By JOSH BOUTWELL

Straughn High School junior Colton Whaley Meeks has two diverse hobbies.

First, Meeks is a sponsored wakeboarder having been competing since the age of 12. He began wakeboarding at the young age of 5.

“My parents were into it and I just grew up in,” Colton said of his love of wakeboarding. He has been a competing in wakeboarding for the past five years and has already competed in more than 30 competitions; with his biggest win coming last August at the Montgomery Riverfront Competition.

Currently, he is sponsored by Wakeboarder.

Meeks said that was his most memorable competition to date as he got to compete with all of his friends and won a major tournament.

“Learning the tricks and just hanging out with everyone, because everyone is real cool in the sport,” Colton said in regards to his favorite aspects of wakeboarding.

Meeks also recently completed his private pilot certification, and has about 65 hours of flight time. He also spends time volunteering and boasts a 3.96 GPA.

He said that his goal for this year is enter the semi-pro leagues by the end of 2016 and go even further in the sport in the coming years. Colton also plans to become a commercial airline pilot in the future.

“That would be the dream,” Colton said about his goals in becoming a pro wakeboarder and airline pilot.