Professional wakeboarder Jack Hammersley defends video of ride in carpark
Jack Hammersley and Jorge Gill were criticised for using a pulley system to wakeboard in an underground carpark
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Your support makes all the difference.A man who went wakeboarding in a flooded underground car park has defended his actions after it emerged that he is a professional coach.
The footage shows 24-year-old Jack Hammersley, from Farnborough, Hampshire, riding a board in the Bedford Road facility in Guildford on Sunday, with fellow professional 18-year-old Jorge Gill. The pair also went wakeboarding in a nearby park.
To take part in the sport that is usually performed using a motorboat, Mr Hammersley and Mr Gill reportedly used a winch system to pull themselves at speeds above 15mph.
Mr Hammersley was criticised online following the publication of the video on various news websites. Defending himself he said: “It's not their choice to do it - if we want to do it, it doesn't really matter what they say, we had fun.”
“I'm sure people injure themselves doing a lot more stupid things than that,” he added.
In response to accusations that the pair were trespassing he said: “There's no sign saying it's private property."
"We probably should be wearing helmets. We normally do - but we were trying to get some good photos."
He said he and Mr Gill, from Kilburn, north west London, were at the car park only on Sunday night: "But if it's still flooded, we might go back again."
His words come as the UK once again braces itself for turbulent weather after storms battered the country during the Christmas holidays.
The Met Office has extended its severe weather alert until Thursday morning, warning that the already saturated ground and swollen rivers in the south of England and Wales might not cope with more rain.
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Additional reporting by Press Association
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