Geno Yauchler

Water Sports Accomplishments

Hydrofoil

• 1996 Pro Tour Competitor (1st Pro Tour for Sit Down Hydrofoil) 3rd Overall
• 1996 Third Place Worlds
• 1996 First Person to Complete a Triple Combo Back Roll
• 1998 2nd Place Worlds - Big Air
• 2002 Overall Pro Tour Champion
• 2003 Overall Pro Tour Champion
• 2003 Flight Worlds Champion - Pro Division
• 2003 Overall #1 ranked Rider (USHA)
• 2004 Pro Tour Stop - Texas Ski Ranch - Big Air Step-Up & Technical Champion - 2nd Place Freestyle
• 2004 Pro Tour Stop - Tri Cities WA - Freestyle & Technical Champion
• 2004 Pro Tour Stop - Milwaukee - Technical, Big Air Step Up & Freestyle Champion
• 2004 Overall Pro Tour Champion & Most Improved Rider
• 2004 Flight Worlds BIG AIR Champion
• 2005 Pro Hydrofoil Tour Champion
• 2005 #1 Overall Rider (USHA)
• 2006 Cypress Gardens Chain Reaction Hydrofoil Champion
• 2006 Male Athlete of the Year (USHA)
• 2007 Spring Fling Pro Division Champion Austin, TX
• 2007 Pro National Champion (Free Ride & 3 Trick Champion - 3rd Place Big Air)
• 2007 MasterCraft Chain Reaction Sit Foil Champion
• 2007 MasterCraft Chain Reaction Stand Up Foil Champion
• 2007 MasterCraft Chain Reaction Overall Champion (Stand-Up, Sit-Down Hydrofoil, Wakeboard)
• 2007 USHA Male Athlete of the Year
• 2008 Pro National Overall Champion (Tricks & Free Ride Champion)
• 2008 Video Competition Pro Division winner
• 2009 Video Competition Pro Division winner
• 2009 Pro National Champion (1st Place Free Ride - 1st Place 3 Trick - 2nd Place Big Air)
• 2010 Pro National Champion (1st Place Big Air - 1st Place 3 Trick - 2nd Place Free Ride)
• 2011 Pro National Champion (1st Place Free Ride - 1st Place 3 Trick - 3rd Place Big Air)
• 2011 Male Athlete of the Year
• 2015 A-Town Showdown Champion
• 2017 Apache Lake 2nd Place Free Ride
• 2017 National Champion - Pro Division Janesville, WI
• 2018 Apache Lake Pro - Best Spin - Best Mobius - 3rd Place Big Air
• Multiple Guinness Records (See Below)
• 2021 Male Athlete of the Year - USHA

Wakeboard

• 1999 Men's II Wakeboarding National Champion, Dallas, Texas
• 1999 Show Ski Nationals Wakeboard Individual Champion
• 2001 Men's II Wakeboarding Nationals - 3rd Place
• 2001 Men's II Wakeboard World Champion, Lake Elsinore, CA
• 2007 Chain Reaction Open Wakeboard - 2nd Place, Winter Haven, FL

3 Event

• 1986 I love NY State Tournament (Boys Division - 1st place Distance Jump, 2nd Place Tricks, 3rd Place Slalom)

Freestyle

• 1993 Eastern Region Individual Freestyle Champion
• 1993 Florida State Show Ski Individual Freestyle - 2nd Place
• 1993 Show Ski Nationals Individual Freestyle - 3rd Place
• 1994 Eastern Region Individual Freestyle Champion
• 1995 Eastern Region Individual Freestyle Champion
• 1994 Show Ski Nationals Individual Freestyle - 3rd Place
• 1993-1995 Freestyle Jump Competitor on the Pro Water Ski Tour
• 1995 3rd Place Freestyle Jump Connecticut Pro Tour stop
• 1995 Show Ski Nationals Individual Freestyle Champion - Janesville, WI
• 1996 First Pinwheel Mobius (At Cypress Gardens - Daren Dobson Back Mobius, Geno Front Mobius)
• 1999 1 of 6 jumpers completing the first 6-person front flip in competition (Show Ski Nationals)
• 2000 First 2-person 1 Ski Mobius (with Jeff Schmick) at Show Ski Nationals During Tampa Bay Show (2nd Place Team)
• 2000 1 of 7 jumpers completing the first 7-person front flip in competition (Show Ski Nationals)
• 2010 Show Ski Nationals Individual Freestyle Champion - Lake Wazeecha, WI

