Must See: the Min-Aquabats

      A must-do for us at least once a summer, the Min-aqua bats Waterski show is One of the oldest water ski show teams in the United States. We generally hit the show on Wednesday night. It starts at 7pm and, on a Wednesday, we can usually get a pretty good seat without arriving too early. We pack up the kids and leave Boulder Junction around 5:30. The drive is about 20 mins and we like to grab a bite to eat in Minocqua (Usually at the Minocqua Brewing Co.) and get to our seats around 6:45.

    Honestly, before I discovered the Min-aqua bats, I wasn’t a big fan of waterskiing shows, having sat through them at theme parks like Sea World and Six Flags, but there’s nothing like a local amateur show with all the earnest personality of these young performers. Watching the not-always-perfect daring stunts they perform gives you a real sense of the difficulty of the sport and the can do spirit of this award-winning club.

     Don’t forget to bring hoodies as the breeze off the lake can be quite cool. And take along a bit of cash. Admission is free, but there’s hot cocoa and popcorn for sale, and after you enjoy the quality of the show, you’re going to want to pitch in as they “pass the bucket” for contributions to the clubs’ safety equipment.
     
     A bit of history from their facebook page: “The Min-Aqua Bats Water Ski Club originated in 1950 with a group of local young people water skiing on Sunday afternoons. After noticing their efforts were attracting an audience, the skiers decided to put together a show. And so the Min-Aqua Bats Water Ski Club was born. By 1952, the members had drafted a charter, set up the club as a nonprofit organization, constructed a handmade jump and started performing shows on a regular basis…The popularity of the shows was overwhelming. Soon the club was able to afford its first boat, a red, white and blue Correct Craft, purchased in 1952. Bleachers, lighting and a clubhouse were added by 1956. The concession stand, run by the club members' parents, was established in 1982.”
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Read more about them here: https://www.facebook.com/minaquabat...