HE’S climbed a mountain and sailed around the Isle of Wight, but this New Forest man waited until age 73 to try waterskiing.

Rob Forrester-Addie, from Ringwood, was asked by his son, Max, what he wanted for Father’s Day this year, and his reply was to do something that he had never done before.

So, Max called up the New Forest Water Park, and signed his dad up for the adventurous watersport as a Father’s Day gift to remember, with his dad’s previous challenges in mind.

Rob said: “We went along and you try out waterskiing in a 15-minute trial. It was pretty much a disaster, but it was a smashing session.

He added: “It was great fun and I would definitely do it again.

“I’ve canoed around the Isle of Wight before, back in 1986, and for my 70th birthday, I climbed Mount Snowdon. This year, I wanted to do Scafell Pike, and next year, I hope to scale Ben Nevis, so that I can say I have done the three peaks.

“For me, it’s the old ‘use it or lose it’ syndrome, where if I don’t do these things, my knees will give up.

“I’ve done many things over the years, but so far, waterskiing had evaded me until now. .

“Afterwards, my son put his arm around me and told me that he was proud of me, and that meant a lot to me.”