May 1, 2025
Interview with David OC.
Hey Dave, what age did you first get into the sport?
Well I started waterskiing at about 5 years old. My neighbor had a boat and he used to take us all out skiing on the weekends. Then when I was about 10 my parents bought me a wakeboard and that was the start of everything!
Awesome, and when did you start riding for O'Brien?
When I was 16 I was in Orlando and met Cobe & Tarah back when they used to coach at OWC. After a couple of sets, Cobe (who is the team manager) started to float the idea of becoming a 'factory rider' (as it was called at the time) for O'Brien. I hadn't tried their gear before, but I really clicked with the 'Coda' at the time so that sealed the deal. Funnily enough, at the time I felt like I was going through a bit of a bad period with my riding and the progress, so I was quite shocked when Cobe and the team expressed interest. But thankfully Cobe saw through it and I've been with O'Brien ever since!
Sweet! That leads us into our next question, what board do you ride?
Yesss, so I rode the Coda for a few years and loved it. I actually didn't think I would ever change board - but then one year at Surf Expo I 'stole' (with consent) a Valhalla. It was a board I always wanted to try. Anyway, I ended up landing my first ever 1080 within the first couple of rides on that board - and truthfully, I have never looked at or considered another board since. It's incredibly reliable and easy to control, and suits my way of riding tremendously.
Oh that is sick, what's your favorite memory wakeboarding?
Ahh it's tough to say, I have so many fond memories. I think my top 3 are.
- Landing that 1080!
- Landing my first double flip (it took years!).
- A couple of my trips were epic too. Australia, Thailand etc...
Sounds Awesome. What are your plans for 2025?
My main focus is to get out on the board as much as possible. I've got a few trips to the US booked and a couple of other things in the pipeline. I also want to waterski more (if you told me this 5 years ago I would have laughed, but I genuinely love it). The last number of years I've focused on social media, however I do kind of miss the buzz of competing. So I'm considering a waterski comp!! haha we'll see if it actually happens.