Photo courtesy of Kyle Zogg
Twin Cities River Rats pyramid during a performance
To learn the reason why Kyle Zogg got into water skiing, look no further than his parents’ odometer. Mom and dad Zogg have four kids, who, don’t get them wrong, they love dearly, but love can’t pay for the gas it takes to cart the kiddos around to separate volleyball, soccer, basketball, and baseball practices. Instead, the pair nudged their littles off the dock and into water skis, wagering it was something they’d grow up loving together…at the same time… in the same place. 20-plus years later, it’s safe to say they more than broke even.
All four Zoggs indeed fell head over heels for the sport (sometimes literally), competing collectively for the Bayside Water Ski Show Team when they were younger, then eventually, at their respective colleges. Today, Kyle, who is now 22 and his brother Aaron, 19, still ski for the Twin Cities River Rats, Minnesota’s premier water ski show team. We caught up with Kyle and found out what it takes to be an elite show skier and how he and the team are preparing for their upcoming Aquatennial performances on July 19 and 20.
For starters, what exactly is show skiing?
It's kind of like a cross between a circus and a play, I guess you could say. There's a theme show with some actors from the team who play out a story, and then the waterskiing gets kind of fit into the story.
And how many actors get cast in each play?
It depends a lot on the size of the team. A lot of the teams only have 20–30 skiers, so you're kind of limited by the number of people you have. The River Rats have around 70 skiers, and I think we've had over 40 people on the water before at one time. Sometimes we'll put out a few individual people who have a specific talent and they get their own boat. We have a wakeboarder, for instance, and you can really only put one wakeboarder behind the boat. So sometimes we'll only have four or five people on the water, and then sometimes it goes up to about 40 at the same time.
That’s a lot of ropes to keep track of. So when it comes to competitions, is it a more-people-equals-more-points sort of situation?
There's a panel of judges every show, and they judge you on your skiing ability—the difficulty, the execution—and they also judge you on the show itself, like how entertaining it is, how much the crowd likes it. So it's more based on the team's skiing ability and the show quality itself.
What sorts of off-water workouts do you have to do in order to stay solid through a whole show?
Some people put in a lot of time in the off season and some people put in very little. It kind of depends on your job and your level of fitness and what you want out of it. Some of the acts are a lot more physically demanding than others. The number of acts that you're in, too, kind of plays a part in it. Last year, for instance, I was in quite a few acts, so I did cardio four times a week outside of practice so that I could keep up with it during show time.
Are we talking running? Biking? Trampoline bouncing?
Well actually, this last year, I had a really weird accident where I got a rope wrapped around my ankle and I was dragged by the boat a little bit. Not very long, but I ended up tearing my hamstring, so I had surgery to repair that. As part of physical therapy, I did more explosive jumps, side jumps, steps, and some strength training for my hamstring and glutes with resistance bands. We did a lot of sprints, a lot of stretches, and a lot of balance exercises.
And that kept you in shape?
Yep, and I’m pretty fully recovered. I'm doing all the acts I normally do except I usually jump, and I haven't tried that yet this year. That's a pretty high-impact part of the sport. So I'll probably ease back into that slowly here through June then start jumping normally in July.
Photo courtesy of Kyle Zogg
Kyle Zogg and River Rats teammates on a water ski jump.
Outside of the physical therapy you have to do, what are some other exercises you actually like to do?
I rock climb all winter. I used to compete with the U of M's rock climbing team, that's how I got into it, I started climbing in college, and then I found and joined the team. Now I have a group of friends that still goes and climbs, and I do that all winter long.
What does that do for your fitness?
It's a good full-body workout and it helps me keep my core and my upper body in shape for skiing, too. The last couple of years I haven't had to do any specific strength training for skiing just because rock climbing has kept me fit.
What are your favorite rock climbing spots?
I've been climbing at The Academy, which is a private gym that you have to get a membership to go to. I also climb at the Minneapolis Bouldering Project, which just opened up right on the river where the River Rats perform. I also used to climb at the U of M climbing wall at the rec center.
And then when I climb outside—which we do a lot in the spring and fall when the temperature is in the 50s or 60s—we go to Sandstone, Minnesota or Willow River Park in Wisconsin or Taylor Falls in Wisconsin or Redwing, those kind of places.
Can anyone give that a try, regardless of experience?
Some are set up for sport climbing, but you have to have your own rope and quick draws, so you do have to have your own gear to go to the outdoor locations, but I believe that you might be able to hire guides. [editor’s note: you can!]
Does being an elite water skier require any special diet?
I typically try to eat a fairly high protein diet and I usually don't eat a lot of carbs. I don't really count calories or anything like that. I usually eat a fairly high-calorie, high-protein diet with low carbs, which helps me keep my weight down which is nice for rock climbing. Keeps it consistent. It also helps me with energy, so I can recover from my workouts.
For example?
I don't really eat out very much. I usually prepare my own food, simple food. I'll make a lot of chicken breast, a lot of broccoli—those kinds of foods. And if I need a supplement, it's usually just a protein bar or something like that right after a workout, if I'm hungry then. When I eat out, it's kind of my cheat day.
We all love a good cheat day—good to know elite skiers are just like us! But what would it take for us to be like you? Can anyone give water skiing a try?
Two or three times a summer, we have time slots people can sign up for and we’ll give a lesson kind of on whatever you want. If you want to learn something like wakeboarding, or you’re a beginner and want to learn to two-ski, or even if you want to learn to barefoot or some of the trickier stuff, sign up for a slot. There’s a semi-private lesson option, where, you won’t be the only one on the boat, but you’ll be the only one that skis during that session. Or there’s a group session where you and two to three other people can sign up and learn something together. Those are more for families who have kids, if they all want to learn to two-ski.
What can a first-timer expect?
I would say a lot of people are surprised at how easy it is to get up after you’ve gotten some good direction and some good teaching from someone who’s been doing it for a long time. And with a good driver and a boat that’s designed for it, people are surprised at how quickly they can get up and ski and how quickly they can learn in a small amount of time.
Just to join, you don’t have to have any real skiing skills. We get a number of kids each year who join because they want to learn to two-ski and we introduce them to the world of water skiing. That’s a big part of what we do, actually, try to help grow the sport and help get people excited about water skiing.
Check out the Twin Cities River Rats calendar for details about all their upcoming free shows, including the two-day performance (July 19 and 20) during Aquatennial.
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