When selecting a wakeboard rope, hands down spectra would be the pick of the bunch would have to be spectra as it far outweighs the other two in tensile strength and weight. Many now come with a thermal coating to resisted kinks and twists and also a PVC coating for extra durability and all generally have adjustable lengths so you can ride at the length that suits your riding speed/wake size. This is the type of rope the pro’s use and there is a reason for it. However like anything that is the best on the market, it generally costs more. A good spectra rope can be usually be picked up for under $150 depending on the brand and quality compared to a poly-e that retails for about half that. Get what suits your budget however as your wakeboarding progresses you will eventually want to use a spectra rope. So bottom line if you can afford it, get it.

Selecting a handle comes down to personal preference again as there are many types and feels of grip on the market, however look for one that has a wide handle between 13-15 inches (to make those handle passes behind the back easier ), has a nice grip that is comfortable to hold and wont slip out of wet hands easily.
At the end of the day for such a simple piece of equipment, the wakeboard rope and handle is one of the most important gear apparel that you will own. So make sure your first choice is a good one, otherwise wakeboarding can be a very frustrating sport.

Stay tuned for our next part of The beginners wakeboard instructional Lifevest selection. It could be a lifesaver

BINDINGS:

After selecting a wakeboard, bindings will be next on the agenda and like the boards there are just as many types out there to choose from. Lace up, moulded/fixed, strap down, BOA system, open toe/closed toe, rubber or cloth overlay, the list can seem overwhelming to a wakeboarding beginner however here is a breakdown on what each component is/does.

ENTRANCE/HOLD: What type of entrance does the binding have, the types on the market currently are lace up, moulded/fixed, strap down, and BOA system. For ease as a beginner pick a lace, strap down or BOA type as these will be easier to get into than the moulded type which dont allow for release to get your foot in. The lace up, strap down BOA types also hold the heel down better which will stop it rubbing and causing blisters, and will also stop the foot coming out when you dont want it too.

OPEN OR CLOSED TOE: This refers to the toe end of the binding which will either be open or closed toe. This is purely down to preference. Some people feel as they can edge harder on their toeside wearing closed toe but it can be negliable. Closed toes are generally more expensive and in the high end market. They can also feel heavy as they fill with water when Deep water starting until they have time to drain whilst riding. A pro though is that they keep your toes warm during cooler months…

OVERLAY/UNDERLAY: This is the parts of the binding in which it mostly made of. Overlay is the part that goes over the top of the foot and underlay underneath this. Materials are usually rubber or cloth like. Although rubber is more common and cheaper, it usually requires a lubricant such as dish washing detergent and water to get into them. The cloth like type do not require this. 

HARDWARE/FIXING TYPE: The hardware that comes with the bindings is what is used to fix them to the wakeboard. Alot of big brands now days have patented systems of doing this, most of which have the idea of a quick setup up and maximum variations of stances. The bindings should come with all the hardware to attach them to any make of board, not just the brand it was designed for. Just make sure you are familar with the system and comfortable with using it.

BASE PLATE: This is what all of the binding is mounted to and spreads the load over the wakeboard to reduce the strain on particular points. It should be made from quality aluminum or alike.

 At the end of the day get a binding that fits correctly (will be similar to shoe size, but make sure it fits right as VERY important for safety) and is comfortable for the rider. If the board is to be shared amongst a few people make sure the adjustable size fits all, however from experience having a default binding that is fitted to the specific riders foot is much more comfortable and will keep the heel down better (will stop blisters and the foot coming out unintentionally whilst riding).

BINDINGS SETUP:

There are many variations of setting up wakeboard bindings, each involve the placement and angles in which the toes point. However there are 3 main ways that they can be setup. As follows:

Beginner: This involves the bindings basically being setup as if the board was uni-directional which can aid a beginner wakeboarder in learning things such as deep water start, movement/control and minor uni-directional jumps. To set the board this way you need to know what way you normally like to ride, regular or goofy. If you are familar to board sports then you will know which way you prefer (it will be the same) however if you dont then there is a simple trick. Get someone behind you to give you a gentle push unexpectally. Dont think about the process and see what foot you step forward with first. This will be the same foot that you ride forward normally with. Set the back binding at the last posibble position on the wakeboard and the front about shoulder width apart (or what feels most comfortable) between 14-28 degrees.

