Excutive Director Report
June 16, 2008
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USA Water Ski Executive Director Report-Week of June 16, 2008
Although the news has been sinking in for a week since floods hit Wisconsin, Iowa, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan
and other Midwest locales, it still does not diminish the immense damage that has taken place to residents in those
locations. Many people are suffering the loss of homes and other personal property.
Farmers have had entire crops decimated, and are either replanting or writing off the year. In our sports niche, some
shows and skiing opportunities are being lost. Looking at the Wisconsin Dells alone demonstrates how the forces of
nature can hugely disrupt lives and commerce for many involved in tourism-related activities. Lake Delton, home
lake for the Tommy Bartlett Shows, was featured on national news last week as summer homes undercut by surging
water fell into the oversaturated lake. Subsequently, a road adjacent to the dam was washed out and as it washed
away, the water within the lake drained leaving the lake essentially dry. Lake Delton's draining will be a long-term
hit to the Dells.
As the water in some cases has still not receded, we are hearing of some show tournaments being cancelled.
Janesville is a good example. Mike Hanson, president of the National Show Ski Association, has been in regular
contact with many clubs throughout the Midwest to see how they are faring. The good news is that he is finding that
many are recovering rapidly. If you know of folks that may have been affected by the storms, I hope you have the
opportunity to reach out to offer help and encouragement.
The outdoor electronic sign in front of the AWSEF Water Ski Hall of Fame and USA Water Ski headquarters
was erected last week and is now in operation. The sign is readily seen from both directions along Interstate 4; has
large permanent signage identifying the museum; and directs motorists to exit 44 to find it. It also has red electronic
letters for rotating messages to be seen from the interstate. It is a wonderful communication tool. Mark Jackson and
Hank Longo – through the generosity of Central Florida’s Polk County Sports Marketing – provided this $30,000
gift. The arrangement is a 50/50 sharing of message time between Central Florida’s Polk County Sports Marketing
and the American Water Ski Education Foundation. Thanks are extended to Mark, Hank and Carole Lowe, director
of the AWSEF, for making the sign a reality.
Several weeks ago we announced that MasterCraft was relinquishing its relationship with the U.S. Open to focus
attention on the MasterCraft Pro Tour. With a little less than three months before this year's scheduled Open, it was
doubtful if we could find an appropriate site, and more importantly, develop the needed financial resources to run
the Open. We did find an appropriate site and did have a couple of potential sources for a financial commitment, but
with a short amount of time to put it all together we found it was not going to properly work. The 2008 U.S. Open
will be cancelled and we will look toward 2009 to resurrect the event.
Membership development is not all what we were hoping for at this point of the year. There are numerous
reasons such as weather, lateness in receiving machinery for fulfillment of membership, timing and others. Total
membership is 15,179. We are down 1,737 from this time last year – we were down around 2,200 at the end of April
so the deficit is improving – with all disciplines slipping in numbers (with the exception of those indicating no
preference; that group is up by 20.3%). This sounds sad, but as I watch the flow of membership applications
showing up daily after the May ending timeframe for the Membership Services Department’s latest report, it is
encouraging to think that weather has been the biggest culprit. See Membership Director Melanie Hanson’s entire
report pasted below.
Hopefully our weather throughout the nation is coming around as actual summer is almost here. I hope everyone
has a terrific weekend.
Steven M. Locke
Executive Director
slocke@usawaterski.org
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