Wakesurfing event coming to Lake Wylie

A new event hopes to make waves with the first known wakesurfing competition on Lake Wylie.

“This is the first time this event has ever been on Lake Wylie,” said rider Joe Shidagis of Fort Mill. “It’s totally grassroots.”

Carolina Competitive Wakesurfing Competition will be 8 a.m.-6 p.m. Sept. 12 at Windjammer Park in Tega Cay. The event, sponsored by Southtown Watersports and Malibu Boats of Charlotte, will also include a band and food vendors. Shidagis hopes for 30 riders and up to 400 spectators. Riders are coming from Georgia, and the North Carolina-Virginia border.

Shidagis, who wakesurfs with fellow rider Evan Feierabend, said the sport is popular elsewhere, but uncommon on Lake Wylie. He said he sometimes gets flagged down by boaters worried his vessel is in trouble. Riders begin on a rope, then let go and ride the waves on a board, performing tricks similar to skateboarding or water skiing.

“We weigh the boat down with a lot of water ballast, which in return sinks the boat deeper in the water,” Shidagis said. “The down force of the boat in the water creates a lift on the backside of the boat, raising the wake high enough to create a wave like you would see in the ocean.”

A wave that lasts 30 seconds in the ocean can last much longer on a lake.

“Wakesurfers can ride boat wakes for much longer times, because the wave is virtually perpetual,” Shidagis said.

Wakesurfing isn’t completely new to residents, but it’s far from mainstream.

“You’ve got a little isolated group that does it when utilizing the lake,” said Joey Blethen, parks and recreation director for Tega Cay, which is working with the event organizers.

The wakesurfing event is another way to showcase Lake Wylie and the city. The Carolina Show Ski Team performs regularly through summer off Windjammer. In recent years, the city and team partnered to add a show platform. The city also worked with the Carolina Kayak Polo Club to bring a national tournament last year to the beach and swim center.

“We’re always looking to provide a unique experience that a lot of times you’d have to travel out of the area for,” Blethen said.

For more information, visit http://www.ccwslife.com/

This story was originally published July 15, 2015 at 4:23 PM with the headline "Wakesurfing event coming to Lake Wylie."