Sky skiing to world recognition
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Sandra Marriott Bertha had been water skiing since she was 5 years old. So in 1991, when she first tried hydrofoil — also called sky skiing — it was an instant fascination.
"It just clicked with me," she said.
More than a decade later, Sister Bertha of the Olivenhain Ward, Del Mar California Stake, is the sport's world leader. On Saturday, Sept. 7, she was named Pro-Women World Hydrofoil champion.
Hydrofoil is a water sport that's gaining popularity in the field of extreme sports. Participants sit on the hydrofoil and are pulled behind a boat, using the boat's wake to gain big air and perform some of nearly 100 maneuvers.
Sister Bertha admits her participation in the sport was purely accidental. While vacationing at her family's summer home in New Hampshire she tried the sport with the help of her father, Richard Marriott. The two became fascinated and spent most of their summer vacation — and the vacations in years to come — hydrofoiling. Then in 1998, hydrofoil inventor Mike Murphy saw Sister Bertha perform and suggested she compete. As luck would have it, the world competition that year was held only one hour from her California home.
"I had never thought about competing," Sister Bertha recalled. "I was just having fun with it."
While she did not do well in that first international event, she was enticed to enter a few amateur competitions. Two years later, in 2000, she placed second in the world championship — a competition that is held every other year.
She was the first woman in the world to complete a "method air grab," jumping on the hydrofoil, holding the pull rope with one hand and grabbing the side of the board with the other hand while still in the air.
And while many she competes against are younger and don't share her religious beliefs, Sister Bertha, 36, said they have shown great respect for her and the Church. "They are very protective of me," she said.
The compassionate service leader in her ward, she is gaining worldwide attention for her participation in the sport. Still, she said, it is her husband, Albert, and their four children who are her greatest fans.
Her children are constantly taking her hydrofoil magazines, calendar and sky skiing videos to school for show-and-tell. Sister Bertha said that her participation in the extreme sport does shock many of her children's teachers and friends and other parents.
Since she practices just one day a week and participates in about four events a year, she's able to spend her days making sure her children get to Cub Scouts and violin lessons.
"I am 'Ms. Carpool Mom,' " she said. "People can't even picture me doing an extreme sport. I have to say, as much fun as it is to be a pro-athlete, there is nothing better or more rewarding than being a mom."
E-mail: sarah@desnews.com