Show Skiing

• 1988 & 1989 MVP Bud Light US Water Ski Show Team (NY)
• 1990 1st Year Show Skiing Professionally - SeaWorld of San Antonio, TX
• 1991 Pro Skier Belewarde Park, Belgium
• 1992 Pro Skier Holiday Park, Germany
• 1993-1997 Part Time Pro Skier Cypress Gardens Winter Haven, FL
• 1995-1996 SeaWorld of San Diego & Orlando Performer in Ski Shows
• 1996 Original Cypress Gardens Male Skier of the Year (only part time skier to be awarded with this)
• 1999 Show Ski Nationals 2nd Place Team Member (Tampa Bay Water Ski Show Team)
• 2000 Show Ski Nationals 2nd Place Team Member (Tampa Bay Water Ski Show Team)
• 2000 Winner of the Skip Gilkerson Award at Show Ski Nationals (Best Male Athlete)
• 2007 Water Ski Show Team Member in Universal Studios Orlando (Water Ski Shows Inc.)
• 2012 Member of Team USA Water Ski Show Team (World Champions)
• 2014 Member of Team USA Water Ski Show Team (World Champions)
• 2020 Member of Team USA Water Ski Show Team (Australia - Covid - Canceled)
• 2022 Member of Team USA Water Ski Show Team (World Champions)
• 2008-2023 Contracted Professional Water Ski Shows Nationally (Florida, Oklahoma)
• Several Show Appearances on Lake Lloyd at the Daytona 500 Races During Multiple Years
• Multiple International Road Shows with Stars of Florida (Don Buffa) Including Japan, UAE, Jordan, Columbia, Dominican Republic, Turkey, Malaysia, Turkmenistan, S. Korea, & Costa Rica
• Traveling Shows with World Entertainment in Chile, Ecuador, Laughlin NV, and During several Pro Tour Stops across the Country

Barefoot

• 1987 Show Ski Southern Regionals Individual Barefoot Endurance Champion
• 1993 Show Ski Southern Regionals Individual Barefoot Endurance Champion
• 1993 Florida State Show Ski Barefoot Elimination - 3rd Place
• 2015, 2017, 2019 Guinness Barefoot Line Member (see below)

Mixed Doubles

• 1994 Doubles By the Dam (with Angela Yauchler) 5th Place
• 2017 Part of Chain of Records World Record Doubles Line (See below)
• 2022 Part of Big Pull Guinness World Record Doubles Line (See below)

Miscellaneous

• 1976 Got up on water skis for the first time
• 1995-1996 Universal Studios Orlando Stunt Man in 'Dynamite Nights Stunt Spectacular' Show
• 1999 World's Greatest Skier contest - Hydrofoil Champion
• (2nd overall - 3 Event, Freestyle, Wakeboard, Hydrofoil, Anything Goes)
• 2015 That's Incredible Award Winner - NSSA
• 2017 That's Incredible Award Winner - NSSA (As a Chain of Records Record Committee Member)
• 2021 That's Incredible Award Winner - NSSA
• 2021 Volunteer of the Year - USHA
• 2021 Team of the Year - Chain of Records Hydrofoil Team USHA
• 2025 Award of Distinction - USA Waterski

TV

• 1997 Appeared in Baywatch TV show - Season 7, Episode 20 'Baywatch at SeaWorld' Multiple Times During Show
• - Baywatch was Broadcast in 145 Countries Around the World -
• 1997 Extremists with Laird Hamilton
• 1997 Fox Family Channel's AXN sports network
• 1994 & 1995 ESPN I & II Expression Session
• 2007 Stunt Junkies 'Boat Jump' Full Episode on The Discovery Channel
• 2015 Florida TV 'Sky Ski Hydrofoils in Florida! Geno Yauchler On the Water'
• Multiple News & TV Show Water Ski Appearances Over the Years Internationally

Waterski Leadership & Off Water Participation

• 1993-Present Water Ski/Wakeboard/ Hydrofoil Instructor - Lake Alfred (Bonifay Water Ski School), Lakeland & Winter Haven, FL
• Water Ski Clinics in Multiple US States and Globally including Show Skiing, Hydrofoil, Slalom, Barefoot, Wakeboard, and More
• 2004-Present Founder/Owner Pro Action Sports, LLC online Water Ski Equipment retail, Professional Water Ski Shows, Wakeboard/Hydrofoil Tournaments, Water Ski National and Guinness World Record Events
• 2006 USA Water Ski - Innovator of the Year Award - Sportube Chain Reaction Tournament (Founder)
• 2006 USA Water Ski - Ambassador of the year Award - Sportube Chain Reaction Tournament
• 2006 Instructed Team Germany on 4 Tier Pyramids for a week at our Ski School in Winter Haven, FL
• Think Tank Instructor for Several Years
• 2015 Founded Chain of Records 5-day Record Event (Multiple governing bodies represented including NSSA, Guinness, USHA)
• 2017 Organizer of Chain of Records with multiple World Records broken for multiple sports disciplines
• 2021 Organizer Chain of Records with multiple World Records broken for multiple sports disciplines
• 2023 Freestyle Judge for a Tournament at Lake Grew
• Current Member of the Freestyle Jump Committee (2023, 2024)

