Wakeboarding pupil pipes his way over the waves

Youngster thought to be first person to combine both interests

A youngster has become an internet sensation after being filmed combining his two passions – wakesurfing and bagpiping.

Max Rae is believed to be the first person in the world to combine the two skills, with a video of his effort becoming an instant hit on YouTube.

The 12-year-old Dollar Academy pupil, a regular at the new Foxlake Dundee wakeboarding centre at City Quay, honed his combined piping and wakesurfing abilities across a two-day period before his final effort.

Donning a kilt and a special set of bagpipes Max was helped by a team of six for the feat at the LDB Wake School in Surrey.

A true patriot, he played Scotland the Brave as he surfed the waves.

Max and his father John, of Bridge of Allan, had been visiting family in England when they decided to make the attempt.

John said: “We just hatched a plan when surfing one day and said let’s see if we can do this.

“We bought a set of inexpensive pipes as there was no way we were putting Max’s good pipes anywhere near the water.

“They don’t sound as tuneful, but they did the job.

“We had such a great time doing it, and he made it look easy, but it required considerable skill to do both at the same time.

“We just decided to go for it because he can do it, and nobody has ever done it before.

“I didn’t appreciate that at first – I think it is a world first.

“We did it over two days and made the video on the Sunday.”

The bagpipes were handed back to Max while the boat sped down the river.

The youngster managed the feat without dropping his pipes in the water or falling off his board.

John added: “The wakesurfing is great fun. I am absolutely chuffed to bits with his effort.

“We have to go to Loch Lomond for that (wakesurfing) in Scotland.

“We have put tens of thousands of miles into going to Dunbar for wakeboarding, so it is a lot handier to be able to go to Dundee now.

“I have got an older son in England. That was why we filmed it there.” Max has been bagpiping for three years and plays with the Dollar Academy school band and regularly entertains guests at the Gleneagles Hotel.

He has been wakeboarding with his father since he was five but began surfing about two years ago.

He said: “I love piping and wakesurfing, so it seemed like a great idea to try to do them both at the same time. I had loads of fun doing it – it was pretty cool.”

They are already hatching plans for a Scottish attempt using specially made poly bagpipes.

Dollar Academy pupil Max Rae played Scotland the Brave as he surfed the waves.