Mike Mack learned to water ski on the Colorado River when he was five years old, and seven decades later, he has passed his love of all water sports and water to generations at his water ski school.  Mike is credited with inventing the body slide, the ultimate cool move on a water ski, and he has been featured on the covers of Water Ski, Hot Boat, and Power Boat magazines and on numerous posters.

Mike mastered water skiing, barefooting, trick skiing, show skiing, wakeboarding, wake surfing, air chair, and hydrofoiling... he can do anything on the water. He organized and choreographed years of water ski shows on the Colorado River beginning in the 1980s. Promoting the sport he loved was his passion.  Mike also traveled the world performing in water ski shows, tours, and competitions from Australia to Russia. He invented water ski tricks with Tony Klarich, Mike Murphy, Lori Dunsmore, and Banana George Blair.

Mike also helped advance water ski technology. The ultimate trendsetter, he helped design the Vertical Air Ski with Herb O'Brien and the HO Kids Club Trainers.  He participated in producing water ski instructional videos to help everyone pass the handle. Mike invented the foil board and tested and consulted in the development of Astrodeck.

While becoming well-known in the water sports world, being inducted into the Hydrofoil Hall of Fame, and winning championships, Mike has always said the real honor was encouraging and teaching thousands of people to water ski and realize their dreams.

We had a bit of a hard time tracking Mike down to tell him about this honor; he always seems to be on the water. But we were so moved by his reaction to receiving the Award of Distinction that we wanted to include it in this announcement:

"When I heard the words Waterski Hall of Fame, it didn't seem real. Then I lost it! I couldn't talk, and it took a minute for me to get myself back together. The dream of my life came true! It is such an honor to be inducted into the Waterski Hall of Fame," says Mike.

The honor is all ours, Mike Mack!