Wakeboarding

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Wakeboarding is a surface water sport which involves riding a wakeboard over the surface of a body of water behind a boat. It was developed through a combination of water skiing, snowboarding and surfing techniques.

The rider is towed behind a boat; typically at speeds of 18-24 miles per hour, depending on water conditions, rider's weight, board size and most importantly, the rider's personal preference. Wakeboarding can also be performed on a variety of media including closed-course cables, winches, PWCs and ATVs.

Boarders & Boards

Boarders & Boards are buoyant, with the core usually consisting of foam mixed with resin and coated with fiberless. Metal screws are inserted to attach bindings and fins.

The configuration and positioning of the fins and bindings varies according to rider preference and is adjusted for a variety of reasons. A wakeboarder can change the type of fins they use for their specific application of riding tricks/style(s). For example, shallow fins (which do not protrude into the water very far) are better for surface tricks, such as flat spins. Many newer board models contain small molded fins on the board which allows the rider to use smaller center fins and also to create less drag. Board hardware is often set up to allow a rider to ride "Switch" or "Fakie", with either foot forward. Such setups are usually asymmetrical in layout. Riders can elect to adjust their stance (placement of the bindings on the board) to be symmetrical or asymmetrical with the board. There are several models of wakeboards designed to be symmetrical but the bulk of boards produced are asymmetrical.

Rocker

The "rocker" is the bend in a wakeboard from head to tail. There are many various types of rocker shapes, but the most common are the continuous and three-stage rocker. A continuous rocker is a smooth curve that does not change from tip to tail, while a three-stage rocker has two distinct bend points, almost like a skateboard deck but not nearly as drastic.

Wakeboards with continuous rocker are faster to ride because the water flows without disruption across the bottom of the wakeboard. Wakeboards with a three-stage rocker push more water in front of the wakeboard, making the ride slower but allowing riders to jump higher off the water.

Length

Throughout the years, different riders have been known to ride wakeboards that may seem too big or too small for them according to the manufacturer’s sizing chart. The reason is that wakeboards a size smaller or a size bigger is decided by rider preference. Many professionals with their own pro-model boards will bounce between sizes depending on other contributing board characteristics. It is important to note that length is not nearly as important as "surface area" of the board. This means a shorter but wider board may offer the same amount of surface area as a longer, narrower board. Using a smaller surface area wakeboard "can" make the wakeboard feel lighter, respond quicker, and spin faster. Using a larger wakeboard generally results in more "pop" off the wake (otherwise more height off the water). Ultimately many factors play a role in the sizing of a board, length alone does not dictate the way a board will ride.

Width

The width of a wakeboard directly affects how high it sits in the water. There are three places to check wakeboard widths: tips and tails – those are generally the same – and in the middle. Narrower tips and tails sit lower and make the wakeboard turn more aggressively. Wider tips and tails allow for more surface tricks, and a better release for spins off the wake. However, the main variable that changes with the width of the middle of the wakeboard is the height that can be gained off the water; the wider the middle of the board, the higher it will sit in the water and the harder it will bounce off the wake.

Bottom Design

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There are many different bottom designs in wakeboards – it is a feature wakeboard shapers use to express their own style. On the bottom of the wakeboard you will see concaves, channels or maybe even nothing at all. Each performs a different function, fine-tuning how the wakeboard rides through the water according to its width from tip to tail, fin setup, and rocker/tip/tail shape.

Concaves create lift and make the wakeboard sit higher in the water. For instance, a double concave in the middle and a single concave in the tip and tail keep the wakeboard riding higher in the water overall. But the double concave in the middle will always sit higher than the single concave.

Channels act like long fins. It’s something for the water to run into and along to help the wakeboard edge harder. If there are channels through the middle of the wakeboard and not at the tip or tail, it will be a hard-edging wakeboard but should still release well through the wake, depending on the fin setup. On a wakeboard with channels running through the tip and tail, the fins will hook better, but the wakeboard will not release as well through the wake. Finally, a featureless wakeboard bottom lets the tip and tail shape, and the width throughout the rocker and the fins, determine the nature of the board.

Fins and Placement

The closer the fins are placed towards the center of the wakeboard, the quicker and better the wakeboard releases from the wake. The farther out towards the tip and tail they are placed, the longer the wakeboard will stay hooked into the wake, providing less release.

