Water-skiing tricks a game of strategy and risk

For Jaret Llewellyn, the water skiing tricks event is cutthroat. You miss one trick, you can move down a place in the standings; you miss two tricks, you could bow out of contention for a medal.

“If you’re going to trick over 10,000 points, you got to go basically full throttle. If you back off, take out some of those bigger tricks, you can still stay off the pace,” Llewellyn said after his silver-medal performance Thursday at the Pan Am Games. “Right now I don’t have any gears. For me coming in just having one gear and just being solid I feel really happy about it.”

The 44-year-old Canadian veteran and winner of nine world championships said most skiers at events like the Pan Ams will try to do enough to get through the preliminary rounds. Once you have a shot at the podium, however, skiers put everything on the line and opt for the highest scoring tricks of the highest risk: 360 flips and front flips worth 800 points, 180 flips at 750 points and back flips for 500 points.

Bronze medallist Javier Julio of Argentina opted for a more balanced sequence the featured a repertoire of hard tricks cushioned by easier ones.

“My goal was to do my max, 10,200 points and that could be a bronze medal,” he said. I didn’t trick that much but I ended up in third position. And I didn’t have enough points to get second or first. That strategy worked well for me.”

Contestants have 20 seconds to perform as many tricks as possible without stumbling, bobbling or wiping out. The harder, higher risk the trick, the higher the score. But having a more balanced routine also has merit.

“It’s not one trick it’s what you accomplish in the 40 seconds in total. It’s pretty tough, “Julio said, adding that he completes roughly 14 tricks inside the allocated time. “The guys that win, take more risk and are a little better than I am. That’s how it is.”

Both Llewellyn and Julio finished behind gold medallist Adam Pickos of the U.S.

Canadian water skier Jason McClintock, who just missed capturing the bronze, said he’s been performing his sequence for more than five years and does exactly the same run at every major tournament.

“It’s the sequence that flows best for me. But everyone has that deal,” he said. “Some of the guys might have an easier run, depending on what score they need to get. For me, I’m putting it all out there trying to maximize.”

Tricks are not like wakeboarding where a you can outscore someone else who is doing the same trick, said McClintock. Most skiers stack their runs with flips and other tricks but it all has to fit within the allotted time.

“I’m getting better and better and faster. I had a judge tell me ‘you know you have two seconds left at the end of your run’,” McClintock said. “So you need to fill it with something. We call that garbage tricks, at the end, but they can really add up.”