The Riders
Christine Bickley
Ambassador
Specialities
- Wakeboard or Wakesurf: I am now a committed wakesurfer and want to spend all my time on the water on my skim board. I’ve dabbled in surf style but the manoeuvrability of the skim board is my preference. Each to their own, and I love seeing new people get out on the wave on whatever board they like. I encourage everyone to have a go, and why not jump in an enter a competition?!
- Home riding spot: LDB Wakeschool, Chertsey. The Thorpe Park rollercoasters are our backdrop – but you wouldn’t get me on one. I’d much rather be on the water.
- Favourite place to ride: After LDB, it has to be Dubai. It has a special place in my heart and my partner and I have been going in March for pre-season riding for 4 years.
- Favourite trick: Last year I said the ollie 180, but now I am working on a switch ollie 180 on top of the wave. It could be the new contender for favourite trick!
- Favourite Malibu: I love them all, but am particularly in love with the latest LDB boat which is a Malibu 21 MLX. Oh boy, that wave just pulls you back in when you think you’re heading over the back!
- Favourite Axis: Last year LDB had a T220 – I love that, but I’ve never ridden one I didn’t like.
- Favourite boat feature on Malibu or Axis: That pull down step in the back of the forward facing seat on the Malibu 23 LSV – whoever designed that deserves a medal!
- Advice for someone just starting out: Get good coaching – it will accelerate the learning curve and make it a lot more fun!
- Best moment of your career so far: Has to be attending the first ever IWWF World Championships in Hong Kong in 2024, and being invited to The World Games in Chengdu in August 2025.
- Goals for 2025: To improve my competition runs and spread the word! Wakesurfing is for everyone, regardless of age or ability. Come on down to the lake! You never know where that first ride will take you…
Mitch Wise
Team Rider
Specialities
- Discipline: Wakeboard
- Introduction:
- I'm Mitch Wise, a 23-year-old wakeboarder with an 18-year journey in the sport. Having travelled internationally for wakeboarding, I've formed lasting friendships within the community and cherished every moment of being part of this beautiful culture.
- Background: I discovered wakeboarding at Tallington Lakes, inspired by older kids, who became mentors. When I first started competing, there were 6 or 7 of us at a similar level. This rivalry motivated me to dedicate countless hours to honing my skills on the water. Today, I continue riding at Tallington, inspiring the next generation to embrace the sport and guiding them in their progression.
- Favourite Riding Spots: Lake Jessamine in Orlando holds a special place in my heart. It's where my friends resided, and the memories of lake life, paired with the meaty wake from Luca and Massi's M235s, remain etched in my mind. The camaraderie of a solid crew provided inspiration and guidance that shaped my journey.
- Favourite Trick: An Indy tantrum to blind because it feels soooo good.
- Favourite Boats: In the UK, the Malibu 22MXZ holds the top spot for me, closely followed by the Axis A22. The standout feature that sets Malibu apart is the wedge, unmatched by any other boat brand.
- Advice for Beginners: Dive in headfirst! Watch wakeboarding movies from pro riders on YouTube to absorb inspiration and shape your future style. Surround yourself with riders better than you, hit the trampoline early on.
- Career Highlight: The pinnacle of my career was in 2018, at the European Championships in Italy. Sharing the podium with childhood friends from the AOD stops and Riders League events made it extra special. The after party, set against the backdrop of water fireworks in a remote location, was a magical experience, resonating with my love for nature.
- Goals for 2024: Returning to international competitions after recovering from injuries and integrating my passion for wakeboarding with exciting projects to help the sport grow which has always been my goal. Started with my passion for filming when I picked up a camera to try to attempt wakeboarding in an exciting/ creative way that captivates people’s minds.
- Recognising the need for innovation in the UK wakeboarding scene, I aim to spearhead new, inspiring events that inject fresh energy into the community.
- Closing Statement: Wakeboarding in the UK is primed for a shakeup. The current landscape feels stagnant with repetitive contests. It's time for a new, cool event that not only fuels enthusiasm among riders but captivates the audience, injecting a new sense of inspiration into the sport. Let's usher in a new era of excitement and growth for wakeboarding in the UK and use Malibu as a driving force in this movement.
