoastal waterways or lakes but it was designed
to give a smooth cruise on even the
choppiest of seas.
With its expansive 114-inch
beam, the CSX 265 offers plenty
of room for fishing, scuba diving,
snorkeling, cruising or simply hanging out. With optional features like
a live baitwell, rocket launchers,
Garmin GPS/fish finder, freshwater
sink, scuba tank holders, diving
ladder, hydraulic bow table, 20-inch
drop-down flat screen DVD/TV and
many others, there is no end to
what a family can do.
The CSX 265 comes standard
with a 120-gallon fuel tank, coolers
and even a full-size bathroom, fully
equipped with a VacuFlush head
and freshwater sink, that is roomy
enough for a person over 6 feet tall
to stand completely upright.
For more information visit
mastercraft.com.
11