The Family Man

A story went around the wakeboarding scene a few months back about an ordinary bloke who has a trick wakeboard boat.

He took some wakeboarding mates out on it one day but cut his hand quite badly while riding. Not wanting to break up the party, he continued to drive his boat and the whole wakeboarding crew out with him got the benefit of a good session on the water. He required five stitches for his wound, but at least he hadn't piked it.

To his family and wakeboarding fraternity, Rod Davison is quite simply a decent bloke. But his ventures into competition have seen him bag Australia's only wakeboarding world title and become one of Australia's premier judges.

His passion for wakeboarding stemmed from years of social skiing on the Hawkesbury River with his father and what Rod calls "makeshift" boats. "My Dad made his own boats from about 1964, with marinised Holden engines. He was a real tinker," says Rod.

Rod continued social skiing on his home stretch of water, Sydney's Port Hacking, first with a Haines Signature S with a 200hp Yamaha, then a Camero Legend 2. He grew tired of social skiing as the area had limited capabilities for slalom and jump, and found wakeboarding a much more attractive option. "You saw these guys going upside down and spinning and grabbing like you see in snowboard and skating videos," he says. "It catches the eye a lot easier than waterskiing and my kids really enjoyed it."

Rod's brood consists of seven, three with his wife Tanya and four adopted from Tanya's side of the family. At any one time all of the kids have been involved with the sport, although only Lachlan (15) and Michelle (20) have taken the next step towards competition. The others, Chantal (18), Randal (14), Monique (13) Conor (10) and Billy (6) are happy observers and occasional riders who love hanging out in the family's current craft, a Mastercraft X5, one of only two models to ever be imported into the country.

The decision to upgrade to a more specific wakeboard boat came after a stint of driving for a wakeboarding state title. "We used to load up all our other boats with bags of water to increase the size of the wake," says Rod. "But the Mastercraft was such a smooth ride I couldn't say no when the opportunity to buy one came up."

Keeping the family interested in the boat is an important consideration for Rod. "For me personally as a family man, you wouldn't spend $60,000 to $70,000 on a boat if the whole family didn't enjoy it," he states. "They enjoy the boat and the boating lifestyle."

Rod began competing following the 1996 national titles, inspired by veteran Port Hacking riders Reece and Kylie Jordan. Though considered by many to be a little old at 36 for a sport dominated by much younger riders, Rod had a go anyway in the Masters division for competitors between 30 and 40, and managed a very creditable result with a couple of grabs and one spin. He has since learned inverted tricks, although he admits it took him a lot longer than younger riders, including his son Lachlan. "It took me 12 months to land my first invert, and the same amount to learn a proper spin with a grab to make it look a bit styley, whereas I see kids now who can land it in one run," he claims.

Rod's emphasis on his riding is influenced by professional Australian riders like Josh Sanders and Daniel Watkins, and he favours style over difficulty. "The first time I landed an invert I was really happy to do it, but I knew it wasn't the style I was chasing," he says. "I wanted to mix up inverts and spins with more style rather than competition points. My freeriding was more important, and I didn't want to get my possibilities mixed up with my capabilities, and get hurt trying some crazy move."

An opportunity arose last year to both compete in and judge the World Wakeboard Association (WWA) world wakeboard championships. Rod spent two weeks in Orlando riding with Daniel and Josh, and stepped up alongside the best veteran riders in the world (40 years and over) to compete for the crown. Although he says he never expected to win, he qualified first and led the field of eight into the final. His pass included his favourite invert, a Tantrum to Fakie (essentially a backflip with a 180 turn), a 540 spin and a Roll to Revert, and even though he fell twice during his run, it was enough to clinch the title. "I was a bit scared of being in a world class competition, but I was just lucky enough to win," he humbly says.

Rod also judged in the event, which gave him Level 1 accreditation in Australia. He has since gone on to become head judge at the recent Australian national championships, and has also judged at the year's X Games and the inaugural Pro Tour of Wakeboarding held over four events across the eastern states. He became interested in judging after watching a few events and believing that the standard could be better. "I've always found the best judges are riders," he says. "The people that drive and still ride also get a lot more respect from their peers".

And it seems that Rod has gained a fair amount of respect through his time on the circuit. The younger riders look up to him as a father figure, but also as a mate who they can hang out with on the water. "I'm flattered," he says. "Apparently there's a healthy level of respect there and I enjoy that and I don't do anything except be myself and that's the important bit."

It seems as though Lachlan will be following in his dad's footsteps and competing more in the coming season, and possibly training with more experienced pro riders. He placed second in the Junior Boys' division of this year's nationals, standing his run, and has picked up a few new sponsors on the way, including O'Brien wakeboards. "Lochie has a lot of talent and style," Rod states. "He's one of those kids who's got it, but doesn't know he's got it. Everyone likes to ride with him." Rod has his fair share of sponsors, including Melbourne-based ski gear importer Activ Concepts, who provide him with a Double Up Luke Wulf 137 board with Nice bindings and Wing Wetsuits.

Next season Rod will be focusing on his own riding and judging, particularly in the Australian Pro Tour and state and national competitions. In October this year Sydney will host the International Water Ski Federation (IWSF) World Wakeboard Championships, a competitor to the WWA crown. Rod is keen to both judge the professional riders as well as make an attempt to win the Masters title against 30-40 year-old riders. "Even though I'm 43 now, I'll have a go at it," he says with a chuckle.