Colorado Springs, Colo. – Despite wind gusts of over 30 mph and choppy water conditions, the top professional wakeboarders in the world hit the waters of Prospect Lake at Memorial Park in Colorado Springs, Colo. today to kick off the third stop of the 2011 MasterCraft Pro Wakeboard Tour, presented by Rockstar Energy Drink. The two-day-long contest, which concludes tomorrow, June 11, opened with preliminary rounds for the Jr. Pro Men, Pro Women and Pro Men’s divisions.

Nearly 65 of the sport’s best riders linked up behind the MasterCraft X-Star today to compete for one of 36 spots in tomorrow’s final rounds of action, where a cash purse and crucial points toward the season standings awaits them.

In the Pro Men’s division, 35 riders faced off in today’s qualifiers for one of 20 spots in tomorrow’s quarterfinals. Among the 20 riders that qualified through to the next round was 2010 Colorado Springs Pro Tour stop winner Bob Soven.

Soven, who looks to repeat at the stop where he won his first-ever Pro Tour contest, faced some the harshest weather conditions of the day.

“It was pretty exhausting out there today,” said Soven. “The wind picked up and the water was extremely rough, so the word I would use to describe today is challenging.”

Despite the challenges, Soven landed a Nose Grab Crow Mobe 540 and a Toeside Frontside 720 to help win his heat. Soven and the 19 other Pro Men riders will kick off tomorrow’s festivities with their quarterfinal round, held at 11 a.m.

In the Pro Women’s division, all eyes were on Emily Copeland Durham to see if the Denver native would make a splash in her home state. The 27-year-old veteran rider didn’t disappoint, as Copeland Durham threw down a massive Wrapped KGB and landed a solid Backside Transfer onto the funbox, to finish third in her heat – good enough to advance onto tomorrow’s finals.

“It was cold and rough out there, but I ended up making the finals, so overall I’m pretty happy,” said Copeland Durham. “I would love to win in my home state, so I plan to step it up tomorrow.”

Joining Copeland Durham in the finals is current division points-leader Amber Wing, Nicola Butler, Raimi Merritt, Melissa Marquardt and Tarah Mikacich. The Pro Women finals will take place tomorrow at 4:30 p.m.

In the Jr. Pro Men’s division, 20 amateur rippers hit the water today for their quarterfinal round of action. With only the top two riders from each of the five heats advancing onto tomorrow’s semifinals, half of the competition was sent home packing.

Among the 10 semifinalists is the division’s current points-leader Shota Tezuka. Tezuka, 17, of Gotenba, Japan, took first place in his heat today with a perfect score of 100 points – the only rider within the division today to do so.

Tezuka and the rest of the Jr. Pro Men riders will take to the water for their semifinal round tomorrow at 1:30 p.m. Should the top-seeded rider win in Colorado Springs, Tezuka will take his second Jr. Pro Tour stop victory of the season and a commanding lead in the standings.

The MasterCraft Pro Wakeboard Tour will wrap up in Colorado Springs tomorrow, June 11, with the ticketed event beginning at 11 a.m. and ending at 7:30 p.m.

Tickets are available at the gate: $13 (adult); $5 (ages 6-12); free (ages 5 and under).

For more information on the MasterCraft Pro Wakeboard Tour, please visit www.prowakeboardtour.com, or connect with us via Facebook and Twitter.

The MasterCraft Pro Wakeboard Tour, presented by Rockstar Energy Drink is organized by World Sports & Marketing of Orlando, Fla., and has the support of the following sponsors: MasterCraft, Rockstar Energy Drink, Overton’s, Indmar, Peavey, Billabong, Hyperlite, CWB, Ronix, Liquid Force, Byerly, Oakley, Sayiwon’t, Epiphone and YOUR MOM.

About MasterCraft
MasterCraft is the exclusive towboat for the Pro Wakeboard Tour, as it has been since the tour’s wakeboarding events began in 1992.

About Rockstar Energy Drink
ROCKSTAR is the world’s most powerful energy drink. Enhanced with the potent herbal blend of Guarana, Ginkgo, Ginseng and Milk Thistle, ROCKSTAR is formulated to provide an incredible energy boost for those who lead active and exhausting lifestyles – from athletes to rock stars. ROCKSTAR ENERGY DRINK is available in eighteen amazing flavors: Original, Sugar Free, Zero Carb, Juiced Mango Orange Passion Fruit, Juiced Guava, Juiced Pomegranate, Tropical Punched, Punched Citrus, Roasted Mocha, Roasted Latte, Roasted Light Vanilla, Cola, Recovery Lemonade, Recovery Orange, Recovery Grape, Pink, and 2X. ROCKSTAR ENERGY SHOTS are available in Wild Berry and Tropical Punch flavors. ROCKSTAR ENERGY DRINK is available at convenience and grocery retail outlets across the United States, Canada, Australia, Austria, Belgium, France, Ireland, New Zealand, Japan, Germany, Switzerland, Finland, Spain, The Netherlands, the United Arab Emirates, Greece, Mexico, the Philippines and throughout the United Kingdom.