Jake Williams
Team Rider
Specialities
- Wakeboard or Wakesurf: Wakeboard
- A bit about me: I started wakeboarding at the age of 10 when i joined the ISIS Waterski and Wakeboard Club, where i met some friends that wakeboard as well. We’ve pushed and challenged each other to land new tricks which has got me to where i am now.
- Home riding spot: ISIS Waterski and Wakeboard Club
- Favourite place to ride: ISIS Waterski and Wakeboard Club
- Favourite trick: Dum dum
- Favourite Malibu: Malibu 23 LSV
- Favourite Axis: Axis T220
- Favourite boat feature on Malibu or Axis: Amazing wake
- Advice for someone just starting out: Don’t be a pussy and send it
- Best moment of your career so far: Winning the 2023 UK Nationals
- Goals for 2024: Mobe 5 and a raley
Travis Beaton
Team Rider
Specialities
- Wakeboard or Wakesurf: Wakeboard
- Background: I've been wakeboarding for a decade, all started seeing it on holiday thinking “I could do that”. I eventually found somewhere to try it once I got back to the UK and fell in love with the endless process of learning, always a new trick to work on or finding ways to improve my current bag of tricks. Recently I spend a lot of my time now passing on this passion for learning new tricks onto the next generation of riders by coaching
- Home riding spot: LDB Wakeschool
- Favourite riding spot: Sproat lake, Canada
- Favourite trick: Pete Rose
- Favourite Malibu: M220
- Favourite feature: The Power wedge as this allows me to quickly adapt the wake with a press of a button depend on the level of rider I’m coaching.
- Advice for new people starting: Dial in the basics. The longer you spend perfecting the basics the much easier the process of learning new tricks will be.
- Goals for 2024: To land Double Backroll
Charlotte Millward
Team Rider
Specialities
- Wakeboard or Wakesurf: Wakeboard
- A bit about me: I started waterskiing at ten years old in a small Saturday club, where I later got hooked on wakeboarding. Since then I’ve spent countless hours at the lake, surprised myself with tricks I never thought I’d be able to land and have been lucky enough to travel to some really cool places! If you see me around, you can bet I’m out looking for my next trick.
- Home riding spot: Chasewater Sports Centre
- Favourite place to ride: COWakes Florida
- Favourite trick: Tail grab backside 180
- Favourite Malibu: 22MXZ
- Favourite Axis: T220
- Favourite boat feature on Malibu or Axis:
- The wedge system because it helps me to get a lot more height off the wake without having to add any extra ballast.
- Advice for someone just starting out: The best wakeboarders I know are the ones that just keep getting up again.
- Best moment of your career so far: As a junior attending my first European and Africa Championships, I managed to get a gold medal in my category. I didn’t find out the results till later that day, when my team mates screamed the result and immediately threw me into the swimming pool.
- Goals for 2025: To try some fresh tricks and enjoy being creative with my riding!
Ryan Thayne
Team Rider
Specialities
- Wakeboard or Wakesurf: Wakesurf
- Background: I started wakeboard when I was about 7 years old. My mum had just come back to waterskiing and me and my brothers went down to JBski to watch my mum ski and we spotted the cable and wants to try it. I wakeboarded for about 6 years, and I tried Wakesurf and something new to do and never went back to wakeboarding
- Home riding spot: LDB Wakeschool
- Favourite riding spot: LDB Wakeschool
- Favourite trick: Ali oup
- Favourite Malibu: M220
- Favourite Axis: A225
- Favourite Malibu/Axis feature: the amount to storage. So much space to put boards away and how big the storage lockers are.
- Advice for someone just starting out: make sure you have fun.
- Career highlight so far: coming 2nd to Anthony Edwards (uk pro) in skim and surf style at the 2023 Nationals.
- Goals for 2025: learn some new tricks and just be consistent
Rob Donaldson
Ambassador
Specialities
- Wakeboard or Wakesurf: Wakesurf
- Background: I started riding in 2015 and have been a part of the GB squad since it was formed.
- Home riding spot: ISIS, Caversham
- Favourite riding spot: ISIS, Caversham
- Favourite trick: Stalled Revert
- Favourite Malibu: 24 MXZ
- Favourite Axis: T250
- Favourite Malibu/Axis feature: The wedge
- Advice for someone just starting out: Get behind a Malibu or Axis!
- Career highlight so far: Being part of the GB squad; winning UK Nationals twice; 1st, 2nd and 3rd at Europeans
- Goals for 2025: learn a body varial, shuv and Alley oop.