Long-based fins Their effect is almost the same as a short fin with a long base because they have a similar amount of surface area. Long-based fins release better, give the wakeboard a loose, snowboard-type feel when riding flat through the water. They also hold up better on rails and ramps.

Molded fins These are large channels in the board which act like fins. Molded fins are slippery, but most boards have a removable center fin.

Multi-finned set-ups These capture the maximum edge hold and aggressiveness into the wake and through the wake, while providing the rider with less lift when performing tricks.

Canted side fins These are fins that lean out at an angle. These fins are not as active when the wakeboard is riding flat through the water, but the more you lean on the edge, the more the wakeboard hooks up. The inside fin digs while the outside lifts, creating leverage to help the wakeboard edge hard. These are great for tricks such as 50-50 grinds, nose presses and tail presses.

Cupped side fins They have the same effect as canted fins but add more of a push-pull effect. The cupped fin allows you to use a smaller fin but still get the hold of a bigger fin due to the increased surface area of the cupped side of the fin. These fins are very deceiving – they look small and loose but have a large effect on the wakeboard's performance.

No Fins Having no fins gives the board a looser, more snowboard-like feel. This allows the rider to do surface tricks more easily without worrying about the fins grabbing and preventing the trick. A board without fins also helps the rider develop skills because the rider must rely more on the edges of the board for control.

Boats

Although it is possible to wakeboard behind nearly any boat which can achieve the required speeds (25+ mph), the best results are obtained from specialized wakeboard boats. These boats resemble an inboard runabout of about 5.5 to 7.3 meters (18 to 24 ft), but with specialized equipment. Some riders use a PWC in place of a full-size boat for surface tricks or a rail session.

The most common difference between a regular runabout and a wakeboarding boat is the wakeboard tower, normally constructed of thick-walled stainless steel or aluminum tubing, which places the "pull point" about 2 meters (7 ft) off the water's surface. The high tow point gives the rider more control and ease jumping up onto the board. Most boats feature also have a variable ballast system, which allows for water to be pumped into and out of ballast bags from the surrounding water. Adding ballast increases displacement, and consequently enlarges the wake produced. These large wakes are implicated tricks used in professional competitions.

A significant portion of wakeboarding boats utilize V-drive propulsion. These boats have a regular inboard engine, but are turned 180° such that the transmission is in front of the engine, rather than behind, which is the more common layout. The prop shaft exits the transmission towards the rear of the boat, so that the prop is placed directly under the engine. When viewed from the side, such a layout appears as a "V" laying on its side. This layout allows for better weight distribution (with the engine farther aft), and places the prop farther forward, which reduces the danger of the spinning prop near the stern of the vessel, where riders enter and exit the water.

Riding

Using edging techniques, the rider can move outside of the wake or cut rapidly in toward the wake. Jumps are performed by hitting the wake and launching into the air. This can also be done by hitting a kicker (a jump). There is also the slider (a rail bar) in which a rider approaches and rides along keeping his balance. Once a rider improves in the sport, he or she can progress to tricks high in the air. As the rope tightens the rider gains speed toward the wake. When the rider goes airborne, the tightened rope launches him. While in the air the rider attempts to do tricks.

Development of the sport

Wakeboarding arose in the late 1980s after the advent of Skiboarding. The actual sport of ski boarding is credited to Porter Daughtry (who invented the Skurfer in San Diego, CA) Jimmy Redmon (Austin, TX) later drilled holes in skurfers to affix bindings. The term "wakeboard" was coined by Porter Daughtry (Brooks, GA), as well as the concept and design, along with his brother Murray and a Pro snowboarder they sponsored. Paul approached Herb O'Brien with the idea and the introduction of the "liquid force" wakeboard, named by Eric "The Flyin Hawaiian" Perez, laid the groundwork for evolution of the wakeboard throughout the 1990s.

The World Skiboard Association was founded in 1989 and the First World Skiboard Championships was held on the Island of Kauai, Hawaii, on the Wailua River. The next year Eric Perez defended his title against Darin Shapiro. This is when the Hyperlite wakeboard was introduced and blew everyone away. The first US Nationals were held later that same year in Colorado Springs, CO on Prospect lake, hosted by Tommy Phillips. Competitions began popping up around the United States throughout the early 1990s. Wakeboarding was added as a competitive sport in the X Games II. The World Skiboard Association "changed its focus" and was re-named the World Wakeboard Association.

