The 2011 Rider of the Year, Reed Hansen. Photo: Chris Garrison

 

The long awaited large format Photo Annual is here! It’s packed with all of the most exciting and unique images from the industries top photographers, and of coarse, your favorite riders. Within you’ll notice some of our first ever 3D spreads and thanks to the crew at Arnette, we’ve also provided a pair of shades to view them with. On top of this all, we announce our male and female choices for the 2011 Rider of the Year awards. These awards go out the the riders we feel have worked the hardest to progress, innovate, and showcase their riding, setting  anew standard for possibilities on the water. If you can’t already tell from our cover image, Reed Hansen takes honors of ROTY on behalf of the wakeskating community.

 

 

As the reigning 5 time world champion and 4 time overall Toe Jam champion, there’s no doubt Reed has the credentials to be ROTY, just check his trophy case. He’s the guy that Danny Hampson loves to see everywhere (except in his heat), he’s the mastermind behind Fox’s 60 foot spine rail, and also the kid who busted out over 50 flawless method grabs in the dark during our Photo Annual cover shoot. Most people can’t do methods on a wakeboard, so for Reed to perfect it on a wakeskate is next level. He’s undoubtedly the most well rounded wakeskater in the world and on top of it all, an amazing kid to be around. Find out more in our 2011 ROTY feature.

 

 

Like we said previously, the Photo Annual is packed with photo’s that we’ve been saving all year like this gem of Andrew Pastura kickflipping off a head high pipe jam on the Ohio river in Cincinnati (photo by Roland Lugo). It’s one of the most talked about photo’s in the issue along with many others including Parks’ 10 ft. backside wall ride and Dieter Humpsch’s indy layback both by Brayan Soderlind, and also Ben Bazis’ version of the slam dunk photographed by Ryan Taylor.

 

 

Next in the issue our very own Garrett Cortese gets kidnapped by the Remote crew for a road trip from Orlando to Pennsylvania and back all with the intention to shoot for a Remote team video. Forget about skymiles and first class meals, the crew of 8 instead cozied up in the new Remote van for a different kind of experience, discovering new winch spots all along the way, and even making a stop at the famous Woodward Camp for some play time on the ramps and in the foam pit. It’s a big issue for wakeskating and this story brings some incredible imagery for you to feed on, including two sequences of the master Ben Horan setting the bar at a new level.

 

 

Finally in the issue we place the FROTY crown on top of the head of Melissa Marquardt for her constant progression of womens wakeboarding, fearless attitude, and unmatched style on the water. Melissa has never been scared to hang with the boys whether it be an afternoon double up session, a winch gap that most of the guys would think twice about, or a janky west coast rail setup that’s sure to produce some carnage. Mel has always been passionate about her riding style and she has the scars to prove it. It is for this reason she will wear the crown for all of 2012…maybe she’ll even bedazzle it.

 

Pick up a copy of the issue today and enjoy! Just remember, the 3D glasses wont work on your girlfriend…or will they? Hmmm…