Guinness World Record Group Participation Records

• 1988 One of 39 Water skiers behind a single engine boat - Scotia NY
• 2015 One of 24 Barefoot water-skiers behind one boat for 300 M - Chain of Records - Winter Haven, FL
• 2017 One of 11 - Most forward flips off Unlimited size Water Ski Jump - Chain of Records - Lake Alfred, FL
• 2017 One of 28 Hydrofoil Riders behind one boat for 1 Nautical mile - Chain of Records - Auburndale, FL
• 2017 One of 32 Barefoot water-skiers behind one boat for 300 M - Big Pull - Shawano, WI
• 2017 One of 22 doubles couples behind one boat (44 skiers) Chain of Records - Auburndale, FL
• 2019 One of 38 Barefoot water-skiers behind one boat for 300 M - Big Pull - Shawano, WI
• 2021 One of 16 Most Shoe Skiers - Chain of Records - Winter Haven, FL (COR)
• 2021 One of 31 Most Hydrofoil Riders 1 boat - Chain of Records - Auburndale, FL
• 2021 One of 9 Most Hydrofoil Inverts at one time - Chain of Records - Auburndale, FL
• 2022 One of 27 (54 skiers) Most Doubles Couples (Angela Yauchler was my partner) - Big Pull - WI
• 2024 One of 29 (58 skiers) Most Doubles Couples (Angela Yauchler was my partner) - Big Pull - WI

Guinness World Record Individual Records

• 2008 Most Inverts on a sit-down hydrofoil in 1 hour - 529 - England
• 2009 Most Inverts on a sit-down hydrofoil in 1 hour - 826 - Winter Haven FL
• 2017 Most hydrofoil inverts in a minute - 30 - Chain of Records - Winter Haven, FL
• 2018 Tallest Hydrofoil Ridden - 13'10" - Winter Haven, FL
• 2021 Most Inverts in 3 Minutes - 72 - Chain of Records - Winter Haven, FL

Chain Reaction 2006 & 2007

The 2006 Chain Reaction tournament was an event I put together to help build the sport of sit down hydrofoiling. During the mid-2000s, there wasn't anyone willing to throw it on the line and put on a hydrofoil competition. We had Hydrofoil Worlds thanks to Tony Klarich in 1996, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2003, and finally in 2004. The Hydrofoil Pro Tour ran from 2002-2005 thanks to John Clemmons. Both of these events fizzled out due to burn out of the event founders. Feeling like I still had a ton of gas left in my hydrofoil competitiveness, I decided to bite the bullet and throw a huge event. I was able to round up a bit over $37,000 for the event, $20,000 set aside for prize money. By adding Wakeboarding to the line up, we did far better. We had Shaun Murray, Shane Bonifay, and a few other well-known Wakeboard names coming out for the tournament at Cypress Gardens Adventure Park. I got lucky and was able to secure The Water Channel for full coverage of the event. They were a breakout TV station back in the mid-2000s, and I believe they still run today. With all of that, we were able to lock in quite a few sponsors so we could put the entire event together financially. For the finals in Hydrofoil, I had to place in the top 3 to break even. Fortunately, I was able to win. I was also to compete in Wakeboard, but our catalogs from Overton's were stuck in Tampa, so I had to run and pick them up so we could hand them out at the park and earn our sponsorship money.

The 2007 Chain Reaction was not quite as big of an event due to complications with the water ski show and the sponsorship limitations at Cypress Gardens. We ended up running the tournament out on the Chain of Lakes and shooting video of the entire event for future posting on the internet. We still had quite a few competitors, and it was a ton more fun without the hassle of dealing with the park and all of the rules. I was finally able to enter not just the wakeboard and hydrofoil, but also a new event, stand up hydrofoil. Coming out on top was all worth the work put in to organize the event.

Chain of Records - 2015, 2017, & 2021

Chain of Records was an idea I had after the 2014 mid-September World Show Ski Tournament in Janesville Wisconsin. It was cold. In fact, on some mornings before practice on the Rock River we had frost. I thought (after sitting in the 38-degree water before the back barefoot step off line practice), why don't we do an event in Florida where it's warm? But instead of competing against each other, why don't we get together and both compete against current records, and set new world records?

