Cable Park Korea Now Open!
Matt Hickman | Wake Park Update
Sesitec has invaded Korea with a fantastic wake park project — Cable Park Korea (www.cablepark.co.kr). Our friend and resident of Korea, Michael Blunck, attended the opening day of CPK and here’s what he had to say about Korea’s new Sesitec cable system…
Michael Blunck: There’s been people wanting to put up a cable in Korea for years, and this country has desperately needed one. Wakeboarding has become super popular, causing the lakes and rivers to get pretty crowded. This season, however, there’s been a slight drop-off since the price of gas here has risen to more than $2 a liter! (Isn’t that like 8 or 9 bucks a gallon? Ouch!!!) So Korea is definately prime territory for a cable park…
After a few years of battling with the ‘powers that be’ and securing all the proper permits and paperwork, the Lee family of Pochun, Korea and the hardworking folks at Sesitec have finally put the finishing touches on Cable Park Korea, or CPK. It’s been a total family effort, as Mr. and Mrs. Lee and their two sons, Frankie and Jim, are all involved in the project.
I used to ride a lot with Frankie and his buddy Jason years ago on the Han river in Seoul, so I would periodically call them up to check on the status of the park. I almost went nuts the other day when I finally got a call from
Frankie, learning that they would be testing the cable sometime that afternoon. A 20-minute subway ride and a 90-minute bus ride later, I was standing on the dock, almost not believing what I was seeing. Christian and Fritz from Sesitec were hard at work making sure everything was just perfect, and after about half an hour, they called for Mr. Lee to go get changed.
Not only was this going to be the ‘first ride’ of the new cable, but Mr. Lee’s first time on a wakeboard as well. Everyone was placing bets on how far he would get. Let’s just say he got an “A” for effort. I was proud of him, and even snapped a photo of the historic occasion. After that, Fritz ran down and showed ‘em how it’s done, taking a few laps and enjoying every minute of it. If I didn’t know better, I’d of swore he was a 13 year old kid out there, smiling from ear-to-ear. Next on the water was Jason, Frankie, Jim, and new operator Jung Joon. It was hard, but I tried to be a good guest and wait for everyone else to ride first.
What the CPK might lack in size, it definately makes up for it with high towers and short ropes. Air tricks [flats tricks] have never been so easy. The cable is so tight and smooth. (Now I’ve got no more excuses for not doing switch raleys…darn!) No obstacles in the water yet, but they’ve got plans for a few kickers and a few rails, so a few more weeks of wait shouldn’t hurt too much. The following day, after a few more safety checks, we got to put on a show for all the good neighbors of the cable park, who finally got to see first hand what Mr. Lee has been talking about all this time.
It was one of the best days on the water that I’ve ever had. Christian and Fritz from Sesitec deserve medals of honor for spreading the love around the world like they do. Mrs. Lee deserves the same for keeping everyone fed and continually running out with watermelon and ice cream. I feel really lucky to have been there for the first test runs of the cable, and can’t wait to go back often to see more happy faces on everyone that tries it. I have a feeling that sleepy little village of Pochun is about to be wide awake real soon. — Michael Blunck
Click to www.cablepark.co.kr for more info.
