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By eric, August 9, 2007 1:39 pm

Our Opening Pyramid during practice on Tuesday August, 7

It was one year ago this weekend that Mad-City capped an amazing year at the National Show Ski Tournament in Janesville, WI with a flawless show and a National Title.

As we head into this weekends National Tournament in Loves Park, IL, the goal remains the same, however, the outcome is far from set in stone.

We are putting the finishing touches on our show as we speak and getting ourselves ready for a huge weekend.

Last year, just like the Wisconsin State Tournament, the Rock-Aqua Jays came in second and you can bet that they are itching for a little payback.

However, two teams that are perennial powers, Wonder Lake from Wonder Lake, IL and the Little Crow Ski Team from New London, MN always bring their “A” game as well and are looking to knock both Janesville and Mad-City from the perch atop the show ski world that we held since 2001.

As for our show, expect bigger and better things for the national show, we have spent countless hours working on our acts and our stage work. Our man behind the sound, Eric Wedige, has been tweaking up our sound and our tag-team announcers, Adam Schaller and Matt Baumler, have taken their humor and skills to a whole new level!

This tournament represents the culmination of almost a years worth of work for every team involved.  Hours and hours are spent behind the scenes to put forth a top-flight show.  The daily aches and pains, the late nights and the tremendous amount of personal sacrifice that go into producing a show such as these 14 teams will put on the water this week-end is a testament to the dedication that every member of the show-ski community have for the sport.

We are all excited for the week-end and we invite everyone down to Loves Park to join us!

We ski third on Saturday, between 10:30 and 11:00 AM. However, do arrive early as seating will be scarce.

The full running order for the weekend is below, each show takes about an hour and a half in total, which includes set-up and tear down.

Saturday: Shows start at 8:00 AM
Janesville Rock Aqua Jays
Ski Broncs
MAD-CITY!!!
Lake Mohawk Ski Hawks
Webfooters
Badgerland
Five Seasons

Sunday: Shows start at 8:00 AM
Backwater Gamblers
Wonder Lake
Little Crow
Aquanuts
Chippewa lake
Midwest Ski Otters

Links:
Directions to Site

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By eric, August 8, 2007 9:41 am

One of the greatest aspects of the show ski community is the friends and relationships you make with other ski teams. The Badgerland ski team, located just outside of Milwaukee, is a perfect example of what makes our sport so great.

We received this card in the mail from the Badgerland ski team congratulating us on our title. Thank you Badgerland, you guys are fantastic!

For the full resolution version, please click here

Also, please take a minute and visit Badgerland’s website and if you are in the area check out their show.

Links:
Badgerland Website

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By eric, July 30, 2007 9:04 pm

It wasn’t long after Mad-City won the 2007 Wisconsin State Show Ski Tournament that the focus was shifted from celebration to preparation for the 2007 National Show Ski Tournament, which is August 10-12 in Loves Park, IL.

But now the dust has settled and we can look back a bit at the State Tournament while at the same time spinning around the telescope and peering ahead to the national tournament.

To that end, we asked our show director, Chris Coupland his thoughts and feelings regarding the State Tournament and where Mad-City is and where we need to go to caputre our second straight National Championship.

1) What are your feelings about winning the 2007 state tournament?

Obviously it feels great to win again. I don’t think that will ever get old. I wish we could have skied cleaner though.

2) Comment on the work going into the show and how everything came together

It’s been a long Season. It took us longer to put the show together this off season due to the possibilities that we had to work with. I was very concerned about us pulling all of the pieces together until everybody stepped up the last two weeks and committed to putting in the extra effort. Hopefully we continue to do that and we achieve the holy grail and have “The Perfect” Show in 2 weeks!

3) Thoughts about competition during the tournament and upcoming for nationals?

It’s always tough to compete against Janesville. I’m sure they’re going to fix the problems they had and bring their A game to Nationals. In addition, you’ve got Wonder Lake and Little Crow that are ready to win again as well.

4) Sum up entire experience so far.

It’s been a crazy summer. Getting married on June 1st and then coming back to the thick of things. Fortunately for myself and the team that we have a lot of veteran skiers and support personnel that don’t need to be micro-managed. I just hope that we can stay focused and push strong through Rockford.

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By eric, July 25, 2007 11:20 am

[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=6418177765762841909&hl=en]

Competing in the Wisconsin State Show Ski Tournament, the Mad-City Ski Team edged out the Janesville Rock Aqua Jays to lay claim to their second straight Wisconsin State Championship!

The ski show, entitled “A Tale of 2 Ski Shows”, featured two stand-out announcers in longtime favorite Adam Schaller and new comer Matt Baumler facing off on stage to determine once and for all which is better, Mad-City Style or Traditional Show Ski Style.

During the course of their epic battle, Mad-City had some incredible performances.

Highlights include: Highest Scoring Ballet Line, Highest Scoring Jump Act, Best Tow Boat Crew, Best Sound Crew, Best Comedy, Best Overall Female Skier in Kristen Heilman, First ever four-tier One-Act Show and Mad-City’s first ever Triple Four-Tier Pyramid!!

