Johnson’s Pond 39th Annual Ski Show Wows Spectators

A sunny and comfortable summer day was a perfect backdrop for the Johnson's Pond Civic Association 39th Annual Ski Show held on Sunday.

Lining the shore of Johnson's Pond was a crowd of several hundred seasonal residents and visitors, either on boats or sitting on the sand who avidly listened and watched as emcee Scott Crowe announced each act.

One of the busiest performers was Ross Pelletier, who usually positioned his feet and body to hit the water or stay upright without going under in a variety of stunts. In a water ski line of three separate ropes tied together, Ross was the anchor man ahead of Shane Kirkland and Kyle Grace and had the bumps and scratches to prove it.

Towed behind small, but powerful motorboats that precisely sliced through water, Pelletier and others from kids to middle-agers used an exquisite sense of balance and athletic ability to mostly stay on top of the water to successfully complete their acts. 

Skis- either one or two, wakeboards and kneeboards, tubes, a canoe paddle and other contraptions were used. A few didn’t use a ski at all. Even a heavy snowmobile somehow churned across the water and back.

Thanks to Bucky Siemans, who has allowed his property next to the pond off Rt. 117 to be used by the general public to view this free and popular one-day event, the show has continued to grow and evolve.

“It started with some friends who challenged each other, saying you can’t do this and you can’t do that.” said Pelletier, 27, a Coventry resident who’s been involved with the show starting as a kid when he was four or five.

“We have integrated all different styles to incorporate into the show,” said year-round resident Don Pare, 37, who handled the sound and also performed at the show. He too, began performing at age five. Protective materials have changed significantly, he said, and there are more ways to ski using wakeboards and kneeboards.   

From the Adrain family of Warwick, the brother and sister combination of Alexander, 15, and Emma, 12, helped launch the two-hour event by participating in the National Anthem salute with a flag being carried across the water. With their mother, Alyn, and other family members looking on proudly, the duo later performed on single skis in a tandem slalom act drawing much applause.

“It was exciting and I think we did pretty good,” said Emma. “This is our first time in the show. We’ve practiced the slalom about ten times.”

“We have practices, tryouts and try to organize different acts,” said Pare, who along with several volunteers, helped organize the show.  

In the act designated as “Old Man/Young Guy Barefoot Boom, towed by a boat that looked like a small red Corvette, Pare playfully boasted, “I was the old guy with five young guys and was the only one to make it all the way around without falling.”

Capping off the show was a cross-over move by Pelletier and Kyle Grace. On two separate ropes, the performers carefully angled their way across the water twice in 360-degree maneuvers that had the crowd oohing, aahing and applauding.

Ray Niessing and Denise Brindamour of Coventry attended the show for the first time. “We enjoyed it very much,” said Brindamour. “We especially liked the skier on plywood and a little stool.”

JCPA members Jim and Patti Fleming are hoping this event will spur other residents to become active in the association, whether they reside on the pond or not. “Johnson's Pond is a very, very big part of Coventry,” Patti says. “There are 600 people who live on the pond, but we only have about 100 active members. We would love to have more."

The Flemings said proceeds from the sale of t-shirts and other ski show clothing and momentoes not only go to support the show, but to support clean water efforts, studies to prevent invasion by weeds and sponsor the . There are other social events and fundraisers held throughout the year.

"Next year the show is going to a lot bigger for the 40th anniversary," promised Pare.

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