ELEMENTARY MY DEAR
A few years back, Tom Watson was one of the UK’s hottest young wakeboarding properties, but then a horrific car crash left him in a coma fighting for his life for well over a month. Despite the psychological effects inherent to such a traumatic experience, he feels it only made him more determined to succeed in the sport. “I took it all for granted before that,” Tom says. “It’s definitely driven me to ride better than ever. After the crash, all I wanted to do was get back in the water.” He now bears the scars on his face and injury has left one arm weaker than the other. Understandably, then, he’s not quite at the same level as he was before, but there’s no doubt in his mind that he’ll get there eventually. He’s spent his life overcoming difficulties, both on the water and off it, so defying people’s expectations has become standard procedure. I asked him if choosing to pursue a career in wakeboarding upset a few people, particularly those close to him, if they were quick to advise him to seek out a ‘proper’ profession, a nine-to-five perhaps: “All the time. I’ve got it from everyone and everywhere, but I’ve slowly been proving them wrong. It never bothered me. I’m just not interested in doing anything other than this. It’s what I love most.”
On the water it’s the same thing: looking for ways to do what others don’t. On the subject of the 118, a trick he invented and then named after the ad campaign popular at the time (the moustached ‘athletes’), I wondered how you go about creating something new like that. Tom is pretty pragmatic about it. He believes it’s simply a case of seeing what everyone else is doing and then finding ways to elaborate on it, to take it to the next level, to contribute something to a sport he loves so dearly - and then having the determination to make it happen. And did he suffer some hard hits before nailing it? “Nah, I landed it first time.”
It’s this effortless style and confidence in his own ability to overcome everything he’s had to endure in recent times that convinces us that he’ll make it right to the very top of this hugely competitive sport. And it’s precisely why we want to be there to help him in any way we can.
Tom asked that we thank his parents for sticking by him, and also Dave Smith, his great friend who was driving the car in front that day, and who acted quickly on his feet to make sure Tom is still with us today. Amen to that.
More to follow on fellow new SUSO wakeboarders Lee Debuse, James Young and Lewis Cornwall.
Legend...
The 118 a miracle to behold....