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1996 was the last time Jennifer Calleri, now Jennifer Schwenk, competed in a barefoot
tournament. It was the 96 Worlds in Fergus Falls, Minnesota and Jennifer:
won Gold in Tricks, Wakes, and Overall. Since that time, Jennifer:
has all but vanished from the barefoot scene.
In
the summer of 1993, while working at Cypress Gardens, Jennifer met Zane
Schwenk. Most people know Zane as "Insane Zane", for his
fearlessness on the wakeboard. Jennifer and Zane dated for many
years, and were finally married in December 2000.
Jennifer
began persuing a life-long dream of becoming a pilot in April of
2000. By Dec 2000, she had soloed and was able to fly on her
own. She didn't stop there. By July of 2001, she was
instrument rated, and by March of 2002, she was multi-commercial
rated. In October 2003 she was hired on as a pilot for Air Wisconsin. She now
fly's a Canada Air regional jet made by Bombardier. It is a 50 passenger
jet/ She
and Zane also own their own Coimmanche single engine plane.
That
all sounds like Jennifer has been living a life that fairy tales are
made of. That is true, but throw the words "breast
cancer" in the middle of all that and now you have a perspective of
what Jennifer's real challenge was.
In
September of 2001 Jennifer found a lump in one of her breasts. A
month later she found herself in the hospital about to undergo a mastectomy.
She took on breast cancer the same way she footed, head on with no
fear. In August of 2002, lightening struck again as she was
diagnosed with cervical cancer. She went through several types of treatments and even tried
some new ones. She is now considered a case study for many of the
newer treatments. To this day she is believed to be completely
cured of cancer. And thanks to modern plastic surgery, you
would never know she ever had a mastectomy. We did notice that
Zane must have put in a request for a size or two larger. Way to
go Zane!!
Jennifer
and Zane now live on a lake in Winter Haven, Florida with their dog "Bianca"
and cat "Lucky". Being married to a top
wakeboard pro keeps Jennifer close to watersports, but for the last 4-5
years, Jennifer has been more focused on her health and pilot carrier to
spend much time on the water herself.
Mike
Salber was able to convince Jennifer to suit up and take a few barefoot
runs for our cameras. He even got Zane out on
the boom for a few crazy barefoot runs. Zane definately shows us
some of that insanity he has on the water. He's a mad-man on the water
and his talents go well beyond wakeboarding. Check out the video
interview below:
Mike
spent a whole day with Jennifer and Zane skiing, flying, and having
fun. Below are some
 BFC:
What are you up to these days as far as a career?
Jennifer: I'm a commercial airline pilot for Air
Wisconsin
BFC: What do you miss about the sport?
Jennifer: I miss the people probably the most. It was really nice to see so many familiar faces at the Jr/Sr Worlds in Winter Haven last fall.
BFC: When
you think back, what accomplishment sticks out the most?
Jennifer: The last worlds I skied in was the most memorable. I skied a personal best in all three events, at a worlds. I just knew I would never have another tournament that I performed that well in all 3 events.
BFC:
What was your favorite event and why?
Jennifer: Tricks was my favorite event. If you trick well you can run away with the overall. It was the best way for me not to put too much time into jumping, which I was very afraid of.
BFC: Who was your biggest competitor back in the day?
Jennifer:I always competed against the guys scores as far as on the US front, back in the day. But in any tournament your biggest competitor is yourself. As long as you are happy with your own performance you are a true winner.
BFC: Do you ever think about competing again?
Jennifer: I don't think about getting back into the sport. I don't like to be wet!!!!
It is next to impossible to get me out on the water nowadays. I do like to surf every once in a while and will ride too!
 BFC: Are there children in your future?
Jennifer:
No children but my dog, Bianca, has wakeboarded, surfed and trick skied with me.
BFC: What made you stop competing in the sport?
Jennifer: I got out of the sport on a high note for me. I didn't want to do it forever and like I said earlier, I had a tournament that comes only once in a lifetime at the 96 Worlds.
BFC: What titles do you hold?
Jennifer:
Titles....too long to list. Would have to get that info from someone who tracks that stuff. 4 time
Overall World Champ. 90,92,94,96
BFC: Thanks
for taking the time to visit with us and bring us all up-to-speed on
Where You Are Now. If some footers around the world would like to
contact you, what would be the best way to get in touch?
Jennifer: Please feel free to contact me if you would like at
jenair4@aol.com
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