ONE MORE TIME

Rider: Tanner Jardine

Too much thrill and adrenaline cannot be healthy. The engine roars, every muscle in your body tenses. Blinking, you are suddenly standing in the middle of the boats commanding wake, gliding effortlessly. The mist splatters the air like a painting as you carve back in forth in the wake, getting a quick feel for the water. The smile on your face making it hard to see clearly out of squinted eyes.

Outside the wake, monstrous from the full ballasts and three fat sacks weighing down the flashy boat, the water flows fluently under the customized, sticker-covered board. After a few carves, turning your head, you glance at the ever-inviting wake, challenging you to approach. Another surge of adrenaline courses through you, addicting butterflies fleeting chaotically in your stomach.

Now or never. Senses seem to enhance with the new adrenaline levels pumping in your veins. The roar of the boats engine grows powerfully. The slap of the board against the wake unmercifully loud. The booming from the stereos on the boat vibrates through you. The potent smell of the lake intensifies. Every single drop of mist can be seen with vividly. Turning the board, adding extra weight on your heels, you head for the unrelenting wake. Time seems to double as the backside tip of the board approaches the upward slope. Everything is so intense your heart almost stops.

Silence. Time becomes sluggish. Boosting off the wake, every muscle working in unison, you pull your legs in close. Smoothly and confidently, you grab the tail of the dripping board and extend your front leg. Hold the grab. Floating. Freedom.

Reaching the peak of the jump, time suddenly accelerates and before you know it, the board glides down the opposite side of the wake. Trick stomped. A contagious grin immediately spreads on your face, hearing the cheers and yells from the boat. Absorbed and hooked like a drug addict, you cry out, "One more time!" However, everyone silently acknowledges that your smile contradicts going only once more.

Written By JR Lindsey