it has been a while ago since the last time we had a good chat with Jobe wakeboarder Austin hair, let's see what he has to tell us.
Hi Austin, probably most people already know you but could you introduce yourself for them who don’t? Sure, I've been wakeboarding for a dozen years now, and it's never been more fun. I grew up in South Carolina, and now I live in Orlando, Florida. I ride both boat and cable, and I used to be a competitive wakeskater, too.
Can you give us a little recap of last season? Last season was awesome. I came out with a mission to break into the top 5, and I ended up surpassing my goal and finishing 3rd on the PWT.
What was your goal for the 2013 season and did you achieve it? I achieved my goal of 3rd place overall by taking on a new mentality of all or nothing. I decided that I wasn't going to do conservative runs anymore, but I was going to give each run my absolute best. It's kind of an all or nothing approach, but it worked in my favor.
Are you now competing against the same guys as you were in the junior category or is the competition totally different? Actually the competition is almost entirely different now. In the Jr category, the only guys that remain now are myself, Rathy, Adam Errington, and Jimmy LaRiche. It's cool seeing the new faces come on the scene.
What do you want to achieve in the upcoming 2014 season? In 2014 I want to continue to crush the contest scene, but I also want to work on my free riding. It's an area I didn't get to involve too much time into, so in 2014 I definitely want to learn some new stuff!
You just got a new pro model the Maddox series, are you happy about the board and bindings? Sooo happy with it. The bindings are awesome, they are so much more supportive this year. On top of that, they look sick! The board has a really sleek look to it, and the graphic’s sleek but somehow eye catching. I love this board because I can charge on it and fly, or I can get super good pop wake to wake.
What’s different about your pro model now and the one from last year? In the past, my pro model had square tip and tails, and the fins didn't extend to the nose. I changed the tip and tail to be rounded and more flexy for the rails. The fins also extend to end of the board so that you get great grip off of the wake all the through to the takeoff.
What is your specialty in wakeboarding ? Definitely boat. I love riding boat, even though I've been riding a lot of cable lately. And more specifically contest riding. Even if I'm not riding good at all at home, I still seem to be able to put it together in contest.
What does a normal day of your life look like? Right now I wake up, go train at my kickboxing gym I just opened, then I come home and go out for a set. Of course it’s off season. Once the season starts I'll start riding a lot more. I finish the day with healthy meal that's high protein, usually I'll make something like a living fuel shake.
Who is dominating the world scene right now? Dowdy and Harley are killing it right now.
What riders are going to break through in 2014? I think the Australians kids Cory and Tony are going to start turning heads soon.
What are you planning to do when your wakeboarding career is finished? I plan to continue to remain in the sport as long as possible because it's my passion, but I'm also going to continue opening up 9 Round kickboxing gyms. They're so much fun!
