By Tina McCauley
A who’s who in barefoot water skiing came to ski at Cooler by the Lake at the Molepske Boat Shrine in Two Rivers, Wisconsin… right on the shores of Lake Michigan.
Open Pro skiers in attendance included Brody Meskers and Hall of Famer Ron Scarpa. Yes, the Raging Bull dusted off his feet. Ron kept it close with Brody in slalom. It was exciting to watch Dan Baumgartner and Mike Frankenbush, Open Men’s skiers, earning trick scores that were only 200 points apart. Open Women skier, Teri Jones, had a strong showing in tricks and kept her slalom passes clean.
The following skiers skied 2020 World qualifying scores in tricks: Teri Jones (Senior Women), Megan Adams (Girls A), Brody Meskers (Open Men), Dan Baumgartner (Senior Men), Mark McCauley (Senior Men), and Scott Hodek (Senior Men). Skiers qualifying in slalom were Teri Jones (Senior Women), Megan Adams (Junior Girls), and Dan Baumgartner (Senior Men.)
It was fun to see newer skiers, Scott Scafidi, Carter Boerman and Cole Stellmacher competing, as well as all the faces who support barefooting on and off the water.
Cooler by the Lake feels more like a family picnic than a barefoot water skiing tournament. Skiers, family and friends are able to enjoy the skiing action as they lounge on the vast green lawn and pontoon boat at the starting dock. Every year, an hour long lunch break is taken so everyone can eat together and enjoy the finest outdoor cuisine. This year Elisa Scarpa assisted Amy Molepske in the preparation of the gourmet lunch.
Here are the results: 2019CoolerTricks and 2019CoolerSlalom
American Barefoot Club 