Mortgage broker jumps feet-first into her hobby: barefoot water-skiing

REDMOND, Wash. – On weekdays, Sherri Morse is a mortgage broker in this east Seattle suburb. On weekends, she’s one of the top competitors in the little-known extreme sport of barefoot water skiing.

Morse, 40, practices on a private lake near Chehalis, Wash., most weekends and has spent at least $70,000 to travel around the world for competitions.

“It’s absorbed a lot of my life,” said Morse, who will compete next week in the World Barefoot Water-Ski Championships at Lake Silverado, near Chehalis.

In 2003, she won the overall category in the senior open women’s division of the world championships, and she placed second in 2005.

Barefoot water-skiers slice through lakes without skis or boots or any other kind of foot covering. They are dragged through the water at speeds of 35 mph to 50 mph. Morse said she has split open her knee, has two fractures in her back, has had shoulder surgery and has ruptured her eardrums at least 10 times. “You are constantly putting your body into a position that does create damage,” Morse said.

After a winter off from skiing, the transition can be brutal, she said, with her feet feeling like they’re bleeding even when they’re not.

Some of Morse’s tricks include putting her head through the tow rope’s triangle-shaped handle and letting the boat pull her through the water by her neck, and hanging on with her teeth.

Medals and trophies line the walls of her Lake Sammamish apartment. There are no cash prizes in national or world championships. “It’s not like we win $10,000,” Morse said. “It’s more for the glory.”