Parks Bonifay (born September 30, 1981) is an American professional

wakeboarder Wakeboarding is a water sport in which the rider, standing on a wakeboard (a board with foot bindings), is towed behind a motorboat across its wake and especially up off the crest in order to perform aerial maneuvers. A hallmark of wakeboardin ...

Life and career

Bonifay was born in

Lake Alfred, Florida Lake Alfred is a city in Polk County, Florida, United States. The population was approximately 5,015 at the 2010 Census. It is part of the Lakeland– Winter Haven Metropolitan Statistical Area. History The city was established soon after th ...

. He became a professional wakeboarder in 1994. Parks began competing as a 14-year-old, winning the

X-Games The X Games are an annual extreme sports event organized, produced and broadcast by ESPN. Coverage is also shown on ESPN's sister network, ABC. The inaugural X Games were held during the summer of 1995 in Providence and Newport, Rhode Island ...

in his first visit. He has held many major titles including the Pro Wakeboard Tour titles in 1999 and 2001. He began waterskiing at the age six months, 29 days old setting a new world record. He became the first documented wakeboarder to land the 1080 (a switch toeside 1080), doing so at a Bill Doster photoshoot in 1999. Bonifay was a recurring star on

MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...

's extreme action sports show

Nitro Circus ''Nitro Circus'' is an "action sport collective" led by Travis Pastrana, featuring his friends and him traveling around the world riding dirtbikes, BASE jumping, and performing stunts. Co-founded in 2003 by Pastrana, Nitro Circus has become a m ...

. He is sponsored by Ronix, Fox
Red Bull
Spy,

MasterCraft The MasterCraft Boat Company is an American manufacturer of luxury high-performance boats. The company was founded in 1968 in Maryville, Tennessee, and is currently headquartered in Vonore, Tennessee. MasterCraft boats are used in waterskiing, ...

, and Performance Ski & Surf. A full-length feature documentary on Parks' life was released on August 21, 2009, aptly titled The Parks Documentary. It chronicles the story of Park's life, from his roots in water skiing and show skiing via his parents and grandparents, to his exploits, accomplishments and sheer dominance of the world of wakeboarding the past 12 years. He resides in

Auburndale, Florida Auburndale is a city in Polk County, Florida, United States. The population was 13,507 at the 2010 census. According to the U.S. Census estimates of 2019, the city had a population of 16,650. It is part of the Lakeland-Winter Haven, Florida Metropo ...

Filmography

Television

Film

References

External links

Bio
at EXPN.com
Bio
at GravityGames.com

at USAwaterski.org * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bonifay, Parks 1981 births American wakeboarders Living people Sportspeople from Pensacola, Florida Sportspeople from Florida Sportspeople from Polk County, Florida