Ashbaugh Malibu Family Photo

This Malibu Boats (@MalibuBoats) family photo of the Ashbaugh family was taken on their 2006 Response LXi. They purchased their Malibu LXi from TNT Water Sports in 2006. This photo was taken on Percy Priest Lake during the Fall of 2009. Kurt Ashbaugh tells us "we get many compliments on the image and I wanted to share it with my favorite boat company" We can see why, great photo. Thank you for sharing it with us!!

If you capture or come across a cool Malibu Boats-related photo like this one let us know. We would love to post it on the Malibu Boats Blog and Flickr Channel. We will even Tweet about it on Twitter and add it to the ever-changing Malibu Boats Screen Saver. You can also submit your photo or video through our Malibu iPhone App.
E-mail blog@malibuboats.com with links and/or images. Also make sure to include the name of the person who took the shot and give us a short description of the photo's contents. If you do not know this information and you are only forwarding a link, we can track it down. Thanks!

Tags: Malibu Boats | Ashbaugh Family | Kurt Ashbaugh | TNT Water Sports | Malibu Dealer | Response LXi | family photo | Malibu Family | ski boat

Christmas Wasn't Soon Enough For Sabrina

We started the tradition of sharing Malibu Boats (@MalibuBoats) Family Christmas Stories last year during the Malibu Boat Rockin' Christmas Event and we are keeping it going this year with fun family stories like this one from the Dierksens.

Sabrina Dierksen and her husband Dustin grew up boating and going to the lake. They both started wakeboarding in 2005 and they’ve been hooked ever since. As their skills improved behind a small Baja and riding occasionally behind a friend’s Malibu boat, they started dreaming of a bigger wakeboard-specific boat. So Sabrina and Dustin began to investigate the boat buying process and determine which wakeboard boat model would work best for them. They traveled to shows and talked to friends. They finally came to the decision that a Malibu boat was the wakeboard boat for them. They decided to search for something used. That task proved difficult. There weren’t many available and the resale was fairly high on the Malibu boats they did find.

Finally the drawbacks of owning a small non-watersports boat took their toll. Sabrina had had enough of not being able to bring along more friends and family. Dustin wanted to move into more advanced wakeboard moves. So Sabrina decided to buy a new boat as a Christmas present to Dustin and herself.

“I was tired of having a crappy boat!” Sabrina explained. She was making decent money and had recently paid off her car so they could more than afford the payment. And a new boat wasn’t much more than they were looking at used. So she logged on to the Wilson Watersports web site.

The Malibu Boats Dealer in Edmond, Oklahoma, Wilson Watersports, lists the new Malibu boats they have in stock on their web site. It didn’t take long for Sabrina to find her boat. A click of the mouse on the Wilson Watersports. Sabrina purchased the "Wakesetter 23 LSV” link and there it was. She picked-up the phone right then and contacted Todd Wilson about her intentions to drive to Edmond and buy the boat. Todd agreed to hold the boat for her, but was a little skeptical that he would ever actually meet Sabrina in person.

Sabrina told Dustin she was planning a trip to Oklahoma City, OK to visit her college roommate with their friends Shane and Lisa Norris. She made sure these plans were made on a day Dustin was busy. Instead of Oklahoma City Sabrina, Shane and Lisa headed for Edmond, OK to Wilson Watersports. Sabrina purchased the Wakesetter 23 LSV she saw online. Todd and Laura Wilson, the owners of Wilson Watersports were amazed at Sabrina’s plan to surprise Dustin and were really excited to be a part of the surprise.

The boat went home to Shane’s shop from the dealership. It was supposed to stay in his shop until the big surprise was revealed. Sabrina’s plan was to wait until their anniversary, which is the 21st of December, and give it to Dustin as an anniversary/Christmas gift. But Sabrina under estimated her own excitement. There was no way she could wait. She decided to surprise Dustin that same day.

Sabrina called Dustin and let him know she was staying for a pizza at Shane and Lisa’s house in Drummond, OK. She encouraged him to join her and he agreed. Dustin didn’t find this out of the ordinary, since they hung out with Shane and Lisa all the time. Once the pizza was gone Shane lured Dustin out to the shop for something he just had to see. Once Dustin saw the boat his chin dropped, but the charade didn’t end there. Dustin’s best friend pretended the boat was his. Dustin immediately went back in the house to grab Sabrina. He had to show her “Shane’s” new boat.

When Sabrina entered the shop she looked at Dustin and said, “Merry Christmas it’s yours.” He was so surprised. Sabrina explained, “If we didn’t get it now, we were never going to do it!”

