Singapore Reef Wakefest was quite the experience. From the all-you-can-eat waterside buffet to Tino Santori’s demos to parties until five in the morning the day of competition, Singaporeans know how to do it right. Over 80 riders competed in the event but it seemed like the whole city showed up for support. The Singapore Wakeboard and Waterski Federation picked an insane spot to host a competition. Kallang Riverside Park is beautiful and surrounded by a magnificent city. Something you all may not know is that they claim to speak English over here. I say “claim” because I honestly was confused half of the time when speaking with locals. It’s a good thing that Reef flew Tino out to do the announcing for the event because otherwise I wouldn’t have been able to understand when to get ready to ride. Yes, I did ride in the competition, and no, I did not win. Another note: It seems like everyone who wakeboards in Asia has some wake club with whom they pledge allegiance. Really these clubs are party crews who hang out into the obscene hours of the morning, getting wasted and playing wakeboard drinking games … talk about some serious dedication. The thing that stuck out most to me was the enthusiasm on the part of everyone who participated in the event. Whether you were the best rider at the event (Tino) or a novice grom, everyone shared the stoke. In Asia there are no pretentious assholes (not that I am saying there are any in the States), everyone is simply excited to ride, progress and party. For more coverage of the event, tune into Wakenutts.com (one of the many wake/party clubs that exist over here in the Far East). And stay tuned for coverage of Reef Wakefest’s other two events in Hong Kong and Thailand.