Summer vacation may be coming to an end for most students, but for the University of Alabama’s water skiing team, their season on the water is just getting started.

The ski team has been making a name for itself since 1971, but head coach Tom Strong said that with the top three skiers in the world on the team, this year promises to be their best.

Strong said UA’s team has generally been ranked in the top five in collegiate skiing. At the regional competition last year, UA came in second place, and took fifth at the nationals. While team members compete at the collegiate level, several also regularly compete in world ski competitions.

“We’ve always been a fairly good team but it certainly took a while to get good,” Strong said. “We didn’t even have a boat to start with. What has happened is we’ve had several excellent skiers who’ve arrived on campus, and it’s grown ever since.”

Trick skiers Tomlin Wilson and Adam Reed have records of 6,000 points per round, and skiers Aaron Kirmey, Chris Windle and Dakota Peterson’s records aren’t far behind in total points per round. Incoming freshmen Olivia McDonald, Caroline Hensley, Ryan Hinkle, Scott Humphryes and Laura Ann Chandler are all accomplished skiers as well. McDonald and Hensley were both chosen for the U.S. under-21 water ski team for 2009.

But the skier with the most impressive record is Australian trick skier Michelle Briant. Strong said Briant is arguably the best skier in the world with a record score of 8,500 points per round. Briant went on to compete beyond the collegiate level, and won a title at the world skiing masters in 2008.

“In trick skiing, you have one 20-second run. Our top skiers will do multiple flips plus other tricks. You can flip forwards, backwards and/or twist in the air. There are 100 or more tricks that you can do. You divide your tricks into hand tricks and rope tricks. The more difficult the tricks get, the higher your points,” Strong said.

While Haley Runion, a master jump champion and sophomore on the team, has done slalom, tricking and jumping, she feels that jumping is her best category. Originally from Tennessee, Runion came to UA because of its reputation in waterskiing.

“We’ve got some good recruits from all over the country, and we’re going to have a great team. Alabama has one of the best ski teams in the nation. And it has great academics. You can’t put together a better combination,” Runion said.

Other record holders on this year’s team include Caroline Hensley, who won the junior masters for her combined score in slalom and jump. Tomlin Wilson, president of the UA ski team, is the 14th ranked trick skier in the world and is now training in France in preparation for the season. The four freshmen on the Alabama team come with extensive records as well.

Slalom skier Brooks Wilson skied two years with UA before going professional. Even while growing up in Orlando, Wilson said he always heard good things about the school and knew he would come here to ski. In addition to good skiers, Wilson also credits Strong with the team’s success.

“I think that Tom was a great leader and is a person who cares a ton. He always goes the extra mile and makes sure that we have whatever we need. He always puts us in front and tries to get as much for us as we can. He’s been around the sport for a long time, and it’s good to have him at the forefront of our team,” Wilson said.

The team will begin practicing in the fall at Lymanland, a manmade competition water ski facility off U.S. Highway 82 in Duncanville, in lieu of their first tournament in the fall. In addition to serving as a water ski practice facility, Lymanland is also host to several amateur and intercollegiate three-event tournaments each year. According to Strong, the Alabama team will head to five tournaments in the fall, and in the spring the top skiers will compete in the conference championships.

When asked what makes a good skier, Strong said an extreme level of athleticism.

“In trick skiing, it takes finesse, agility and jumping. A healthy helping of guts, strength and technique in slalom skiing,” he said. “What truly separates the great jumpers from the good jumpers is courage.”

Wilson said that while he’s ready to take on professional skiing, he already misses the atmosphere at UA.

“It definitely has a reputation for being a good school and having a good team,” he said. “There’s more coming, and it would be an exciting time to still be there.”

Sept. 19-20, Cleveland, Tenn. Competing will be Auburn, S.C., Alabama, Tenn., Clemson, UNC Chapel Hill, Georgia Tech, Kentucky, UNC Charlotte, Georgia.

Sept. 26-27, Clemson, S.C. Competing will be Auburn, S.C., Alabama, Tenn., Clemson, UNC Chapel Hill, Georgia Tech, Kentucky, UNC Charlotte, Georgia.

Oct. 3-4, Whitestone, Ga. The same teams will be competing, plus several schools from Florida.

Oct. 22-24, Los Angeles, Calif. Eastern U.S. Regionals. National includes only the top five schools from each of the four regions in the U.S.