Photo courtesy of Waterskiing Santa
The longest running waterski Christmas show will not be happening live this year. The group behind the annual Christmas Eve tradition along Alexandria’s waterfront announced that the event will be going virtual because of COVID-19.
The event, which typically draws large crowds to the Old Town Alexandria waterfront, features Santa Claus waterskiing down the Potomac River from Founders Park to Point Lumely Park.
The longtime holiday tradition began in 1986 when a group of friends drew straws to see which of them would waterski in a Santa suit on Christmas Eve. The friend who drew the short straw decided to do it again in 1987 and the show has been running every year since.
Organizers say the purpose of the show is simply to spread holiday cheer and kindness to the Alexandria community.
The show was originally scheduled to run on Christmas Eve this year but organizers announced that they decided to cancel the live event for safety reasons.
Instead, a recording will be available for viewing on Dec. 20 so families can “stay home, get some hot chocolate and popcorn and cozy up while watching the Waterskiing Santa,” organizers said on the event’s Facebook page.
Find out more about the annual tradition at www.waterskiingsanta.com.