Wakeboarding manoeuvers

As with many freestyle sports such as snowboarding and surfing, there is almost a separate language of terms to describe various tricks. The more height, the more "pop". So therefore the rider's edge is very important to the height of the jump. Heading towards the wake chest facing the boat is known as a heelside edge; approaching from the other direction with chest facing away from the boat is known as toeside edge. A typical beginner to intermediate rider will tend to have an easier time hitting the wake heelside because it tends to come more naturally to the rider, while more advance riders can hit the wake both heelside as well as toeside.

Surface Tricks

Surface tricks are tricks that are performed when the rider is not airborne. Examples are:

• Backside Butterslide- Rider turns the board backside 90 degrees and grinds the wake.
• Backside Butterslide 180- Rider turns the board backside 90 degrees and grinds the wake. Rider then grabs the handle with opposite hand and does another 90 degree turn in the same direction.
• Backside Start- Rider gets up in a backside position where the backside is facing the boat.
• Body Slide- Rider lies back onto the water.
• Butterslide- Rider turns the board frontside 90 degrees and grinds the wake.
• Butterslide 180- Same as regular butterslide but with an additional 90 degree rotation in the same direction.
• No-Hander- Rider puts handle between knees, then lets go with both hands.
• Nothing Butterslide- Rider puts handle between knees while in a butterslide.
• Perez- Rider carves outside of the wake and slides into a surface 360.
• Potato Peeler- Body Slide with fin release.
• Powerslide- Board is turned backside 90 degrees in the flats. Fins are broken loose. If done correctly, it creates a huge spray.
• Surf Carve- Rider cuts back and forth in the wake in a surf-carving fashion.
• Surface 180- A 180 degree turn on the surface of the water.
• Surface 360- A 360 degree turn on the surface of the water.
• Tumble Turn- Rider lays back on water, board is taken out of water and above the head, body is spun around backside and the rider stands back up onto feet.

Spins

A spin is done by rotating the board around, like snowboarding. These spins are:

• 180
• 360
• 540
• 720- First landed by Scott Byerly
• 900- First landed by Darin Shapiro
• 1080- First landed by Parks Bonifay
• 1260- First landed by Danny Harf

Another spin trick is the 009, which was invented by Matt Simms. This is a toeside Osmosis 540 followed by an Ole (Overhead) 360.

Spin Terminology

• Backside- A spin where the rider rotates with the back of their body towards the boat first. Many times mistakenly referred to as blindside spins. First done by Colin Wright.
• Baller- This is a term used for when a rider does the handle pass of their spin by passing the handle between their legs. Invented by Parks and Shane Bonifay.
• Flatline Spin- A spin where the rider goes over the rope instead of passing the handle.
• Frontside- A spin where the rider rotates with the front of their body towards the boat first.
• Off-Axis- When a rider does a spin but goes off the vertical axis so the board usually gets up to shoulder level or above. Invented by Marshall Harrington. Also called "Monkey" and "Corked" spins. Shawn Watson was the first rider to land an Off-Axis 900.
• Osmosis- When the rider performs a spin by tossing the handle from one hand to the same hand again, bypassing the other hand. Invented by Shaun Murray.
• Rewind- A spin where the rider does a shifty one way, then back the other, then spins back in the direction of their initial shifty.
• Shifty- Board is shifted 90 degrees in one direction and then shifted back in the opposite direction. Gregg Necrason was the first rider to land a shifty 540.
• To Blind- The rider lands with the rope wrapped around their back instead of passing the handle.
• Wrapped- When the rider has the rope wrapped around their back when riding they are going to perform a wrapped trick. It allows a rider to spin without doing a handle pass. It also allows the rider to perform unique grabs that usually cannot be done when passing the handle.

References

1. Wakeboarder.com- Surface Tricks
2. Wakeboarder.com- Spins
3. Wakeboarding.org

External links

• Wakeboard Reviews
• Wakeboarding in Australia
• Wakeboarding Dictionary
• Wakeboarding Magazine
• Wakeboarder.com
• wake world.com
• The World Wakeboard Association
• wakeboarding-waterskiing
• italian wakeboard blog

See also

• Artificial wave
• Skurfing
• Surface Water Sports
• Wakeskating
• Water Skiing