Every spring the Body Glove family gathers for a week on the Colorado River near Parker, Arizona for a little bit of business and a lot of fun.  Everyday we woke just before sunrise to get a quick breakfast and get ready to be on the boat at first light.  The early wake-ups were tough at first but well worth the perfect glassy conditions and optimal lighting conditions.  Everybody rode really well, especially Rusty Malinoski and Jeff Mckee.  These guys have different riding styles, but are equally impressive.  Rusty was charging hard and boosting big spins off some nice Mastercraft double-ups, while Jeff was linking some smooth, yet technical lines down the long river.  Jeff even rode naked!  Shelby Kantar and Tarah Benzel-Mikacich held it down for the ladies.  Shelby was just getting back to the water after a winter of snowboarding, but she looked solid as ever with her signature style and solid grabs.  Just coming off knee surgery, Tarah, rode smooth behind the boat and it was easy to see she is well on her way through recovery.

 

Shooting photos and testing the newest Body Glove vests and wetsuits was the focus of each morning, but once business was handled, everybody was free to enjoy the river and warm weather.  One afternoon the crew went to check out some fairly large cliffs that the locals jump off.  The largest cliff was well over 60 feet and provided everybody some hesitation and a good adrenalin rush.  MVP of the cliff jumping session was Body Glove’s Sarah Miesse.  Sarah was the only girl to jump the cliff and she jumped it with a sweet “cross my arms and legs and pray to god” style.  Other highlights include the wonder dinners cooked by the Meistrell family, karaoke at the casino, and intense rounds of ping-pong.  Overall it was a great trip with lots of good people and I can’t wait to do it all again next year.

 

Big thanks to Billy and the Meistrell family for all of their hospitality, the entire Body Glove crew, Chris for the chase boat, and Mastercraft.