Last fall in LA, I had the chance to work as a Production Assistant on the “Notorious” shoot for Arnette. The shoot was shot by Tim Tadder, a professional photographer who resides in Carlsbad, and the rest of the work was taken on by the Onit Production team (including me.)  The “Notorious” collection was launched by Arnette in October of 2008 with a bad ass bash in Sydney, Australia. I’m pretty sure it was a smashing event considering the talent and Snoop Dogg hosting.   The “Notorious” collection ads, which we were shooting, featured 7 different Action Sports athletes. I definitely had starry eyes when Surfers Jamie O’Brien and Timmy Reyes showed up. Then, Matt Manzari and Randall Harris made an appearance, two of the top Wakeboarders in the country. I decided to take it apon myself to do a little research on Randall, the tatted up SoCal resident . Here is what I found…

Randall was born in Waco, TX. 

Randall grew up skateboarding, but started hitting the water at age 12.

Randall’s nickname is “The Vandall.”

Randall is sponsored by Malibu boats, Quiksilver, Arnette, Company Wakeboards and Rockstar.

Randall is known for his big moves, big air and big… haha just kidding.

Randall currently resides near Huntington Beach, CA. Quiksilver reported on June 5, 2009 that Randall and his crew, aka the West Side Riders (WSR) have a new residency in a private community ’round those parts. Jealous?

Randall has won such awards as the  ”2007 Rider of the Year” from Alliance Magazine  and “Best Wake Rider” from Wakeboarding Magazine.

He has a twitter account: ThisizVandall

In January of this year, Randall joined the Axis Wake Research team. Which leads me to the following video: 

The Axis Team  introduced the new Axis 22 boat on Lake Elsinore on February 20, 2009 with “The Vandall” as the lucky guinea pig.  I just spotted this video at alliancewake.com and thought it was pretty cool. The boat can fit up to 13 people, has a Wakebox 900 Ballast system, and is pretty snazzy to say the least. Maybe we will see “Randall The Vandall” out in SD with his new Axis. One can only hope he has a few extra spots. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l7zdHxpRdlw

The world’s best in wake congregated at Lake Powell this past weekend for Liquid Force’s annual BROstock festival. Fueled by Monster Energy, 2009’s BROstock proved to be bigger and better then expected once again! Twenty four of the best riders including Shawn Watson, Shane Bonifay, Rusty Malinoski, Phillip Soven, and Danny Harf came for the contest, but stayed for the fun and festivities.

The weekend kicked off Friday with a progressive wakeskate demo that featured the likes of Aaron Reed, Danny Hampson, and Brian Grubb, among others. The crew took it to the backcountry, where they sessioned over rocks and natural terrain. Earlier in the day, the pro wakeboarders got a chance to get accustomed to the monsterous wake of the LF BROstock edition Supra 24’, as they had a 2 hour practice session. The night concluded with premiers of both Collin Harrington’s Box of Fun and Billabong’s Out of the Pond to a boisterous crowd watching on the 36’ screen and sound system set up in the desert!

Saturday kicked off early with the LF DJ throwing down the beats for round one of the double-up contest. Round 1 started with 24 riders riding in heats that would eventually cut the field down to 16. From round one, the format switched to head-to-head as the 16 remaining riders would battle it out to make it into the round of 8. Once in the round of 8, all riders would be getting paid. Needless to say, the competition was definitely heating up. With the Supra 24’ BROstock edition the official towboat of BROstock, all competitors were guaranteed a consistently giant wake and that lead to some serious boosting!

After a semifinals round that eliminated Ben Greenwood, Harley Clifford, Jeff Weatherall, and Shane Bonifay, the final 4 consisted of Danny Harf, Chris O’Shea, as well as Liquid Force’s own Bob Soven and James Balzer, the spoilers of the event. Balzer, know for his wakeskating prowess, was a last minute fill in for the event as another rider backed out due to injury. He continued to impress round after round and was a definite fan favorite. Bob, the 17 year old phenom was impressive all day as he was able to take down some of the industry’s best, including Rusty Malinoski and his older brother Phillip. In the finals, Balzer stomped a clean backside 540 while Bob threw down a huge toeside 900 to claim the 3rd and 2nd spots on the podium respectively. In the end, however it was Monster Energy team rider, Danny Harf who dropped a wrapped nose grab backside 720 to claim the top spot. He had consistently been landing what was considered one of the most stylish and progressive tricks all day and was rewarded heavily for it. In the process, Danny walked away $12,500 richer and put his name in the history books of BROstock, a contest that is widely becoming known for producing some of the most progressive contest riding ever!

Be sure to tune in to FUEL TV August 25th at 8:30pm to watch the BROstock show and relive all of the action!

Thanks to all 2009 BROstock sponsors including Monster Energy, Liquid Force, Supra Boats, Dragon Alliance, Alliance Wakeboard Magazine, FUEL TV, New Era Cap, and Lake Powell Resorts and Marinas.

The fellas at LF are gracious enough to hook us up with the results of BROstock so be sure to check out their website, www.liquidforce.com for additional information about this crazy event!