Check out Dustin and Sabrina's photo gallery on Malibu Boats Flickr Channel.

It’s been a few years since Sabrina surprised Dustin with this early Christmas gift. But according to her they are still having as much fun as ever with their Malibu boat. “We absolutely love the boat. We even bought wet suits so we could extend our season.” Sabrina continued, “We enjoy every aspect of boat ownership. We even planned vacations around going to the lake.” Sabrina explained, “We take two big trips every year with both of our families and no one is crowded. Sisters, brothers and their families even my 65-year-old step dad gets in on wakeboarding action! This boat definitely brings us together!”

This is a great Malibu Christmas Story Sabrina! Thank you so much for sharing it with us.

Tags: Malibu Boats | Dierksen Family | Christmas Story | Christmas gift | wakeboard boat | Sabrina Dierksen | Wakesetter 23 LSV | wakeboarding | Dustin Dierksen | Dierksen | Christmas surprise | surprise | Wilson Watersports | Todd Wilson | Laura Wilson

The Isners Help Dad Land a Backroll and a Malibu Boat for Christmas

Inspired by the Malibu Boat Rockin' Christmas Event, we thought we could put you into the Christmas spirit by sharing some fun Malibu Christmas stories. We are posting owner accounts of amazing Christmas surprises that started with a Malibu boat and ended with extremely happy families.

The first of these Malibu Boats Christmas tales takes place in Washington State just before the Christmas of 2007. The Isner family visited Bake's Marine, their local Malibu Boats dealer, to take their '04 Sunscape 21 LSV to be winterized. When Joe and Kim Isner dropped their boat off they noticed the new 2008 Malibu boats in the Bake's showroom. They were all over the Wakesetter 23 LSV checking out every addition and advancement Malibu had made since their boat was made. The Isner girls, Devon 14 and Kendall 12, loved the added room. But Dad Joe was day dreaming about the coveted backroll he had been trying to land. He just knew the 23 LSV would give him the wake he knew he needed to get it done.

"My husband was giddy when he learned about the ballast tanks and was convinced he would be able to land his backroll with a wake like that!" Kim recalled.

So Kim and Joe sat down with Bake's Marine Sales Manager Matt Cour and looked at the numbers. Although Joe was excited, he wanted to think about it. He knew he wanted to get a new boat this year, but wanted to think about it just the same.

It was after Joe's excited display that Kim, Kendall and Devon began planning the biggest and best Christmas surprise ever for the man in their lives. Kim called Matt back and let him know she wanted to surprise Joe with the 23 LSV for Christmas. Matt suggested Bake's keep the boat until just before the big day so Joe didn't catch wind of their plans. So after the deal was made the boat stayed at the dealership until then.

Kim had a friend of the family pick the boat up a few days before Christmas. Matt had ordered a special big red bow online and made sure Kim's friend had that and the boat ready for the big surprise.

The family friend dropped the boat off in the Isner's driveway at around 11am on Christmas morning. The whole family was inside opening gifts. When the last present had been opened, so Joe thought, the girls lead him outside. He couldn't believe what he saw there in front of the house. It was a 2008 Wakesetter 23 LSV complete with a huge red bow. Do you think he saw himself completing that backroll too?

Joe was completely surprised. Kim's plan was a huge success and they have been enjoying their Wakesetter all summer.

Kim informed us. "And my husband finally landed his backroll!"

We asked Kim how she justified such a large purchase, especially as a Christmas gift. She had this to say, "I consider it a great investment, especially considering the fun and memories we have shared with our family and friends."

Kim also said this about her Malibu experience, "We have had such a wonderful experience with Bakes Marine in Issaquah. This is the second Malibu boat we have purchased from them and their customer service from sales to maintenance is fabulous. Matt Cour was key in helping the kids and I pull off this surprise for my husband complete with a huge red bow he purchased! He helped us customize the boat to meet our needs. He and service manager, Paul Gregoire, answered all of my questions regarding accessories or which line to buy for our new surfboard!"

Hope you enjoyed this soon-to-be Malibu Boats Christmas classic. If you know of a cool Malibu Christmas story, e-mail it to amym@malibuboats.com. We will write about it and post it here. Or if you are interested in created a Malibu Christmas story of your own, check out the Malibu Boat Rockin' Christmas Event. Together with Malibu Boats dealers across the nation, we are helping to create once-in-a-life-time Christmas surprises. Locate your nearest Malibu Boats dealer to plan the best Christmas ever for your family.

Tags: Malibu Boats | Christmas gift | wakeboard boat | family | boating | wakeboarding | backroll | Isner | Christmas surprise | surprise | investment