LaurelLakeSkier writes "Well, after pelvic surgery last year and past neck injuries, nothing can stop the immortal Jon DeBelak.
The Sinissippi Mud Run opened Wisconsin’s 2011 Figure 8 season on May 21st and Jon DeBelak let everyone know that he is fully recovered from last year’s injury by winning both the open and the senior division in the tournament. The early season tournament had good water conditions and despite limited time on the water for most skiers, long runs were the norm for the day. The forecast called for rain and the end of the world and although skiers did get pelted with occasional showers, preliminary reports are that everyone survived to see Sunday morning.
Full 8’s were run on a fairly regular basis all day long in both the open and senior divisions. At one point Marc Donahue and Jon DeBelak ran 3 1/4 figure eights with DeBelak taking the win. Eventually DeBelak’s training partner, Mark Mahan, put Jon into the losers bracket of the open division but DeBelak worked his way through the bracket and beat Mahan twice in the finals to take the win.
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Open division winners: 1st Jon DeBelak (center), 2nd Mark Mahan (left), 3rd Marc Donahue (right)
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The event was pulled by a MasterCraft X-14 and skiers seemed to be pleased with the speed and wake it provided.
Senior division winners:
1st Jon DeBelak (left), 2nd Marc Donahue (center), 3rd Rob Christensen (right)
Junior division winners:
1st Grant Johnson (right), 2nd Chase DeBelak (left)
The step-off zone gave skiers good conditions all day long.
Not all the step-offs went smoothly…
….and some deepwater starts were allowed to keep all footers in the action.
Mark Mahan celebrates rounding an 8 with Paul Stokes. Full 8s and multiple 8s were a fairly regular occurrence during the tournament.
Chris Mcwatters and Marc Donahue cruise through the course.
Marc Donahue wears down Rob Christensen and eventually wins this round.
Training partners Jon DeBelak and Mark Mahan finish up one of several of their match-ups. Mahan won in this battle but DeBelak eventually won the war in the open division.
Banned from yet another site????
While he wasn’t taking down the competition, Jon DeBelak picks up skis and tries to stay dry (and warm) during one of the day’s showers.
Jon DeBelak celebrates one of his many wins during the day. Here his victim is Marc Donahue.
The crystal clear waters of Lake Sinissippi….this is why they call it the Mud Run!
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