Hands gripped firmly on the handles of her Kawasaki SXR-800 jet ski, the cool water splashing from behind her, Jet Girl 777 keeps her eyes on the path, swiftly navigating around the series of buoys ahead of her at a brisk 54 mph.

Currently ranked 13th in the world in stand-up jet skiing, junior Anna Glennon, otherwise known as Jet Girl 777 when racing, has come a long way since she hopped on a jet ski for the first time at the age of two on one of her grandfather’s old XH jet skis.

“Since then, I’ve always been riding,” Anna said, “I got competitive last year, and after I made the decision to race I got a lot more serious about it.”

For someone who only began racing competitively a year ago, Anna has accomplished some amazing feats. According to her sponsor, Rad Dudes, Anna finished 1st at the Mid American Shoot-out last July in Hillsdale Lake State Park, and in 2nd place at the Rivercross Challenge, which was held last June in Wichita. Anna also competed at the Jet Ski World Finals in September in Lake Havasu City, Ariz. Anna competed among racers from five other countries, finishing in 13th. Most recently, she took 2nd in women’s limited last weekend at the first race of the National Tour in Lake Charles, La.

“[Finishing in 13th at the Jet Ski World Finals] was a really exciting experience,” Anna said, “It was a big accomplishment for me because I was racing a stock jet ski against a lot of girls that were racing jet skis that had been modified, and I was also the only girl that had only been racing for one year. I still managed to hold my own, so I felt pretty good about that.”

Racing runs in Anna’s family. Anna’s father, John Glennon, began riding jet skis when he was around 12 years old and eventually introduced his daughter to the sport.

“I don’t know that it was instantaneous [that she wanted to start racing]; it just kind of evolved over time,” John said.

Anna’s father is the driving factor in her jet skiing activities. He’s responsible for everything from funding new equipment to coaching his daughter, and everything in between.

“I work on [the jet skis],” John said, “I keep them running. I keep all her equipment
working right. I’m responsible for coaching and keeping everything working.”

Anna’s mother, Carrie Glennon, also helps behind the scenes.

“My mom is usually in charge of all the packing and keeping us organized and getting us to where we need to be,” Anna said.

Also involved in jet skiing is Anna’s younger sister, Jessie Glennon, 11, a fifth grader at Timber Creek Elementary. Jessie races competitively, and most recently she competed in the first race of the National Tour last weekend with her older sister.

“[Jessie] started racing when I did and that’s really nice to have just her and the rest of my family involved in jet skiing,” Anna said.

Anna’s family is very supportive when it comes to her jet skiing. It is something that’s brought them closer and is something that allows them to bond over.

“Her whole family is really supportive of it and it, and it gets them to come together,” said senior Matt Forster, Anna’s boyfriend.

However, the hectic and intense schedule of racing does have its downfalls, which is something that Anna and her friends and family have learned to deal with.

“I gave up a lot of my extra curricular activities because I’ve gotten really serious about jet skiing,” Anna said.

Forster said that because of Anna’s practices and out-of-town races, he’s not able to hang out with her as much as he would like to. Although he would like to travel with her, because of high travelling costs it’s not a feasible thing to do. Still, when they’re not together, Anna keeps Forster updated by texting him about how her races are going.

“I think it’s really cool [that she races], and I think that she does a great job about it, and she loves it,” Forster said, “She said she was going to actually teach me how over the summer. I’m going to her lake house, and we’re probably going to ride jet skis so that will be pretty cool. You know it’s what she loves to do, and I try to stay as supportive as possible.”

Before a race, Anna spends time practicing at her family’s lake house at the Lake of the Ozarks in Missouri. On the weekends, Anna practices for four to five hours a day, repetitively riding around buoys.

“It’s really helpful,” Anna said, “Right before races I spend a lot of time just prepping and watching old race videos; watching what other people are doing just to come up with ideas.”

This will be a busy summer for Anna. With the beginning of racing season just starting, Anna is preparing to compete in the next races as part of the National Tour, in addition to a handful of regional races throughout Kansas.

“After the tour if I make it to enough races I would hope to win the national title and then go on from nationals to compete again at the World Finals and hopefully do better than I did last year,” Anna said.

Anna encourages those who want to start racing to do so, and that if one does end up liking it, he or she should stick with it.

“I would say that if you like it, to not give up even if you have a bad day or feel like you raced really bad. Just don’t let that get you down because I know there have been times when I thought I finished last and you find out that five people in front of you missed a buoy, and you’re in first place,” Anna said. “That can change a lot of things so just always be optimistic.”