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Wakeboarders ride out the stormJul 04, 2010 (Stillwater NewsPress - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- STILLWATER, Okla. -- Rain didn't stop a father and son from competing on the first day of a wakeboard tournament Saturday at Boomer Lake. Greg Branch and his son, Dylan, waited out the rain that hit the Stillwater area for most of Saturday. Approxmiately 20 riders competed before the competition was halted at 1:30 p.m., due to heavy rain. Competition didn't resume until 5 p.m. "We knew it'd stop raining eventually. Really, we're wet anyway. It doesn't bother us," Greg said, who lives in Guthrie. The first wakeboard tournament at Boomer Lake was a pleasant surprise to the two. "When we knew it was going to be here, we thought it was pretty cool," Greg said, who does business in Stillwater. The two have been competing for three years. Greg went to eight competitions last year, while Dylan said he has competed in five tournaments. Greg got Dylan started on his board when he was 8-years-old. "Then he got me a board and started competing," Dylan said. Six years later, Dylan has made great strides. Last year, Dylan competed as a junior novice. This year, Dylan is competing as an expert -- two spots above where he was last year. "I might've beat my son today, but he usually beats me," Greg said. Greg said his first "cold" ride went well, despite waiting through the rain delay. "I think I did pretty good," Greg said, who fell once during his ride. "I got a lot of my flips in, so I think I did alright." Suzanne Hibbing, who organized the event, said she was pleased that they were able to get the first day's competition in. "Riders wanted to keep going. They were having a blast," Hibbing said about the rain delay. The final day of competition begins today at 10:30 a.m. The awards ceremony begins at 4 p.m. To see more of the Stillwater NewsPress or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.stillwater-newspress.com. Copyright (c) 2010, Stillwater NewsPress, Okla. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For more information about the content services offered by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services (MCT), visit www.mctinfoservices.com, e-mail [email protected], or call 866-280-5210 (outside the United States, call +1 312-222-4544). |