Mad-City Dream Girls! – Highest Scoring Ballet Line

Mad-City Jump Team – Highest Scoring Jump Act

Mad-City Comedy Team – Best Comedy

Kristen Heilman – Best Overall Female Skier 

Mad-City Sound Crew – Best Sound Crew 

Mad-City Drive Team – Best Tow Boat Crew 

The Wisconsin State Show Ski Tournament is the largest such tournament in the world and is a four-day long event that celebrates everything that is good in the show ski world, Competition, Camaraderie and of course some fantastic skiing.

There was 26 teams total from three different divisions that compete in this event, held on Lake Wazeecha near Wisconsin Rapids. While only one team competed in Division 3, the Aqua Devils from Three Lakes, WI, there were 25 teams combined competing in both Division 1 and Division 2.

Our neighbors to the south, the Janesville Rock Aqua Jays, came in second for the second year in a row with a steller show of their own. They layed claim to a couple impressive feats of their own as they claimed the highest scoring individual act with their barefoot pyramid act, best dock and equipment and best pick-up boat crew.

However, it was not enough as Mad-City scored a total of 2008 points to Janesville’s 1983.

Coming in third were the Webfooters from Freemont, WI.

In Division 2, the Beaver-Land Must-Skis notched their second consecutive championship as well knocking off the Browns Lake Aquaducks, 1704 to 1644.

With the win, the Beaver-Land Must-Skis, from Beaver Dam, will now join Division 1.

Links:

Complete Scores and Team Placements

Complete Photo Gallery from Jims Photos

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By eric, July 16, 2007 11:35 am

One year ago at the Wisconsin State Show Ski Tournament, the largest show ski tournament in the world, Mad-City skied a nearly flawless show and took home the title of State Champions.

In less then a week, we are heading back to the red sand of Lake Wazeecha in Wisconsin Rapids to defend our title.

The weekend is setting up to be an incredible display of skiing from not only Mad-City, but from our biggest competitors as well.

Last year we knocked off the powerhouse Janesville Rock-Aqua Jays, and you can bet they are chomping at the bit for a little payback.

Here is the full running order for the shows on Saturday and Sunday.

1 Mississippi Blackhawks (Division II) 7:00 AM
2 Waupaca Chain Skiers (Division II) 8:30 AM
3 Aquaducks (Division II) 10:00 AM
4 Mad-City Ski Team (Division I) 11:30 AM
5 Aquanuts (Division I) 1:00 PM
6 Muskego Waterbugs (Division I) 2:30 PM
7 Aqua Skiers (Division I) 4:00 PM
8 Badgerland (Division I) 5:30 PM
9 Shermalot (Division I) 7:00PM

Sunday, July 22

1 Webfooters (Division I) 7:00 AM
2 Rock Aqua Jays (Division I) 8:30 AM
3 Chetek Hydroflites (Division I) 10:00 AM
4 Lauderdale Aqua Skiers (Division I) 11:30 AM
5 Waterboard Warriors (Division I) 1:00 PM
6 Minneiska (Division I) 3:30 PM
7 Ski Sprites (Division I) 5:00 PM

The competition begins each day at 6:40 AM, with each team using about an hour and a half per show. Approximate times are next to each team.

The award ceremony will follow the final show and about 6:45 – 7:00.

Directions to Lake Wazeecha

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By eric, July 2, 2007 3:22 pm

Please take a minute to visit one of our sponsers, Jims Photos at www.jimsphotos.org, to see his pictures from our show during the Mercury Invite.

Jim also takes pictures of every home show and has a extensive collection of photos from our 2006 season including our State and National Championship shows AND award ceremonies.

2007 Mercury Invite Photo Gallery – Mad-City

Mad-City Photo Gallery Page on JimsPhotos.org

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By eric, June 27, 2007 1:52 pm

Photo Courtesy of Jims Photos

In what is the unofficial kick-off to the Show Ski tournament season, the Mad-City Ski Team competed in the annual Mercury Invite on June 24, taking home third place.The host team, the Janesville Rock Aqua Jays, took home first place honors with the Wonder Lake Ski Team, from Wonder Lake, IL, coming in second.

It is always a fun tournament to be a part of, getting a chance to re-connect with some of your fellow skiers from competing teams in a low-pressure, fun environment.

The weather was outstanding, with temps in the upper 70’s to low 80’s for the most part of the day, while being mostly overcast untill early in the afternoon when the sun peeked out from behind the clouds to reveal many a sunburn!!

This was also the first real run-through for our new theme, “A Tale of Two Ski-Shows” and judging from peoples responses post-show, it looks to be a hit. Our tag-team announcing crew, Adam Schaller and Matt Baumler, kept much of the show close to the vest as to not reveal to much to our competitors until the State and National tournaments!!

The Aqua Jays, as always, ran a first class tournament and were great hosts.

With every team holding back slightly for the bigger tournaments, this could prove to be quite an exciting summer!

