Number 11 George Tracy
In June of 2020, water skiing enthusiast George Tracy died in an accident that involved the handle
of his tow rope. 69-year-old Tracy was a lifelong water skier who, after retiring from the plumbing
business he owned in Florida’s Vero Beach, dedicated himself to the sport full time. He took
part in competitions and even earned prizes in his age group. Tracy’s favorite spot was a small
lake east of Interstate 95, which is where his fatal accident occurred. He was on his last lap,
towed behind a 19-foot Ski Nautique boat when he fell and his head got caught in the tow line
handle. With the boat dragging Tracy behind it, at roughly 32 mph, the man suffered a broken neck.
While rare, such accidents have occurred in the past, prompting water skiers to use
guards on their handles. Number 10 Mike Flynn
In February of 2014, Mike Flynn was training for the Nautique Big Dawg tournament in Guadalajara,
Mexico. The 48-year-old was an experienced water skier who worked as an EMT and a firefighter. As
he was cutting the water’s surface, at high speed, one of his skis became detached from
its binding. Flynn fell forward in the water at which point the tip of his ski struck him in the
face. Flynn hadn’t realized the severity of his injury until he went to the bathroom to clean the
blood off his face. It was then that he noticed the bridge of his nose had become a gaping hole.
It was mended through an 8-hour surgery during which 84 screws were inserted into Flynn’s skull,
along with mesh and webbing. Number 9 Sarah Teelow
Australian water skier Sarah Teelow had started competing since she was in her early teens and,
in 2013, she won the Waterski Racing World Championship. Unfortunately, that same year the
20-year-old athlete would suffer a fatal accident. On November the 24th, she was taking part in a
race, on Hawkesbury River, in north Sydney. Teelow passed under a railway bridge, at about 85 mph.
Her boat driver then slowed down due to incoming minor waves. The water skier passed the first wave
but then suffered a devastating wipeout. She cartwheeled along the water with both her ski
and helmet becoming detached. After on-site resuscitation attempts,
Teelow was airlifted to Royal North Shore Hospital, in critical condition. She was placed
on life support but succumbed to her injuries later that day. The high-speed collision with
the water’s surface impacted her head and neck, causing internal decapitation. In medical terms,
the injury is known as atlanto-occipital dislocation and it describes a separation
of the spinal column from the skull base. Less than a third of cases in which it occurs
do not result in immediate death. Number 8 Karl Brooks
In 2007, British water skier Karl Brooks was in peak form as the reigning European Champion
and as the 3rd ranked water ski racer in the world. In June, he was training at Lake Mead,
near Las Vegas, where he suffered a fatal wipeout. 25-year-old Brooks,
who was referred to as the “David Beckham of water skiing”, fell while going anywhere from
80 to 100 mph. To put that into perspective, Brooks had achieved a greater speed than the
average fastball thrown in baseball. Since the water can’t displace fast enough, impacting
its surface at that speed is akin to hitting concrete. Brooks suffered severe head injuries.
His teammates took him to shore and a park ranger fought to save his life, for 30 minutes,
but he was ultimately pronounced dead. Number 7 Sue Ehrthardt
In 1977, Sue Ehrthardt and her friends decided to go water skiing at San Diego’s Silver Strand.
31-year-old Ehrthardt had had a few runs when a boat malfunction
resulted in her suffering a horrific injury. The shifting mechanism had failed and, as the driver
powered the watercraft to go forward, it went into reverse. Ehrthardt was standing behind the boat
at the time and was struck by its propeller. The woman’s left leg was severed completely while the
rapidly rotating device also cut deeply into her right leg. She was rushed to a Coronado hospital
where doctors were able to save her life. After several months of hospitalization,
Ehrthardt was cleared to return home. She was fitted with a prosthetic leg and gradually adapted
to her new life, even becoming an avid golfer, in her later years.
Number 6 Unnamed Teenager In 2019, an unnamed Australian teenager was left
in critical condition following a water skiing accident on the Cooks River, in Sydney’s south.