Paul Davis
Team Rider
Specialities
- Wakeboard or Wakesurf: Wakesurf
- Background: grew up surfing at the beach, later in life moved inland and felt a bit landlocked but discovered lakes and wakeboarding, absolutely loved it but succumbed to a back injury which kind of brought me full circle back to surfing albeit wakesurfing…
- Home riding spot: Northampton. England
- Favourite riding spot: Gastes in southern France where I have a second home.
- Favourite trick: love Air but maybe that’s a throwback to the wakeboarding years
- Favourite Malibu: 23 MXZ all day long, such a perfect ride
- Favourite Axis:A22
- Favourite Malibu/Axis feature: mostly love the design, great visibility with great true ‘ocean’ feel waves, not experienced that on any other boat as yet
- Advice for someone just starting out: - perseverance pays, keep at it, never give up, anything is possible…
- Career highlight so far: taking 2nd place podium finish in 2023 at shred time competing in open men’s wakesurf
- Goals for 2025: become the better me I know I can be and taking a podium finish competing as a team GB athlete
Max Williams
Team Rider
Specialities
- Wakeboard or Wakesurf: Wakeboard
- Background: I started wakeboarding when I was five at ISIS wakeboarding and waterski club, but didn’t start taking it seriously until I was eight or nine. When I first started, I was really motivated to keep riding from some of the older riders who also helped me learn new tricks from the beginning.
- Home riding spot: ISIS wakeboard and waterski club
- Favourite riding spot: Xtreme Gene
- Favourite trick: toeside backroll
- Favorite Malibu: 23 LSV
- Favorite Axis: T220
- Favourite Malibu/Axis feature: The sliding seats in the middle of the boat.
- Advice for someone just starting out: Keep going with any water sport even though it seems tough.
- Career highlight so far: 2nd place in the 2024 wakeboard nationals
- Goals for 2025: land a tantrum and scarcrow or a heel side backroll.
Emilia Whitehouse
Team Rider
Specialities
- Wakeboard or Wakesurf: Wakesurf
- How did you get into Wakesurfing? I started wakesurfing when I was 13 and instantly fell in love with it. Ever since my family and myself have pushed my skills in wakesurfing to the limit by training every weekend once the season starts. At the moment I currently hold two UK national titles and I have been selected for the UK wakesurf team! My aim with wakesurfing is to push others outside their comfort zones and try new sports such as wakesurfing so by me promoting it hopefully it encourages others to try the sport as well.
- Home Riding Sport: Tallington Lakes
- Favourite Trick: Air with a grab
- Favourite Malibu: Malibu 23 LSV
- Favourite Axis: Axis T220
- Favourite Malibu/Axis Feature:The malibu wrist band that controls the speed and wedge when surfing...and the music too :)
- Advice to someone starting out: Persevere and don't give up as wakesurfing can be frustrating to try and learn and to learn new tricks but perseverance is key and it will definitely pay off.
- Career Highlight: Winning nationals in 2021, 2022 and 2024
- Goals for 2025: To learn new tricks such as shuv ins and shuv outs. I also want to get more coaching to improve my level of wakesurfing. As well I want to continue promoting wakesurfing as a whole and especially to the younger generations and specifically the girls too!
Ava Sherfield
Team Rider
Specialities
- Wakeboard or Wakesurf: Wakeboard and wakesurf
- A bit about me: When I was younger I used to ride cable a little bit until we found a lake nearer us which provided boat wakeboarding. I started riding seriously about 3 years ago and competed in the 2021 nationals.
- Home riding spot: Isis waterski and wakeboard club
- Favourite riding spot: My home lake isis is my favourite place to ride
- My favourite trick: is a fashionair because it is fun and stylish
- My favourite Malibu: is the 23lsv because the lip on the wake makes it super poppy and sends you flying
- My favourite axis: is the t220
- My favourite boat feature: is the wedge because you can change the shape of the wake super easily depending on how you like it or if you need more of a lip or less of a lip for learning new tricks
- My advice for someone just starting: is to make sure you nail the basics with the correct technique because good technique makes learning new tricks much easier
- The best moment of my career: was winning nationals 2023 in junior women
- My goals for 2024: are to take my riding to another level and hopefully compete abroad
Kate Waldron
Ambassador
Specialities
- Wakeboard or Wakesurf: Wakeboarder
- A bit about me: Pushed my feet ( with great difficulty)into some wakeboarding bindings back in 2007! Rode very little but found Xtreme Gene years later. Thought my wakeboard days were over after having 2 Children! But the water was calling! Now 5 years later, I'm utterly grateful to represent the GB Squad +40 Women Category ☺️
- Home spot riding: LDB + Tallington Lakes
- Favourite place to ride: LBD
- Favourite Trick: Massive Stale Fish
- Favourite Malibu: 22MXZ
- Favourite Axis: T220
- Favourite boat feature on Malibu or Axis: Has to be 'The WEDGE'!!!
