Parks going back to where it began

Words & Photos: Jeff Mathis

Riding Order: 

  1. Shota Tezuka 
  2. Guenther Oka 
  3. Steel Lafferty
  4. Massi Piffaretti
  5. Jeff Langley
  6. Parks Bonifay

Rules

  • Rider order chosen at the beginning
  • Each rider gets 5 attempts
  • Rider chooses driver
  • Judging done by riders (except driver) for overall impression
  • Honorable mentions for highest air and best crash
  • Either send it or GTFO …

Overall Winner: Shota Tezuka (re-entry heel 9)

Highest Air: Guenther Oka

Best Crash: Jeff Langley

Re-entries have always been a fun part of wakeboarding. If you’re not sure what a re-entry is, it’s when the rider does a trick off the lip of the wake and lands on the same side they took off from. It can be done with or without a double-up roller. If you need a visual representation then go study Park’s section in 12 Honkeys. He blasts a huuuuuuge back 5 about three quarters of the way through that still makes my jaw drop. (And while we’re on the topic, if you’ve never seen that video then find a copy and watch it right now.) Alright, now that you’ve got a little more wake knowledge in that noggin of yours, we can get into this re-entry ridiculousness. There seems to be a resurgence of re-entry hits floating around social media, so we figured we’d capitalize on the craze while it’s hot. Riders like Guenther Oka, Cory Teunissen, and plenty of others have been getting weird with it and the results have been rad.

New knee, check. Massi’s here to party.

Jeff Langley: pre-nosedive

For this contest, we obviously wanted to incorporate the double up roller to see who could boost the biggest. So after we hashed out the details, we hopped on the phone and hit up some of the best “go big” guys we could think of and made a plan. Jeff Langley was gracious enough to host it at his place right on Clear Lake in Orlando, as well as pull it behind his Malibu 24 MXZ. The invites were sent and after a little debate on the date, we were set to go into “full huck mode”. We had a solid line up to work with, consisting of Langley, Parks Bonifay, Steel Lafferty, Massi Piffaretti, Guenther Oka and Shota Tezuka. All these dudes are good friends, which made the afternoon that much more entertaining. Just talking shit to each other the whole time, trying to get in each other’s heads. You have to love the comradery.

Once the crew had arrived, it was time to go over the rules (or lack thereof …), pick a riding order, and get out on the water. With the help of Shane Bonifay’s party barge, we had a perfect spot for the other riders to get a clear view of the action. We made sure to have a cooler stocked with plenty of NOTBEERS to keep the boys refreshed, and had Shota Tezuka strap in for the first pull. Shota’s one of those riders who can spin wake-to-wake 10’s like it’s nobody’s business and take any trick he wants out into the flats. Needless to say, he was an easy choice for this contest. Shota’s been a little touch-and-go with the re-entries but we knew he could come up with something special. After a good warm up air, he started getting into it. On his second attempt, he connected on his heels and whipped around a 900 but just popped the handle on the last pass. It was no surprise when he stomped it on his next go. Was it an NBD? We’re not sure but I’ve definitely never seen a re-entry 9 … have you? He had a couple more attempts but nothing was going to outshine that niner. Next up was Mr. Guenther Oka. Guenther’s been on a tear for a while and we knew he’d bring some of that freshness to this event. Needless to say, he did not disappoint. After a few playful slayshes, Langley lined him up with his first hit and he aired out one of the sickest “handle-in-hand” methods I’ve ever seen. Check the sequence later in this issue to see it in all of its glory. Once he put that down, he started going for the highest air with a wrapped ts/bs 360 that was going way out the back. He couldn’t bring it down so, beaten and battered, he hopped in the boat and we were on to our third rider: Steel Lafferty.

Guenther Oka claiming biggest air (and best riding face)

Steel has been known for his amplitude basically from the start of his career so he was a no-brainer to invite to this contest. He’s a big advocate for the double up so we thought he’d be right at home with the double up re-entries. After some misfires on his first two attempts, he stuck a picture perfect ts indy roll to blind and shrugged it off like it was no big deal. Next up, we had the Pizza Boy himself: Massi Piffaretti. Just recently cleared to ride again after his knee surgery, Massi was chomping at the bit to hit the water. After sizing up the wake, he wrapped up and gave it a go with some ts/bs 3’s. After an afternoon of driving, it was finally time to let our host give it a go. Jeff Langley is another fan of the double up and if you’ve ever seen a clip of his riding, you know he’s not afraid to boost. However, the re-entries proved to be a little trickier for Jeff and on his first hit, he cased a bit coming down which got him out of control and ended up digging his nose in which left him with a little water swirling around in his head. It was also good enough for “Best Crash” so I guess there’s always a silver lining? What do you think Jeff? Thanks for the laugh. We enjoyed it. But he still had a few more attempts so, after his head drained out, he got back out there and was able to send a few for the crew. Comeback king! 

Shota steeze

Last but not least, none other than the Ski Baby himself: Parks Bonifay. Parks has been hitting re-entries before a couple of the other riders even knew what a wakeboard was, and it showed. If you went back and watched 12 Honkeys like I asked then you would already know that. Jokes aside, any time Parks gets on the water, it’s a pleasure to watch. Not wasting any time, he got right into the meat of his first hit with a re-entry crow. Once he had that under his belt, he went for some indy ts/bs 3’s. After he got punted on a couple, he was able to bring one around and ride it out which stoked out the judges on Shane’s party barge. After a short deliberation, it was clear who took the cake. Most people struggle to do a 900 wake to wake, let alone off a re-entry roller. That didn’t seem to be a problem for Shota who stuck one on his third run. Maybe we’ll see a 10 when we go for Round 2. You never know. But the next time you’re out riding, give a few of these ago. You might get worked or you might just surprise yourself. Only one way to find out!  

Just a little cruise on Shane’s party barge. Book yours today!

 Re-entries revived!

So you think you’re ready to start smashing some re-entries and spinning 9’s like these guys? Well, before you go hucking yourself all around, take a few tips from our winner Shota Tezuka. Shota has been going huge his entire career and has picked up a few tips along the way. Check out this list and when you’re ready, get out there and get it. Make sure you film it and send it in though. We can always use some good crash clips… 

The spoils of war

Re-Entry Tips with Shota Tezuka

  1. When trying these, it’s important to keep it fun. It’s not a serious thing so don’t treat it that way. I really started messing around with them because all the dudes I was riding with were. They’re super fun and gets everyone on the boat stoked. 
  2. I like to go big when doing these so I always aim for the biggest roller to boost as high as I can. Third roller or nothing!
  3. Make sure you know how to hit a double up before getting into these. A lot of the timing is the same, it’s just a different edge and take off.
  4. When cutting into a big re-entry, I’m focused on going straight up rather than out. Try to edge into the roller but come off early and push away from the wake to go straight up. If you have too much speed, you’ll have a hard landing right in the middle of the wake.
  5. I like watching old videos for inspiration before trying these. Parks’ section in 12 Honkeys is always a good choice. But you should already know that!