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1) When and where did you first wakesurf?
    The first time I ever went wakesurfing was back in 2006 on my home lake, Lake Ashippun behind a 2006 Malibu Wakesetting VLX. Back then we didn’t know how to properly weight our boat, but still managed to create a surfable wave. I was able to ride without the rope my first time out. I’ve been hooked ever since.
2)State your name, style (SKIM OR SURF) and your home?
    Shane Blanton, I currently live in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin on Ashippun Lake. I currently ride skim style, but I’m going to get into the surf style riding in 2014 as well on the brand new Phase 5 AKU surf style board.
3) Who is in your crew for riding?
    My main crew consists of my brother Corbin Blanton and my buddy Kevin Hutts. We also have a bunch of close friends that we ride with on weekends but mostly everyone else besides me wakeboards.
4)Are you a contest wakesurfer or more into lifestyle and videoing?
    All of the above. I started competing in 2011 at worlds. I didn’t do that well in my first couple competitions, but ended up getting my first podium at the 2012 USA Wakesurfing National Championships in Ocala, Florida. This past year I started to get the “contest nerves” under control. I placed 1st in the 2013 Calabogi Wakesurfing Tournament up in Canada and placed 2nd at the 2013 Wakesurfing World Championships in Las Vegas in the outlaw skim division.
As far as videos go, my brother owns a video editing company called CB Filmz. Every year we make our own personal video edits of our riding along with bigger videos for wakesurfing company’s like Centurion Boats and Phase 5 Wakesurfers.
5)Tell us a little about your lake and what makes it special?
    It’s a very small lake with not a lot of boat traffic as long as it’s not a holiday weekend. The summers up here in Wisconsin have perfect weather in my books. We can normally ride every day as long as its not too windy. Overall it makes for a great place to get in some good riding for the wakesurf season.
6) Does music play a role when you ride?
    Yes, there is nothing better than blasting some music and going out riding after work. I enjoy jamming to a lot of Rock music and some other types of music like Hilltop Hoods and The Glitch Mob. I now ride behind a 2013 Centurion Enzo FX22 with a banging stereo system. It definitely helps you relax more and not overthink tricks. It also keeps you from getting mad about falling on a trick you’ve landed a hundred times.
7) What pushes you in wakesurfing?
    I was never good at any board sports growing up. Wakeboarding, skateboarding, and snowboarding were never my thing although I am started to snowboard now. Once I started to get the hang of wakesurfing and learning new tricks, I got addicted to the sport. I never thought that one day I would be riding for board company’s like Phase 5 or Centurion Boats. So when all of this started coming together, I realized that I could actually take this somewhere. Ever since I’ve been pushing myself to get better to see how far wakesurfing will take me and how I can help the sport grow.
8) What trick did you learn in 2013?
    This year l learned a couple new tricks. I dialed in drifter to reverts, revert 180s, revert 360s, and frontside shuv-its both with the board revert and regular. Outside of all that I was able to really get consistent with all the tricks I can already do.
9) As far as plans for wakesurfing what are you thinking for 2014?
    My biggest plan for 2014 is to branch out into surf style riding and ride in both divisions at the competitions. For skim style, frontside bigspins are first on my list of new tricks to learn for the next season. As far as surf style goes, I’m just going to have fun with it for the time being!
10) Any last words?
    I would like to thank all my sponsors. Phase 5 Wakesurfers, Centurion Boats, Board Co., Monster Energy, Globe Shoes, Spy Optics, GoPro, and Tinus Marine. Also I want to thank all my friends and family that have been so supportive over the years and take the time to come out on the boat. Lastly, I would like to thank my brother Corbin Blanton of CB Filmz for all the great video work and Drew Danielo of Phase 5 Wakesurfers for pushing me and helping me progress to go places with wakesurfing.
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