This is how the Chain of Records Began. I also wanted to do more records than just the largest water ski pull behind one boat. At the time when I applied for a new Guinness barefoot waterski record line (which didn't exist at the time), they kept telling me they already had a water ski line record. It was for the most skiers behind one boat. I had to point out the obvious differences between barefoot waterskiing and regular water skiing. This is the email I sent to the Guinness staffer sitting behind a desk in London, "I received the email about the most barefoot water skiers and comparing it to the most water skiers behind one boat. There are major differences between these two records. For one, we will not be water skiing on skis. We will be waterskiing on our bare feet. You can water ski at 12-15 MPH. For barefooting, you must go at least 35-40 MPH. So, this means you must have a fast boat, and you must be able to pull a lot more drag. The boat used for the 145 skiers would not be able to exceed 20 MPH. It is an impossible comparison. Currently the World record is 21 barefooters behind one boat. If you like I can send you pictures and videos. It is much more intense. Our goal is to do 25, which would be quite a feat. To ask us to do 146 barefoot water skiers is asking us to build a record I never see happening. You need a fast boat, and you need water skiers that can barefoot waterski. Every barefoot water skier can water ski. Not every water skier can barefoot water ski. In fact, few can. Please let me know if you need further evidence of the difference between barefoot water skiing and regular water skiing. Thanks."

To water skiers, it is obvious. It took much coaxing to finally get them to certify the attempt. This was attempted previously by my good friend Eric Gran and he was turned down for the record attempt for the most barefoot water skiers behind one boat. With my relentless coaxing and positive attitude, I was able to get them to accept this record attempt as a potential Guinness Record. And we did it! We also broke or set for the first time several other records during that first Chain of Records in 2015. I will say that over the years, I have had a ton of people help me accomplish my goals. It is said it takes a village to raise a child. This is so true. It takes a large body of show skiers, boat drivers, and volunteers to pull off events like this. Chain of Records may have been my idea, but without all of the people who helped put it together (Especially Eric Gran & Shauna Pasanen), much of this wouldn't have happened. This is what we were able to do during that first Chain of Records:

2015 Record Tally By Governing Body

Jump

• Most 2 ski gainers in 1 minute - Troy Roker - NSSA - 3
• Most 2 ski front flips in 1 minute - Nick Lyman - NSSA - 5
• Most 2 ski front flips unlimited jump - NSSA - 9
• Most 2 ski gainers unlimited jump - NSSA - 6
• Most 1 ski gainers unlimited jump - NSSA - 5
• Most jumpers over unlimited jump - NSSA - 15

Swivel & Ballet

• Largest ballet line behind one boat - NSSA - 38
• Most 720s in 1 minute - Erin Weston-Green - NSSA - 11
• Most 720s in a line - NSSA - 6

Adaptive

• Largest adaptive line behind one boat - NSSA - 6

Barefoot

• Most tumble turns in 60 seconds - NSSA - 21
• Most Barefooters behind 1 boat - Guinness & NSSA - 24
• Largest front deep line - NSSA - 10

Hydrofoil & Wakeboard

• Largest hydrofoil line behind one boat - USHA - 24
• Most hydrofoil combo flips in 1 minute - USHA - 41
• Most hydrofoil flips in 1 min. - Female - Leah Stilwell - USHA - 17
• Most wakeboarders behind one boat - NSSA - 18
• Most wakeboard inverts in 1 minute - NSSA - 18

Doubles

• Largest strap doubles line - NSSA - 17 couples

Totals

• Total Guiness World Records During the 2015 COR: 1
• Total Records (NSSA, USHA, Guinness) 19

After the event was finished in 2015, we were all pretty excited about what we were able to accomplish. We were tired, and wanted to do another record event, but not right away. So, we decided to wait until 2017 to do another Chain of Records. It was bigger and more popular than the first year. In 2015, the doubtful ones never thought we would pull it off. When our successes proved to be far better than anyone had expected (including all of us organizers), people took notice. We were able to secure more sponsorship and media. Guinness actually sent a crew out for a grossly reduced fee to shoot video via live stream so the world could see what we were doing. We were able to get water skiing exposed to millions of viewers around the world because of this arrangement. To me, it was well worth the money to bring them to Polk County.

