Deen Graves our main coach was a seasoned national champion and equalled world record holder along with being a proven 3 event competition skier.
Deen Graves
Experience
One of the pioneers in the sport of wakeboarding, Deenʼs professional sports career started early in football, where he played for Manchester United. Injury terminated that endeavour, upon where he then began his pursuit of competitive water skiing and was among the earliest pioneers in competitive wakeboarding in the early days of the sport. Other career accomplishments included coaching the Australian National Team members, numerous wins in event water skiing, including jumps of over 200 feet, his specialty being slalom equaling the then world record. As an early participant in the birth of wakeboarding, he played a pivotal role in the progression of the sport, including the design of riding styles and aerial moves, was among the first to land the (then) knurly Raley switch considering how small the boat wakes were. His extensive experience and years of competitive water skiing, including "line loading" and ramp jumping formed the foundation of his wakeboarding style in competition riding and now serve as the basis for his successful career as a wakeboarding and water skiing coach.
Coaching Philosophy
Recognised as one of the leading coaches in slalom and wakeboarding, Deenʼs style combines enthusiasm, the use of NLP (Neurone, Linguistic, Programming) techniques, and sincere interest in the progress of all guests at Wakeboarding Thailand, whether beginners or experts. His "ownership" of your progress and skill development, at a pace with which you are comfortable, is core to his coaching style. His zest for life and for your progress, combined with his 15 year search to find the ideal scenic location with ideal water and weather conditions at "Shamballa" provides the perfect setting for fun, learning and collegiality. Some comments by our guests and students are revealing and informative: ʻDeen tells you how it is, his style of coaching brings some deep thinking to skill development". "Heʼs a guy who purposely walks slowly but never backwards"
This guy was born to coach so join him to become enriched & feeel the luvvv of the ride & live a dream.
"He is not about being smarter but sticking at a challenge longer".
"Thereʼs no better boat to be on than with this guy pumping you up"
Deen has often responded to sports magazines requests to comment on "why he is an accomplished coach" Beyond the equipment, the boat and the "Shamballa" experience, "The skill is for the coach to become obsolete to the student by applying the coaching skills and feedback in such a way that the student feels it comes from their own inner thoughts and inherent abilities".
In his words, "I have never been about 'being that guy filled with ego. I have a deep passion for the sport and coaching enhances that passion and enjoyment for what it brings out in me. You show me a student willing to learn, I will show you a talented, skilled rider".
Summing up - The Shamballa Experience at Wakeboarding Thailand
So a few words to sum up what the spirit of Shamballa is all about:
Wakeboarding Thailand was born out of a passion to ride.
Shamballa was born out of a desire to locate and create an optimal environment that stimulates that passion to ride.
Joining these elements together with coaching experience, created the opportunity for those visiting us at Shamballa to experience the ride of their life.
Eough said.
Shamballa, ʻLiving the Dream"
