Community Corner
Annandale’s Own Water-Skiing Santa
Water-Skiing Santa, who hails from Annandale, will cap his 25-year annual tradition on the Potomac on Christmas Eve
One of the most unusual Christmas happenings in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area occurs on the Potomac River on Christmas Eve. The sound you hear is not sleigh bells ringing, but the rhythmic roar of a boat engine pulling the water-skiing Santa along the river.
For the last 25 years, Santa has entertained hundreds of people at the Washington National Harbor. This year's special silver anniversary show on Dec. 24 at 1 p.m. will be his last. The event takes place Dec. 24 at 1 p.m. rain, sleet or snow.
While it's widely believed Santa lives in the North Pole, he actually hails from Annandale and resides here with his wife, Mrs. Claus. The Annandale man, who prefers to remain anonymous, told Patch he plans to retire his water skis after his last dip into the Potomac.
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Santa admits the idea for getting into the frigid river in December came from "too much reindeer juice." What started out in 1985 as two crazy people in a boat has turned into 16 people in the water, including crowd favorite, the Jet-Skiing Grinch, Frosty the Snowman in a dinghy and 65 or so folks working behind the scenes.
Santa said the true "unsung heroes" are the nine knee-boarding reindeer and the flying elves that put on dry suits and perform amazing stunts. Many of the elves are nationally ranked wakeboarders and have sponsors who help defray the costs, including the $70,000 Tournament boats that are used. This year they will add the "Dueling Tube Elves" battling it out on the Potomac.
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The show's participants are not paid and the show is free for all to come and watch. While Santa and Mrs. Claus do not have children of their own, Santa said kids are "dear to his heart" and "all the children in the world are ours."
"The 30 to 40-minute show is a fun event and will definitely make you laugh. The kids love it," said Rocell Viniard, public relations and community relations spokesperson for National Harbor, the primary host for the event.
After the show, Santa, Mrs. Claus, the Grinch and all of Santa's Helpers will be available for meeting, greeting and photos. More information about Santa's last show can be found on his website.