Intermediate: This position is adjusted to aid wakeboarding beginners that have some experience to be able to preform surface tricks and spins more freely than the first position. Although the binding setup is still bias to the riders prefered riding stance there is some element to two dimensional tricks such as 360′s. To set up the board this way move the rear foot up a few positions and to a slight angle between 0-10 degrees and the front likewise to a angle about 19 or so.

 Advanced: This is the riding position that you see most people ride in and provides unbiased positioning for either regular or goofy stance. This stance is needed if you wise to develope as a wakeboader and will allow the ability to preform all the variety of tricks (if you can), in two and three directional airs. To set the board up this way, you need to find a comforable stance probably just over shoulder width apart with feet ducked out slightly. The degree in which the toes point out is up to the individual however make sure it is not too extreme as it my put unneccesary strain on the knees. Once this stance is found simply transfer it too the board. Note the postioning of the feet should be mirror imaged of each other.

At the end of the day you do not need to start with the first two stances, although they may aid you in progressing quicker.

To continue the next installment in the wakeboarding beginner instructional follow the link wakeboard rope and wakeboard handle selection

Over the series feel feel to ask questions if you are not sure of anything, after all we’re here to help….

To begin the journey follow the link below

Part 1- Wakeboard equipment Guide

 I do not say this lightly however this would  have to be hands down the best wakeboarding instructional currently on the market. From beginner to pro, it covers everything you would possibly want to know about wakeboarding over 8hrs of film spanning over 5 detailed dvds. With Kyle Schmidt, Ben Greenwood, Kurt Robertson, and Mike McLin as your instructors their breakdown of each component, from approach thru to landing of each trick will put your learning progression into overdrive and with to ability to ‘choose your instructor’, you are not gaining the training and advice from one proffesional, you are getting it from 4 of the best. For those that are new to the scene of wakeboarding, these names are some of the best coaches available and unlike alot of dvd instructionals these guys are professional coaches, not just professional riders. There is a difference between knowing how to ride and teaching someone to. The book also stars some of the best riders in the world including:

 The book wakeboard DVD breaks each of its tricks into 5 discs, depending on skill level and type of trick with a steady progression in riding level from trick to trick. This is how they are broken down:

 Not only do these DVD’s come with comprehensive coverage of each trick, there are also many features that are unqiue from any other instructional dvd out there. These  include:

 Split-screen comparisons of:

Cutting edge digital animation
On the trampoline / On the water
Regular footed / Goofy footed
Trick with grab / Trick without grab
Rider boat angle / Chase boat angle
and more…

After reviewing the series myself, I wondered what other people thought about the book wakeboard dvd and the results did not suprise me. Although these results did not affect my opinion in any way or form, they support the fact that this dvd instructional is in a league of its own and if you are considering whether or not to purchase it, they may just convince you to part with your money. Here is one that I found:

  The Verdict: The book wakeboard dvd is the best wakeboarding instructional on the market. if you are looking to improve your riding and sick of taking hard face plants in order to do it, buy this DVD series. You’ll be glad you did. It will probably be the last one you will ever need….

Rocker type- The rocker is the curve in the board from tip to tail and the type influences how the board rides, the speed of the board, the amount of pop (height gained when hitting the wake) and the hardness of landings. There are two types of rockers.

Continuous rocker (continuous arch, smooth)

These type of rocker provide a smooth, fast ride with predictable pop and softer landings. They are a more relaxed board that suits many riders great for carving. Beginners are encouraged to start with this type of rocker.

3 Stage rocker-(angled with flat spot)

The 3 stage rocker have 2 defined angles at the tips of the board with one a flat spot in the centre. This type of rocker gives a agressive (more) pop however is not always as predictable as the continuous rocker. The landings are harder because of the flat spot and speed is slower as board does not glide through the water. Fins do not track as well and results in a looser feel on the water. This type of rocker is recommended for more advanced riders that can control the unpredictablity of the pop and harder landings.

Brand name- With the growing popularity of the sport, many new companies are emerging to cash in on the masses. Here are a few of the big players in wakeboarding, a safe bet that your new board will be good investment.

