Claudia Landon says she just wants to keep the “Old Lady Tradition” going in barefoot water skiing.
But she certainly doesn’t look, or barefoot, like an old lady.
Claudia didn’t set out to barefoot into her sixth decade, it all started when her husband Dave saw another family barefooting on their lake in the 1980’s. He was hooked, Claudia wasn’t so sure.
“At first, I would cringe when Dave would want to barefoot. I had two small children at the time and I was worried something would happen to him,” says Claudia.
But then she discovered she liked to barefoot too. And Dave is still her favorite ski buddy.
“We have lots of fun. I love it. There’s nothing like going out first thing in the morning on the water,” says Claudia who is now a barefooting grandmother.
On the water and off, Claudia is dedicated to barefoot water skiing. She is currently serving as Treasurer of the American Barefoot Club and has spent countless hours working at and supporting western region, national and world barefoot water ski tournaments.
Claudia and Dave were two of the wizards behind the curtain at the 2016 World Barefoot Waterski Championships. And they were recognized with a special award for all of their hard work.
Claudia will be 65 in June and is still a force to be reckoned with on the dock. She is a master of the flying tower start, she holds the Womens 6 National Record in Wake Slalom and she says she has more to do before she “retires,” including breaking 1000 points in tricks.
When she isn’t barefooting on Hauser Lake near her home in Post Falls, Idaho. She is traveling the country with Dave or spending time with her grand children.
Claudia says her favorite trick is still the front toe hold. Her most difficult trick to learn: the reverse which took her years to master.
In the course of the learning that reverse front toe hold, Open Pro Skier Keith St. Onge gave her some advice she never forgot and seems to live by: “You just have to learn to let go.”
We hope Claudia holds on to her love of barefoot water skiing and never lets go of us!
American Barefoot Club 