By Mike O’Brien
I would like to thank all of the volunteers and participants of Deep Creek Lake Centennial Water Sport Show – the Legends of Deep Creek Lake – held on Sunday, September 7, 2025
Many local legends participated in the show. Slalom skiers included Ann Elliott, Jenny Squib, Jimmy Lascaris, Brian O’Brien, Greg Rouse, Mike Kennedy and Bart Simpson. Greg Rouse, owner of Greg Rouse Ski School, also barefooted and foiled on his kite foil. Bart Simpson also performed on a disc in front of the crowd. Cam Heger put on a great show on his wake board, performing inverted moves and double flips. Bryce Nill started behind a boat on his foil, then pumped his way across the cove. Travis McCann of Silvertree Marine wake surfed in front of the crowd.
At noon, we had a flyover by several local pilots coordinated by Dick Zimmerman. The windy condition required them to soar higher than they planned.
The event could not have happened without many volunteers and support from the local community. Silvertree Marine provided two Supra boats with Tyler Meekin and Lauren McCann as drivers. Silvertree Marine is one of the major sponsors for the Deep Creek Lake Centennial Events. The Ottobre Mercantile provided use of their dock, and Randy and Kris Ottobre observed in the boats. Tim Fells drove and provided his boat as a pick-up. Jim Lascaris, Deep Creek Lake Beverage, provided use of his boat with Mike O’Brien driving. Ray Humphries, American Water Ski Association “AWSA” certified driver, drove several boats. Brian O’Brien, owner of Silvertree Marine, provided his boat along with Dale Carpenter, driving. Dale has placed first at nationals for barefoot jumping. Even though he was injured earlier in the season, he was able to drive.
The show also included the Deep Creek Lake Volunteer Fire Department providing their water boat to begin the show. Chris Nichols, co-chair of the Centennial Committee, patrolled the water in front of the park with his dragon boat.
The event was announced by Steve Green, owner of High Mountain Sports. Several world class skiers were watching from the State Park areas. Steve was able to interview several. One was Sam Ingram. Sam placed third in slalom at these year’s nationals. However, Labor Day, Sam was injured while practicing. Karen Myers, co-chair of the Centennial Committee, provided information on different events and history of Deep Creek Lake.
Another world class skier was unable to participate in the show. John Cornish, past coach of the US Barefoot Team, was competing at the worlds in Europe. Deep Creek Lake has an impressive list of nationally ranked water skiers.
If we have enough support, we may hold the event again. Hopefully this event will encourage more skiers on the lake.
