Waaaay Too Many Time to list

Lake Pleasant

Brian Foutz and the Posse

I met Brian Foutz through a mutual friend and work, he had just purchased a boat and was looking for people who loved the lake for weekend trips during February of 1998. The Original Crew started out as Brian and Brent Foutz, Mike Rowland and myself, as the summer months approached Mike got married and Eric Blomgren was added to the fold as slalom skiier (we had yet to be introduced into the true joy of wakeboarding) and fellow partier. At that point in time we simply enjoyed hitting the lake, innertubes, party cove and the other guys enjoyed skiing (I never got up!!) occaisionally trying to master the Jeff Heer Pride 147 Brian had bought with the boat.

 

Heavy Thunder getting down behind the Mariah

Summer of 1999 found me buying a house, Brian bought another wakeboard and all of us took our turns trying to learn how to get up and ride around the lake on this mysterious thing. It took a few of the guys one or two trys to get the hang off it, me on the other hand.... I was dragged around the lake for 6 months or so, it wasn't until Thanksgiving Day 1999 that I finally got the Double Up out of the water and planed out for my first taste of surfing the wakes. Brian had traded the Tahoe in on a Mariah 202 Shabah I/O and we weighted the ever-loving life out of it with a 550 pound Phat Sack, 600 pounds of landscaping bricks and a waterbed mattress in the ski locker. The wake was easily knee high, but even with the 5.7L V8 it took forever to plane out and accelerate.

 

 

Look at Jared with the wheelie Wake 2 Wake
Fast forward to the summer of 2000 and the crew now includes Brian Foutz, Eric Blomgren, Jared Vesely, my brother Bob Hyde, Brad Bartick and myself. All of us now fully enthralled by the STOKE of wakeboarding we are teaching new people, inviting them out on the boat and stopping people on the lake who also wakeboard. At this point we were hitting the lake after work, calling in sick to go ride on perfect days and plotting on the next Tourney Boat to purchase.
Currently Brian is boatless and ready to move into his brand new house. The fire that once burned hot inside him to wakeboard everyday has faded for the moment, we're hoping that it resurfaces once the house issues are sorted out and he's enjoying the new place. We miss you on the lake Brotha!!
I have to Thank Brian and the Original Lake Pleasant Posse for getting me hooked on wakeboarding and making our weekend trips to the lake so much fun!