Go to www.rockstar69.com or www.facebook.com/rockstar for athlete and event updates, videos, profiles, and product information.

About Indmar
Indmar is the world’s largest privately held manufacturer of gasoline powered inboard marine engines. Indmar Marine Engines have led the market on dependability, longevity, and performance for decades.

June 10 Results:

Pro Women
Semifinal Round – Heat #1
1  Nicola Butler                 GBR        68.33
2  Melissa Marquardt       USA        60.00
3  Tarah Mikacich            USA        50.00
4  Anna Hajek                     USA        41.67
5  Alexa Score                     USA        33.33

Pro Women
Semifinal Round – Heat #2
1  Amber Wing                  AUS        81.67
2  Raimi Merritt                USA        75.00
3  Emily Durham               USA        63.33
4  Miku Asai                       JPN          53.33
5  Corrie Dyer                     USA        43.33

Jr. Pro Men
Quarterfinal Round – Heat #1
1  Daniel Powers               USA        97.25
2  Kyle Evans                      USA        92.75
3  Pierce Homsey               USA        80.00

Jr. Pro Men
Quarterfinal Round – Heat #2
1  Dylan Prideaux              AUS        94.50
2  Robby Holihan               USA        88.50
3  Mike Dowdy                   USA        82.75
4  Gus Shuler                      USA        74.25

Jr. Pro Men
Quarterfinal Round – Heat #3
1  Freddie Wayne              USA        90.75
2  Joshua Twelker            USA        90.00
3  Joey Buss                       USA        87.75
4  Keenan Allen                 USA        71.50

Jr. Pro Men
Quarterfinal Round – Heat #4
1  Marc Kroon                    NED        95.50
2  Gordon Harrison           USA        85.50
3  Yancey Crew                  USA        83.00
4  Jacob Valdez                   USA        56.75

Jr. Pro Men
Quarterfinal Round – Heat #5
1  Shota Tezuka                 JPN         100.00
2  Gunnar Shuler              USA        82.75
3  Cody Hesse                    USA        81.50
4  Morgan Pedersen          USA        75.75

Pro Men
Qualifying Round– Heat #1
1  Chad Sharpe                  CAN        65.00
2  Austin Hair                    USA        60.00
3  Josh Palma                      USA        53.33
4  Andrew Adkison           USA        48.33

Pro Men
Qualifying Round– Heat #2
1  Adam Errington            USA        76.67
2  JD Webb                         USA        70.00
3  Scott Stewart                  USA        55.00
4  Terry Bailey                    USA        36.67

Pro Men
Qualifying Round– Heat #3
1  Tony Carroll                  USA        68.33
2  AJ Racinelli                   USA        66.67
3  Joey Bradley                   USA        55.00
4  Dante Digangi                USA        40.00

Pro Men
Qualifying Round– Heat #4
1  Aaron Rathy                   CAN        71.67
2  Sam Thomson                AUS        61.67
3  Kyle Rattray                   CAN        53.33
4  Zane Schwenk                USA        36.67

Pro Men
Qualifying Round– Heat #5
1  Olivier Derome             CAN        71.67
2  Dean Smith                    AUS        63.33
3  Trevor Hansen               USA        55.00
4  Shawn Watson              USA        48.33

Pro Men
Qualifying Round– Heat #6
1  Steel Lafferty                 USA        55.00
2  Jason Bannatyne           CAN        46.67
3  Corey Bradley                USA        38.33

Pro Men
Qualifying Round– Heat #7
1  Bob Soven                       USA        70.00
2  Padiwat Jaemjan           THA        58.33
3  Danny Thollander         USA        45.00

Pro Men
Qualifying Round– Heat #8
1  Rusty Malinoski           CAN        70.00
2  Jimmy LaRiche             USA        58.33
3  JB O’Neill                        USA        20.00

Pro Men
Qualifying Round– Heat #9
1  Harley Clifford              AUS        85.00
2  Shaun Murray               USA        73.33
3  Julian Cohen                   USA        61.67

Pro Men
Qualifying Round– Heat #10
1  Phillip Soven                  USA        73.33
2  Danny Burnstein          USA        58.33
3  Kirby Liesmann              USA        48.33