1) Catalog will open in a 2 page view
2) Flip the page with navigation arrows at the top of the screen
3) Zoom in Hi-Res – Just click on the catalog and slide left to right and up or down.
4) Download catalog into a PDF to save a copy
5) Print directly from the view screen
6) All links within the catalog are interactive, click on the link to go to the website
7) Catalog converts into language the users computer is set to

Be sure to check out the next generation of Supra design and experience this incredible new technology that provides you the information you need, when you want it. www.supraboats.com

The event starts Saturday, June 13th and there will be a parties day and night throughout the weekend. Saturday night starts the Obstacles Only division under the lights, and the cable will remain open until midnight. OWC will keep the cable open to the public throughout the two day event and there will also be a beer/liquor garden on-site as well.

If you’re a competitor, spectator, or just want to ride the cable with all of the best riders from around the World, come out to OWC June 13-14!

The five events that will be held on this series are: The Wake Games, the WWA Wakeboard World Champions, WWA Wakeboard National Championships, the Fort Worth, Tex. Pro Tour, and the Sparks/Reno, Nev. Pro Tour stop.

Four-time X Games gold medalist Dallas Friday will be competing for the title of “Queen of Wake,” along with Australian Circuit Champions Amber Wing and Hayley Smith, and defending Queen of Wake Champ Nicola Butler. Be sure to keep your eye on this series and watch your favorite ladies shredd all summer long!

The Red Bull Wake the Line stop was rocking the Sesitec’s System 2.0 tower for this event which was proven very effective for this particular competition.

In the superfinal, Keith Lidberg orginally from Coon Rapids MN, edged out Germany’s own Bernhard Hinterberger and American Shawn Watson to take home best performance of the day. In the wakeskate division German Jan Kissman came in first with a sick frontside 540 and backside 180.

Six spots are open for the 12 man final due to the fact that six spots are already reserved for the past champs.

You then have the options of tweaking colors on existing templates that are provided for you, or you can upload your own photo or designs and go from there. Add your name, other photos, favorite sayings, pick any color you want, you have complete control over every aspect of the board.

Upon completion of your designs and requests, the board will then be hand made at their factory in Washington State and shipped to your doorstep. My-CWB board runs for $499.99 that just the board with fins. So if you would like to have your very own piece of artwork and have the ability to ride it as well, check out www.my-cwb.com

Cologne, Germany: The success of last year’s Red Bull Wake The Line got a lot of attention in the wake scene. That’s why the urban wakeboard and wakeskate contest will go into round two on May 1st at the same location in Cologne! Four separate pools connected by kickers and rails and towed by the unique Sesitec System 2.0 make a total of 320 meters of wake heaven. New obstacles and $10.000 prize money will attract international top riders like Shawn Watson (USA), Collin Harrington (USA), Leo Labadens (FRA) and the 3-time world champion Berhard Hinterberger from Oberaudort (GER). Two wildcard spots will be given away at the Warm-Up session in Langenfeld to complete the roster of 24 riders.

The premiere of the Red Bull Wake The Line in 2008 was so successful that the wake scene was psyched to hear the announcement from former pro rider Hardy Tunnissen that there would be a second one in 2009. The starting line-up will be filled with big names of the wake world and will rock the Stadionbad in Cologne on the first of May. Wakeboard action in it’s highest form can be expected with last years Top 3: Peter Pascal Schmidt, Bernhard Hinterberger and Nico von Lerchenfeld, along with many international participants that will be fighting for the title and the $10.000 prize money.

Confirmed riders include the two US Liquid Force Pros, Shawn Watson and Collin Harrington. Both are used to riding behind the boat but when it comes to obstacles they are absolute masters too. No doubt these guys will heat up the cool blue waters of the pools in Cologne. Other confirmed guests include Austria’s Daniel “Fetzy” Fetz and Belgium’s David Vervenne. For the Wakeskate division, two of Europe’s most technical riders, Leo Labadens (FRA) and Andy Kolb (GER) will be present. The voice of the competition will be last year’s MC and none other than the Australian wakeboard legend, Clint Liddy.

Awesome riders need an awesome setup so the company UNIT Parktech sat down with a few riders and thought about how to build the sickest wake playground, connecting the four pools together! Thanks to the portable wakeboard cable system Sesitec 2.0, it’s possible to ride the pools in both directions creating at 320 meter long competition setup. This is plenty of space to crank out some crazy tricks and smooth runs.

With room for 9000 people, spectators will be able to watch each complete run up close and personal and with the right music and entertainment. There’s nothing that can ruin the atmosphere that’s bound to take place at this year’s event. There will be free entry and the doors open at 2pm. The qualifications will start at 2:30pm. Highlights will be the “Nike 6.0 Best Trick Contest” and the finals in the early evening. The Red Bull Wake the Line After Show Party will kick off at 10pm at the Sensor Club.

To allow the riders to show off their best skills, the event will start three days before at the Warm-Up Session April 28-29th at the world’s biggest wakeboard centre in Langenfeld. Here, the riders can prepare for the competition and get into the party mood. All wakeboarders and wakeskaters will have a chance to mess with the big boys. In addition to the 22 confirmed riders, there will be two wildcards (1 board, 1 skate) that will be competing at the Red Bull Wake the Line 2009. Registration for the session is possible until April 27th at redbull.de.