- Advice for someone just starting out: Find a coach!! You'll progress quicker with techniques in a fun, safe environment.
- Best moment of your career so far: Being Selected for the GB Squad '22 and placing 2nd at Europeans in 2022
Joe Humphries
Team Rider
Specialities
- Wakeboard or Wakesurf: Wakeboard
- About me: got involved when parents wanted a sport to get the whole family involved. Started boarding at 4 years old and loved it ever since. Currently training a lot and over the last few years have finished well in international comps and had a fair few national podiums and wins.
- Home riding spot: Xtreme Wake
- Favourite place to ride: Xtreme Wake
- Favourite Malibu: M220
- Favourite axis: T220
- Favourite Feature: The steepness and size of the wake you can get out of a 20-22 ft boat which is perfect for shallow uk lakes.
- Advice for someone starting out: get your self involved in unserious competitions (grass routes level) or even intermediate categories in nationals because the best and most fun way to progress is by making friends in the sport and riding together.
- Best moment of career: winning open men in nationals in 2022.
- Goals for 2025: Learn some more mobe 5's so I can hold my own a bit better in international comps.
Melissa Lock
Team Rider
Specialities
- Wakeboard or Wakesurf: Wakeboard
- A bit about me: I grew up around water skiing and wakeboarding at my local club, which I am now the chairperson of. I started out competing in the Cutting Edge Competitions (formerly Kids Koaching Kompetition), which got me involved in all disciplines, until I was selected for the GB squad in 2013. Since then I have competed at several international events and come away with a few European Championship medals and European Pro Tour podium spots. In more Recent years, as well as riding, I have become a qualified wakeboard judge and joined the Wakeboard UK Committee.
- Home riding spot: Charnwood Waterski and Wakeboard Club
- Favourite place to ride: LDB Wakeschool
- Favourite trick: Halfcab Roll
- Favourite Malibu: 23LSV
- Favourite Axis: T220
- Favourite boat feature on Malibu or Axis: Power Wedge III
- Advice for someone just starting out: make sure you get a good grasp of the basics, to give you good foundations for the harder tricks as you progress!
- Best moment of your career so far: Placing 2nd at Europeans in Junior Women 2017 & 2018
- Goals for 2024: after a year of ill health and injuries, my main goals for 2024 are to get back out on the water, enjoy being able to wakeboard again, and learn some new tricks!
Max Jones
Ambassador
Specialities
- Wakeboard or Wakesurf: Wakeboard & Foiling
- A bit about me: I bought a 18ft sea ray leisure boat with 2 friends when I was 27. It had a monster tower
- and we started to wakeboard in the estuary (Exmouth, devon).
- When I was activley DJing someone got me to perform at the Quays wake open comp.
- Now I’m living my dream out on the water with so many people that have the same
- passion and love for the sport as me.
- Home riding spot: LDB WAKESCHOOL
- Favourite place to ride: LDB WAKESCHOOL
- Favourite trick: Chicken salad bk 1, melon toe 3
- Favourite Malibu: M220
- Favourite Axis: A225
- Favourite boat feature on Malibu or Axis:
- Has to be the signature wedge. When you hit that button and the boat does a wheelie!!
- Mad feels seeing the shape of the wave change so much.
- Advice for someone just starting out:
- >Try not to overthink what your doing, keep it simple.
- >Listen & be confident in your ability.
- >Give it 110%
- Best moment of your career so far: Winning nationals in 2019, stomped a bk 3, toe 3 then backroll with Lee Debuse driving
- was a insane intro to competing at the nationals.
- Goals for 2024: To finally compete again in the wakeboard nationals! It’s been a long road since Acl op in
- 2020 and then blowing out my other knee then day before 2023. Hopefully 2024 is the
- year