2017 Record Tally By Governing Body

Barefoot & Shoe Ski

• Most shoe skiers behind one boat - NSSA - 13
• Most tumble turns in 30 sec. - Wayne King - Guinness - 19
• Most tumble turns in 60 seconds - NSSA - 29
• Most Barefooters behind a single boat - NSSA - 31
• Largest back deep line - NSSA - 4
• Most 2 ski bomb outs - NSSA - 14

Doubles & Trios

• Largest strap doubles line - Guinness & NSSA - 22 couples
• Largest strap doubles torch flip line - NSSA - 5 couples
• Most trios sets behind one boat - NSSA - 12 sets

Hydrofoil

• Most combo back rolls in a row - Geno Yauchler - USHA - 49
• Most mobius' in one run - Geno Yauchler - USHA -22
• Most inverts 1 min. - Geno Yauchler - Guinness & USHA - 30
• Most front flips in one minute - Geno Yauchler - USHA - 9
• Most front flips in one run - Geno Yauchler - USHA - 69
• Largest hydrofoil line - USHA / NSSA / Guinness - 28
• Largest hydrofoil invert line - USHA - 8
• Tallest hydrofoil - Geno Yauchler - Guinness - 13'10"

Jump

• Most 1 ski front flips in 1 minute - Noah Leach - NSSA - 4
• Most 2 ski gainers in 1 minute - Troy Roker - NSSA - 4
• Most 1 ski gainers in 1 minute - Troy Roker - NSSA - 4
• Most 2 ski helicopters in 1 min. - Charlie Newlands NSSA - 4
• Most 1 ski front flips regulation jump - NSSA - 5
• Most 2 ski front flips unlimited jump - Guinness & NSSA - 11
• Most jumpers over unlimited jump - NSSA - 16
• Most 2 ski helicopters unlimited jump - NSSA - 8

Swivel & Ballet

• Largest ballet line behind one boat - Guinness & NSSA - 48
• Most 720s in 1 minute - Erin Weston-Green - NSSA - 16
• Most 720s in a line - NSSA - 9
• Most 1080s in a line - NSSA - 2
• Most overheads in a line - NSSA - 19
• Largest swivel line (2 skills) - NSSA - 21

Adaptive

• Largest adaptive line behind one boat - NSSA - 9

Totals

• Total Guiness World Records During the 2017 COR: 7
• Total Records (NSSA, USHA, Guinness) 31

After the 2017 Chain of records, we were starting to build some serious credibility within the sport of water skiing. While securing sponsorships has always been a challenge, at least folks were familiar with what we were doing on the water. However, it was even more exhausting than the 2015 event. Running a 5 day record capable event like Chain of Records is similar to running a marathon every day for 5 days in a row. So, we decided again we would take a break. After 4 years, we then put on the 2021 event.

2021 Record Tally by Governing Body

Barefoot & Shoe Ski

• Most shoe skiers - Guinness & NSSA - 16
• Most tumble turns in 60 sec. - Wayne King - Guinness - 34
• Most 2 ski bomb outs - NSSA - 16

Conventional Doubles

• Largest conventional doubles line - NSSA - 18 couples

Adaptive

• Largest adaptive line - Guinness & NSSA - 15

Hydrofoil

• Most inverts in 1 minute (female) - MJ Buckley - Guinness & USHA - 23
• Most inverts in 3 minutes (female) - MJ Buckley - Guinness & USHA - 55
• Most inverts in 3 minutes (male) - Geno Yauchler - Guinness & USHA - 72
• Largest hydrofoil line - USHA / Guinness - 31
• Largest hydrofoil invert line - USHA / Guinness - 9

Swivel & Ballet

• Largest ballet line behind one boat (2 lines) - Guinness & NSSA - 59
• Most 720s in 1 minute - Brea Imse - NSSA - 20
• Most 1080s in a line - NSSA- 4
• Largest swivel line (2 skills) - NSSA - 30

Totals

• Total Guinness World Records during the 2021 COR: 9
• Total Records (NSSA, USHA, Guinness): 14

2021 was again, exhausting. We attempted fewer records, and were successful with many. But as you can see, we failed on a few. As you continue on any uphill road, the going can get harder and harder. We started to run into some limitations with time and with horsepower, and thus, we still left some on the table. Will there be another Chain of Records? I am not one to say never, but I don't see it happening any time soon. This whole sit in the pontoon and watch ski shows from the driver's seat is looking pretty good right now.

The Chain of Records Trilogy will go down in history (In my humble opinion, and greatly attributed to the massive amounts of help from so many people) as one of the most spectacular Water Ski World Record Events ever created. We were able to attract people from all over the world, and get them to fly to Polk County - at their own expense - to participate in a piece history. The amount of joy, fun, and exposure for the sport of water skiing we were able to generate through these 3 events may never be matched. I am so grateful for the experience. If you made it this far, I thank you for your time in reading this. Be well! (and go skiing more:)