Steel Lafferty had one hell of a season, from a killer X Games Real Wake section to throwing down never-before-seen tricks, landing a cover shot, scoring a spot on ESPN SportCenter’s Top 10, and plenty more. Steel wrapped up the 2017 season with a huge win at Wake Awards, taking home the Indmar Trick of the Year award for his switch mute double backmobe off of the double-up. We sat down with the man to pick his brain on what went into winning this award. Check it out below!
How many people knew you had landed the switch double mobe before it aired at Wake Awards?
Hmm… I would say about 10 people: the boys in the boat, my family, and some of the close homies that saw I had a gleaming smile on my face all day and begged me to tell them what I landed.
How long had you been working on it, and how many tries did it take that particular day?
Technically, I guess a year. I didn’t try it for that long though. I first tried it at the MasterCraft Throwdown in 2016 and then pushed it aside for a few months during the season. Then I started trying it again a few weeks before Wake Awards. I would say it took about 20 attempts that day!
Parks, the only other person in the world to do one, was with you in the boat that day. How much of a help was he?
It was unreal. I called him and said, “I need your help, and I would love you to be in the boat when I land it.” He kept the hype up and let me know it was possible.
How does it feel to be in that exclusive of a club?
Pretty crazy! I didn’t even realize I made the club until after we were in the boat, and Parks leans into me and says, “Welcome to the double mobe club.” Wildddddd!!!
Do you think the new X-Star wake had anything to do with you pulling this off?
100%. The wake behind this beast is ridiculous. The double-ups are so easy to get into and send you into space with a smooth landing. Don’t worry, I still took some pretty gnarly falls!
When is the point of no return when it comes to committing to this trick?
When you line up the double-up… You commit when you’re cutting in. You cant back out, period.
How did you mentally and physically prepare for this?
Drank a Red Bull, said a prayer and went full send. Don’t over think anything.
This isn’t your first Indmar Trick of the Year award, is it?
Negative, this is my second. It’s a super cool feeling. Now let’s make it a hat trick and get a third one.
How did winning this year compare to your last Trick of the Year win?
It felt pretty similar. This one was a little sweeter I think, just because of what’s going on in the industry and proving a lot of people wrong. They Don’t Know Me!!!