The 15-year-old was taking part in a pre-selection event for the world racing championships. His
mother and grandmother were reportedly in the stands when the accident occurred. As the
teenager was being towed on the water’s surface, a second boat crashed into him. Four ambulance
crews arrived on site via helicopter and took him to St George Hospital, with a fractured leg,
a fractured arm and extensive head injuries. Both boat drivers were taken to the hospital where they
underwent mandatory tests for drugs or alcohol and one of the boats was also towed by the police
as part of the investigation. Number 5 Ryan Bergeron
Florida man Ryan Bergeron had started water skiing with his family at the age of 5. When he was only
13, he joined a performance troupe called the Sarasota Ski-A-Rees. In the late 2000s,
Begeron took a job at a Brazilian theme park. In 2008, during the opening act of a performance,
the 22-year-old was skiing barefoot and attempting a trick that involved flipping onto his back for a
spin. Bergeron lost control during the turn and, as he let go of the tow rope, crashed into a sea
wall. He was rushed to a hospital with devastating injuries to his spinal cord. About a week later,
doctors told him that he’d never walk again. Bergeron was hospitalized in Brazil for roughly
a month, as he recovered from spinal cord surgery. He would then undergo physical therapy in Atlanta.
Even though he was unable to use his legs, Bergeron wanted to water ski again. He contacted
an organization called “U Can Ski 2”, which taught skiing to people with disabilities.
Bergeron learned to use a sitski, a wakeboard with an aluminum cage that held his body in a tucked
and seated position. After only a few sessions, he was reportedly capable of doing 360 degree turns.
Number 4 Tony van Deursen In 2011, Tony van Deursen, a champion water skier,
died during a race on New Zealand’s Lake Taupo. At the time, 57-year-old van Deursen was competing
in the master’s class of a national series. He’d reportedly reached speeds of over 95 mph
before he took a brutal fall and instantly broke his neck. Van Deursen passed away in
the emergency room of Taupo hospital. Only months before his tragic demise, his daughter, Olivia,
had been involved in a similar accident. The 34-year-old, who held 10 national racing titles,
narrowly avoided death and paralysis after she broke her neck. She recovered rapidly
and returned to the sport. Olivia was training in Auckland at the time of her father’s passing
and, in the aftermath, stated an intention of permanently retiring from water ski racing.
Number 3 Tim Driver In 2010, a water skier
lost his life following a crash at the Southern 80 event on the Murray River, in Australia. The race,
held annually on the second weekend in February, attracts hundreds of competitors from all over
the world. The accident occurred only a few minutes into the tandem race portion
of the event. 43-year-old Driver and his partner, also in his early 40s, both lost control after
rounding a bend. As Driver let go of the rope, he overbalanced and a ski struck him in the chest,
at high speed. His partner collided with the river bank and sustained a broken collarbone from which
he ultimately recovered. Driver’s injuries were severe and, after paramedics attempted to revive
him for 45 minutes, he was pronounced dead at the scene. Aside from his fatal accident, the
2010 edition of Southern 80 was marred by several severe injuries. Among the reported incidents
were 2 skiers who’d suffered broken legs and 2 others that had sustained neck injuries.
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Number 2 David Perrotto The tragic passing of Tim Driver was
just one of several deaths reported throughout the Southern 80 water ski race’s history.
A few years prior, in 2007, David Perrotto had entered a hairpin bend, described as being among
the worst sections of the race. The 36-year-old racer lost control after hitting a sandbar at
high speed. He was launched in front of his skis and fell face-first into waist-deep water. A local
man saw the accident, which occurred about 50 feet from the river’s edge. He went into the water and
found Perrotto floating face down with blood pooling around him. The rescuer and his wife,
who was a nurse, performed resuscitation until paramedics arrived in an ambulance helicopter.
Unfortunately, Perrotto’s injuries proved too extensive and he died before he could receive
further medical support. Number 1 Amber Rangel
On July the 27th of 2014, Amber Rangel, a world-class barefoot water skier,
was training for an upcoming competition. The 19-year-old was a defending champion
in the trick section of the US barefoot national water ski championship. During
her practice session, she suffered a life-altering accident while attempting a jump. On the approach,
Rangel tripped on the water and lost her grip on the tow rope handle. She crashed head-first into
the ramp while going approximately 43 miles per hour. Had she not been wearing a helmet,
Rangel would’ve most likely died on the spot. She bounced off the ramp and went flying several feet
into the air. She’d broken her neck in several places and severely injured her left arm. Because
of a C5 spinal cord injury, Rangel became a quadriplegic, with only limited movement in her
arms. Determined to return to the water, the young woman took up SCUBA diving less than a year later.
She’d managed to do so through an organization called Diveheart that specialized in adapting
the activity for people with cognitive and physical disabilities. Her newfound passion
eventually took Rangel to diving expeditions in Mexico, Honduras and Iceland.
Thanks for watching! Would you attempt a high-speed water ski jump,
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