December 2023 Member Spotlight: Karen Melnik, Alexandria, Va.

When I started water skiing, I was 25 years old and had never had the opportunity to water ski. I started at Club Med Cancun, where they had all sorts of sports for adults - water skiing happened to be one of them. That was where I got the ball rolling. I went back to Club Med Cancun the next year and met a couple who was involved in USA Water Ski & Wake Sports. I had never heard of competitive water skiing as a sport. They were from my home state of Virginia, so they introduced me to the water ski community. Through them, I learned how to get up on one ski.

Water skiing quickly became my passion. I then joined a club in Maryland and started water skiing every weekend. I went all in. Although water skiing is a very individual sport, being part of a team of officials made me feel like I was part of a team. I skied in my first Nationals in 2019 and I ran 34 miles per hour at that tournament. If you get involved and give back, you get back so much more.

I am Karen Melnik. I am a regional safety director, a regular slalom judge, an assistant trick and jump judge, and the executive vice president of the Eastern Region, and #WeAreWaterSki.