A barefoot water-skier with Nelson connections reached the pinnacle of her sport late last month.
Daniele Tipping, who skis every summer out of Nelson, captured the Canadian National Barefoot Water-ski Championships that were held in Montreal.
The 19-year-old earned gold and set a Canadian record in tricks with 2,550 points. She is also the first Canadian woman to do three surface turns (basically spinning on her feet) in a trick run.
Tipping earned silver in slalom with 12 wake crossings and bronze in the jump event with a distance of 10.5 metres.
In the end she took home the overall trophy as the 2011 Canadian Women’s Open Barefoot Water-ski Champion.
Tipping lives in Victoria and trains in the winter in Florida, but her family has a cottage at Grohman Creek where she has come to ski since she was a young child.
Tipping has been in three World Championships and also the World Summer Games. Her current world ranking is eighth overall.