Here is a complete run-down of the final standings:

1) Rock Aqua Jays (Janesville, WI) 2,057 points

2) Wonderlake (Wonderlake, IL) 1,926

3) Mad-City Ski Team (Madison, WI) 1,831

4) Waterbugs (Muskego, IL) 1,191

5) Minneiska (Whitewater, WI) 1,077

6) Lauderdale Aqua-Skiers (Lauderdale, WI) 1,031.

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By eric, June 22, 2007 2:12 pm

Mad-City will be competing in the Mercury Invite Show Ski Tournament this weekend, Sunday June 24th. We will be skiing at about 10:30 Sunday morning.

The tournament begins Sunday morning at 7:30 with our friends from the Lauderdale Lake Aqua Skiers performing, followed by the host team, Janesville Rock Aqua Jays at about 9:00. We will follow them at 10:30.

Below is the complete running order for the tournament. For more information visit the Rock Aqua Jays website, www.rockaquajays.org.

Running Order
(First 20 minute set up time begins at 7:10 am)

1. Lauderdale Lake Auqa Skiers
2. Rock Aqua Jays
3. Mad City Ski Team
4. Waterbugs
5. Minneska
6. Wonder Lake

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By eric, August 15, 2006 12:12 am

Facing the strongest teams from the nation, the Mad-City Ski Team capped off their phenomenal summer in the finest fashion imaginable.

Competing in the 31st annual Division 1 Show Ski National Championship, Aug 11-13, the Mad-City ski team claimed the national crown for the second time in three years. Continue reading 'Mad-City Wins Division 1 2006 National Show Ski Championship'»

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By eric, July 22, 2006 8:51 pm

Competing in the biggest show-ski tournament in the world, the Mad-City Ski Team picked the perfect time to ski one of the best shows in club history.

Taking part in the 40th annual State Wisconsin Show Ski Tournament at Lake Wazeecha’s Red Sand Beach, Mad-City pulled out all the stops and claimed the Division 1 State Championship for the second time in three years.

“It’s an amazing feeling to be back on top,” co-show director Matt Heilman said. “All the hard work we put in really paid off. It was one of the best shows Mad-City has ever performed.”

Dan Wang, the other co-show director, concurred with Matt: “Standing on stage as a leader of the team was a great feeling Sunday,” Wang said. “It was great to see everyone celebrating and enjoying the win, all the time and effort that had gone into the show really paid off.”

Mad-City scored 2155 points to knock off last years champions, the Janesville Rock Aqua Jays, who came in second with a strong 2092. Last years surprise team, the Webfooters from Freemont, WI, rounded out the top three with 1985.

Along with claiming top show honors, the Mad-City crew also claimed numerous individual and team awards.

Heading up the list was Ann Wittenberg, skiing on Thursday to the soothing sounds of Phil Collins, successfully defended her individual state swivel ski title. With a score of 16.56, Ann edged out Heather Addie who came in second with a 16.26. Ellie Pesek rounded out the top three with a score of 16.02.

The Mad-City jump team also competed on Thursday and performed a no-fall jump routine, scoring 398 points, to edge out the Badwater Ski-Ters from Iron Mountain with 390. The Plum Ski-Ters from Sayner nipped close at Badwater’s heels to round out the top three with 387.

To top it all off, Mad-City also had the highest scoring individual act in the tournament, which was the scored comedy. This included announcer Adam Schaller and his side-kick Cory Gessler, and Adam’s show stopping number, the “Show-Ski Evolution of Dance”.

“The skiing at state was outstanding, the Rock Aqua Jays had a great show,” Heilman said. “They are always tough to beat because they do so many things well. The Webfooters skied a great show as well, they are creative and really produce a great show that’s fun to watch.”

However, the work doesn’t end here, in a few short weeks the national competition will be held at Janesville’s home site and there will be even more strong competition looking to knock Mad-City off its perch.

“There are a lot of great teams this year at nationals, so we have our work cut out for us,” Wang said. “We can win, but we need to work hard and ski our show. With the talent we have on this team, bigger and better things are possible in the next few weeks.”

Team scores: 1. Mad City 2,155; 2. Rock Aqua Jays 2,092; 3. Webfooters 1,985; 4. Aquanuts 1,620; 5. Badgerland 1,583; 6. Water Bugs 1,477; 7. Aqua Skiers 1,475; 8. Hydroflites 1,465; 9. Shermalot 1,410; 10. Lauderdale 1,387; 11. Waterboard Warriors 1,354; 12. Ski Sprites 1,238; 13. Minnieska 1,177.

Box scores (top 3)-Dock and equipment: 1. Mad City 114; 2. Rock Aqua Jays 100; 3. Webfoorters 101. Pick-up boats: 1. Mad City 321; 2. Rock Aqua Jays 305; 3. Webfooters 290. Tow boat driving: 1. Mad City 868; 2. Rock Aqua Jays 848; 3. Web footers 807. Sound crew: 1. Mad City 1,133; 2. Rock Aqua Jays 1,074; 3. Webfooters 1,072.