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Welcome to the Bayou, South Georgia’s very own winch park. Hidden right in the middle of Valdosta, Chris Moore, Quinn Silvernale, Jonathan Therrell and Drew Preston have been putting together a rail park a little different from the norm. The hidden winch oasis is sitting pretty with a full 25-foot vert wall, 35-foot kink rail, 20-foot flat bar, and a 22-by-2-foot slant rail starting seven feet off the creek water line from a 35 foot pool gap.
“We’ve really focused on keeping the place with a natural feel, we’re not trying to destroy the surrounding habitat, just have a little fun,” says Chris Moore, co-founder along with Jonathan Therrell. Therrell, a talented wakeskater on rails, says “We’re really trying to keep the team aspect widely noticed between us here at VSU. Most college teams don’t stick together like us, which is why more of these hidden parks aren’t popping up.”
Its taken strong dedication to keep this place running. Quinn Silvernale has also been stepping up his game and quickly progressing on the backwoods rails. “You really don’t have a choice but to get better, because if you don’t you’re getting hurt,” says Silvernale. The water is only knee-to-mid-thigh deep, so it’s important to be precise at everything.
It’s plenty deep to keep the team’s head in the game during the off season though. It’s one of the places you have to visit to get the real picture. Although the guys have completely built the place on their own without the help of sponsors for funding, the guys would like to thank Wes Bearden at Gravity Research Compound, CIRE clothing, Distortion Grinch Winch’s, and Wakefirst.com. If you’re ever passing through the Valdosta area to or from Orlando you should hit these guys up at cjmoore@valdosta.edu. -Chris Moore
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