Alex Koutzoukis wins the Gorge Games and the overall 2008 Face Level Riverboarding Championship

The youngest competitor in the field is headed to Costa Rica after cleaning up in the major US riverboarding competitions - get to know the kid everybody loves but nobody likes to race!

It’s not uncommon for people who meet Alex Koutzoukis to misjudge his age. Sure, most extreme athletes these days are barely old enough to drive, but riverboarding (and whitewater in general) is a different animal. With riverboarding’s median age in the low 30’s, you wouldn’t expect a kid fresh out of high school to clean up at the awards ceremonies.

But there he is, and despite the fact that he’s rarely seen without a smile on his face, word has gotten out that Alex is not only a talented riverboarder, but fiercely competitive as well.

Of course, that’s more the result of his youthful exuberance for life and his many athletic hobbies than it is some contrived act to intimidate the competition. If you ask Alex about it, he’s quick to point out that “I’ve never been that competitive…”, but having competed against him myself and watched him in other events, I’ll call his bluff.

Competition is a reflection, in many ways, of life. How people compete is how they face every day challenges, how they approach their goals and jobs and relationships.

For Alex, competition such as the Gorge Games reveals the social, funloving, and even goofy side of his personality…off the water.

But once the popcorn starts popping, he’s on a mission. Maybe it’s not one of ego, or of even being better than anybody else. Knowing Alex, it probably stems more from his desire to maximize himself than anything else.

This is a guy who has been a professional jazz musician since like, what, first grade? A guy who is not only a sponsored riverboarder (and I’m proud to have him on Team FLI), but also a sponsored windsurfer as well.

He’s been known to email me at random hours to answer a question (which really could have waited), only to end with “I’ve gotta run I am finishing an essay for class!” I’ve been impressed with his professionalism and dedication to the team.

He’s well-spoken and has his own riverboard company, which has quickly become one of the most popular boards in America.

All that…and he just graduated from high school. I seem to remember I was still working on that whole “tying my shoes” thing at that age.

Knowing all those tidbits only gives you a glimpse of the ambitious side of Alex K. Sure, everybody that hits the water with him finds him immensely likable and good-natured. But what they probably don’t see is that this kid works hard.

You don’t play in a professional jazz band with musicians who’ve been honing their skills for decades without some work. You don’t get sponsored at 18 in a sport that’s been around for ages (windsurfing) without putting in the hours on the water. And you don’t build a product that challenges the frontrunners in its first year out without a lot of effort and blistered fingers.

That underlying drive is what kicks in when the horn blows and the competitors hit the water. The desire not so much to beat the other guys (and girls), but to give it everything he’s got. Not even to beat himself, more like to maximize himself.

But you might not notice it if you watch him riverboard. Years of bodyboarding at the beaches of the O.C. have given him an effortless ability on the water. He’s smooth.

Watching him navigate the (annoyingly difficult) gates at the Kern River Festival I caught myself thinking, “He doesn’t even look like he’s trying – how does he go so fast? How am I supposed to beat somebody that goes that fast without trying? lol” (Yes, I think “lol” to myself. Shut up.)

It’s a snapshot of his personality though, in part, and perhaps partially due to his upbringing – it’s kinda tough to be high strung when you grow up in So Cal surrounded by a family that encourages, well no, even more they join you for most any chill sporting adventure you can think of.

His competitors admire him as much as they enjoy trying to beat him. Says teammate Kevin Yount, “Alex was one of my favorite people to compete with and someone who brings out my best performance with his top notch riding and camaraderie."

John Walker agrees. “Alex is a keen competitor and has a great future. His modest, friendly, and team spirited attitude will take him far if he can hold on to it.”

Even Docta P, whose intense personality was the subject of much discussion after the Gorge Games, had good things to say about Alex after narrowly beating him in the Boardercross finals: “[Alex] is one of the up-and-coming stars in this sport, he’s a great young rider.”

Alex, for his part, doesn’t seem at all affected by the praise, and if you get him started talking about riverboarding, he’ll openly talk up his competition, raving about River Dave and Levi Gallas racing in the Extreme Downriver without so much as having seen the course or Class V Husum Falls (!), or enthusiastically downplaying any surprise about the tough competition from Liz Arnold, saying “she shreds harder than anyone!”.

And he’s not posturing – you get the sense that he genuinely appreciates the riverboarders he competes with, regardless of who wins, as long as he’s having fun. Surprisingly he didn’t really even complain about the gratuitous contact in the Bx race, which many people felt was beyond the allowable level of hand contact from Docta P.

Of course, despite being well-liked across the industry, his podium sweep at the Gorge Games and for the 2008 race series overall is not without controversy. There are some who question how he can be crowned champion without a first place finish in any single event.

They point out that Alex placed 2nd, 3rd, and 3rd in the Gorge Games events (ExD, Sprint, Bx) and yet won the overall title, despite overall 2nd place finisher Liz Arnold having won the Sprint race and taken 3rd in the ExD.

While it does seem to favor simply placing in the top 3 over actually winning, not everyone has a problem with the system.

John Walker explains, “The winner of the multi day Tour de France doesn't not have to win a lot of stages, just be consistently high placing.”

Alex’s take on it was typical of him, saying “Funny how that happened! I guess I just placed pretty consistently compared to the other boarders in the series.”

Whether the system is flawed or not shouldn’t detract from his accomplishments. After all, were it not for Alex’s typical friendly behavior at Kern, where he let me use his personal board for the slalom race, I probably wouldn’t have won by a scant half-second, and with that first place finish his detractors would have nothing left to say.

Of course, I appreciate his kindness and the fast board, and I’ll take the win. ;-) Alex weighed in on that race too, joking, “[Ice] is a freak of nature on a riverboard. On the other hand, he only beat me by a second or so at the Kern Festival, so I might have a chance [to smoke him next season].”

Costa Rica, buddy. You’re going on the riverboarding vacation of a lifetime, and I’ll be ready for you and some head-to-head racing on the incredible Pacuare River! =)

In all seriousness though, I’m stoked to present the winner of the first true US Riverboarding competition series, a champion in every sense of the word…Mr. Alex Koutzoukis!

Yes, the competition series isn’t perfect – read my thoughts on it here and offer your suggestions here .