Karen grew up in a waterski club just outside of the Raleigh, NC area. Competing alongside friends and taking too-many-to-count family trips to chase ski tournaments fostered her love of waterskiing. She always dreamed of making it as a pro skier, especially after enjoying a decorative junior career and following ESPN’s weekly coverage of pro skiing on “Hot Summer Nights”. Her next step was qualifying for the MasterCraft Pro WaterSki Tour where she competed across the globe and later met future husband and MasterCraft Pro Athlete, Freddy Krueger. The skiing duo decided to pursue athlete industry careers and moved to Orlando to be closer to the action. Now, many years later, Karen has established herself as one of the world's best female skiers, including US Masters and US Open wins, a Pan Am Gold Medal, a World Silver Medal and several World Cup titles. All of this while managing to instill a love of being up on the water into her two young boys, Ridge and Dash. She continues to enjoy pushing the limits of skiing, both on and off the water, through staying competitive in the professional realm and helping develop products and strategies within the industry. Karen also enjoys the occasional beach trip, basketball game, or movie night while leaving the skis behind.