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Amber Aho – ISU
This woman has changed ISU’s team for the better. She is incredibly driven and is crazy about this community. Sam Granec hit the head on the nail with her nomination for Amber and I support everything she has said
Working along side her this last year, I learned a lot about what it takes to run a team and a collegiate tournament. I am forever grateful for her teaching the rights and wrongs of leading a team to success. Her ideas and guidance will carry on this with this team for a long time to come even though she has moved onto the next chapter in her life. The Iowa State team will always happy to call her our fearless leader.
Through her great leadership and love, she taught this Iowa State team to lend a helping and do what is right. Her passion rubs off onto other and her adventurous spirit is truly one-of-a-kind. She is a true role model and a true outstanding senior female.
Samantha Granec – LAX
Everything that Mr. Evan Marcus said was dead on. I have never met anyone who works as hard as she does. She is constantly running around and making sure that everything is in line and ready to rock so that others can enjoy their time without having to stress. Even though she is busy, she always makes sure to watch her teammates ski off the dock.
Don’t forget to mention that she has been a main driving force in organizing this years wonderful Winter Conference and helping in hooking up Team Midwest with a sweet place to crash and do some dancing.
Sam is always putting her team in front of herself and she deserves every bit of this award.
Ryan Schipper – Iowa State
Three Schippers walk into a bar (idk, let’s call this bar Iowa State): one eventually goes home, one goes finds his way to another bar (sad), and the third and final brother decides to stick around and hunker down for the long haul.
That final brother is the one and only Ryan Schipper. His love and passion for this sport rivals none and continues to amaze. Whether it is his turn to ski, to coach, or to drive – he is always looking to get better and help others on their journeys to become better overall skiers.
This season, he helped ISU make it to Nationals again and they couldn’t be more thankful for his drive and compassion. Being a freshman, he was placed in the 5th round for each of the events, and for good reason. Whether it was getting 98 buoys and winning the GP conference in a ski off, jumping 130 feet, or tricking close to 1000 points – any team would be lucky to have this guy on their team.
Not only is Schipper great on the water but his character and positive demeanor off the water is like no other freshman that I have seen. When he is not getting mentally ready for his set, you can find him on the dock dancing and pumping up his next teammate.
Andy Vespestad
Without a doubt in my mind when I think of the Most Supportive Alumni, I think of Andy Vespestad.
He is always around and ready to lend a helping hand: his love and support for this sport is incredible. Whether it is being Chief Driver to the country’s largest collegiate tournament (pulling over 220 skiers in multiple events and managing 5 boats over 2 lakes) or teaching Iowa State skiers in his free time, Andy is there to make sure this sport lasts. This is why this award is so important, it’s people like Andy that make this sport what it is today and the ISU team is incredibly thankful for him.
Not only that, he represented Team Midwest as our senior driver for the 2018 Collegiate Nationals and did a tremendous job in helping pull over 120 skiers in one day, on one lake, each day. He thrives on the water, as it is his passion to ski and to watch people grow up to achieve amazing things. He has affected so many peoples lives that it is hard to count, he has been in this sport for years and it really shows.
From there, Andy’s help doesn’t end. He trains new boat drivers, helps set up Conference, trailers and cleans boats, and even is working on becoming a regular Scorer. The man does it all.
Whenever any team needs any kind of help, Andy is there. Whenever the team is looking to have a little fun after some skiing (if you catch my drift), Andy is also there. Yet another reason why he deserves this award – he loves spending time and being around any type of water skier. He is the epitome of what a Supportive Alumni should be.