Two years ago, it would be hard to imagine a scoring tower filled with pro riders cheering on Phillip Soven in a finals run. Phil was young, starting to dominate, was quiet, didn’t socialize much with the other riders and his demeanor was very business-like. That formula was great for winning, but not necessarily for winning friends.
In 2008, Phil’s domination went into overdrive as he won almost every single stop on the King Of Wake, including a sweep of the five-stop Pro Tour. Surely his success would carry into 2009, however a new breed of riders like Aaron Rathy and Harley Clifford stepped up to the plate early and made things difficult. Next thing you know, the KOW was five stops deep and the King hadn’t seen first place. Shocker.
Some say that a champion’s true character is seen not during success, but more importantly, in how he handles defeat. This is where the story of Phillip Soven turned into a legendary tale this season. We talked to Phil in early July at Lake Powell and he was definitely frustrated with his competitive performances, however his outlook on wakeboarding had completely changed. “I’ve won everything there is to win,” Phil said. “But I’m starting to realize that there is so much more in this sport that I can still accomplish.” What he was talking about were the aspects of pro riding he had overlooked for so many years, like free-riding, photography, video and simply having fun with the other riders.
One of the first top pros to support Phil through his defeat was, surprisingly, his biggest competitor over the years, Danny Harf. Harf looked deeper than the surface, and got to know a Phil that most people didn’t know or understand. “I like Phil.” Harf said in his most genuine tone. “I think most people don’t get to know him and haven’t given him a chance yet.” The respect was mutual. During the same heart-pouring discussion in Lake Powell, Phil admitted, “I’ve always looked up to Danny’s riding and honestly, I wanted to ride just like him and I always aspired to do my moves as well as he could.” In 2009, the two started hanging out, would schedule the same travel itineraries and would often be seen chatting and sharing laughs during the heat of competition.
This sort of camaraderie started to channel itself through Phil’s relations with all the other pro riders and peaked last weekend in Kentucky. As Phil took off the dock in the finals, the buzz was electric and all his past and present competitors, including Rusty Malinoski, were in the tower screaming for Phil to go out and kill it.
Phil proceeded to lay down one of the most technical and difficult runs ever seen in competition and he found himself in a place he hadn’t been in almost a year – number one. “It’s such an awesome feeling.” Phil said. “I got hit with a ton of bricks that said ‘step up your game.’ And to have all the hard work pay off is so exciting.”
While the 2009 King Of Wake race remains anyone’s game, the lessons Phil has learned and the character he is displaying are bigger than any title he may ever win.
