JANESVILLE — With the Rock River at Traxler Park over its banks from record rain and a slow-no-wake order still in place, the Rock Aqua Jays haven’t practiced or performed at their home stadium since early June.
The team has performed only two home shows this season, on May 29 and June 2.
“We’re already halfway through our season with only two home shows, which is both surprising and disappointing,” Rock Aqua Jays President Tim Cullen said in an interview this week.
Yet, after nearly two months of working hard to find other places to practice, the team says it’s ready to defend its state title at the Wisconsin State Show Ski Championships in Wisconsin Rapids this weekend.
“We’re all really excited,” Cullen said.
“Competing at the state tournament this weekend is definitely going to be hard, but I think the effort, commitment, teamwork and resilience of our team will give us the opportunity to shine through,” skier Grace Petzold said.
Cullen said 2010 was a similar situation, with the stadium flooded for most of the season. The last time the team lost an entire season to river flooding was 2008.
This year “we get close to making progress then we get a weekend of rain. We have a great team of teammates and people excited about the theme and the costumes, but we haven’t got a really good chance to show it to anybody,” Cullen said.
They have been finding places to practice, relying on the generosity of the Ski Broncs at Rock River at Shorewood Park in Love Park, Ill., the Aquanuts at Lake Mary in Twin Lakes and Mad-City Ski Team at Lake Monona in Madison.
“We’re seeing the good sportsmanship of other teams,” Cullen said.
Although the Aqua Jays say they are grateful to use the other teams’ sites, “it is difficult and time consuming to get the team members and equipment there. But we’re doing as much as we can,” Cullen said.
In a normal year, the Aqua Jays perform two home shows a week and practice at least two days beyond that.
This year, the team has skied together on the water only a half-dozen times. They have been able to practice on dry land and do stage work, Petzold said.
Rock Aqua Jay skier Dave Rezin, 47, of Janesville, has been on the team since 2002.
“It’s tough. It’s the cards that we are dealt,” Rezin said.
“We want to see one another. You want to be good teammates and cheer one another on. That sense of camaraderie brings people back year after year,” Rezin said.
Petzold, 23, of Madison, has been a Rock Aqua Jay skier since 2019.
“The summer has looked different than normal, but we’ve been able to make the most of it,” Petzold said, taking steps like carpooling to practices to be together.
“I think it shows the commitment of our team as a whole. It shows our desire to be on the water and do what we all love to do,” Petzold said. “It shows our resilience and flexibility as we find ways to make things work.”
“We appreciate our fans. We know our fans miss us and we miss them,” Rezin said.
Cullen said the team is crossing its fingers that the river comes down soon.
“At some point we have to get ready for the national tournament in the middle of August. We want to defend that title. Rockford (Love Park, Ill.) is scheduled to host it, but they’re also technically dealing with high water so we hope they can host the tournament,” Cullen said.
Cullen said one of the most challenging aspects is that expenses are incurred before the season starts with insurance, costumes and props.
Without concessions or donations, Cullen is hoping the community will support the team in other ways. The next Rock Aqua Jay fundraiser is at Glen Erin Golf Club, 1417 W. Airport Road, on Friday, Sept. 6 at 10 a.m.
“We want to continue offering this to the community, it’s just going to be hard when we don’t have income,” Cullen said.
For updates on shows, follow the Rock Aqua Jays Water Ski Show Team Facebook page.
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