• Liquid force
• Hyperlite
• Obrien
• Ronix
• Double Up
• Gator Boards
• CWB

Construction material- As technology advances many new types of materials are being used in the making of boards, each with different characteristics be it strength, weight, or flex. The two main ways of constructing a wakeboard is either by having a solid polyurethane or foam core wrapped by fiberglass, or a honeycomb fiberglass/graphite core wrapped in the same material. The latter is a more expensive construction but the benefits are a lighter board which is more easily maneuvered and gives a smoother ride. This core is found on more advanced and pro model boards. The base of the board can also be made in different materials to give extra strength for hitting hard objects like rails and kickers.

Board edge/rail type- Two edge types are available in today’s market are the uniform edge and variable edge. A uniform edge is one the has the same thickness throughout the entire rail from middle to tip. A variable edge as the name suggests has a thicker and rounder edge in the middle and progressively gets thinner and sharper towards the tip of the board.  The thickness of  the rail dictates how aggressive the board will track which will establish how fast the board accelerates and overall speed when on rail. Thinner/sharper edges are more aggressive and faster however are less forgiving and are easier to catch an edge than a thicker rounded one.  Therefore it makes sense for beginners should choose a board with thicker rounded edges. The benefit of have a variable rail is that it combines the best of both worlds of a thick and thinner edge. It has a more forgiving rail whilst keeping aggressive tracking when on rail. Most companies today incorporate this into their boards.

Fin type/size- There are two types of fins that are on the modern wakeboard, molded (which cannot be removed) and removable (which can removed). The amount of, the size, and how your fins are set up will regulate how well your board tracks the water. Personal preference decides if you want a hard tracking board or a looser, snowboard feel which normally reflects your riding style. Large fins give a more stable ride but makes it harder to break traction for surface tricks and can sometimes catch the water more often if you don’t quite land your trick right. They are however more suited to beginner riders or for rough conditions. Smaller fins ofter the opposite with the ability to break traction easier for surface tricks and are preferred in smoother conditions. Depending on the level of board, they can have a combination of small and large fins however most either have on large fin at each end (possibly with a few molded fins),or 2 smaller fins at each end (again with with/without molded fins). Removable fins give the flexibility to change how hard the board tracks as they can be removed to give a looser feel on the water. They can also be removed if you are hitting rails or kickers to prevent board damage.

Board base shape: There are four basic shapes that are incorporated into today’s wakeboards, with some involving a combination. These shapes are as follows:

• concave- are indents on the base of the wakeboard which break the suction between the base of the board and the waters surface. This creates lift, makes the board sit higher in the water and allows the board to move faster.
• channels- are long, fin like sections of the board which direct the water beneath it which break water tension, this gives smoother landings.
• v shape/spines- help soften landings and ease the transition from edge to edge (heelside to toeside)
• featureless- a board without any of the above features and relies on the board shape, fin set up and rocker to determine how the board rides and handles.

Board Size: The size of your board should reflect your body weight with longer boards for heavier riders and the opposite for their lighter counterparts. Board lengths range from 120-150cm and usually have the weight recommendation on them. Other factors of choosing board size are that shorter boards in general, are slower across the water as it takes more energy to push them through the water (they have less surface area to keep them above the water = more drag in the water). However due to their shorter length they are easier to spin and maneuver off the wake but landings are also harder. Longer boards are the opposite generally being faster across the water with landings softer but spinning and maneuvering being harder.  These characteristics make longer boards  recommended to beginner riders as they are easier to learn on and ride in general.  Here is a chart on weight vs board size:

The answer to this question is that the sport of wakeboarding evolved from a group of different sports including surfing, snowboarding, and waterskiing.  For years surfing was all the rage amongst those that lived at the beach, and being the freeststyle sport that surfing is, new adaptions and variations branched off. One of these different variations was to be towed by a ski rope on a surf board either by boat or truck when the swell wasn’t up.  From this adaption, a San Diego surfer named Tony Finn in 1985 developed ‘the skurfer’ which was a hybrid of a water ski and a surfboard. The board was shorter in size than the standard surfboard and was towed by a boat however the same carve style techniques were performed as when surfing.  Basically it was surfing behind a boat on a mini surfboard. Although not as popular as it once was, ‘skurfing’ is still out there today.

The creation of this board soon led to new innovations and it wasn’t long before different shapes and technology took hold of the primitive prototype. The major breakthrough was the additions of foot straps which held the riders feet in place whilst on the board. There were two players that took part in the addition which were Tony Finn and Jimmy Redmon  of Austin, Texas (who added straps to his Redline design water ski board, which was again a smaller version of a surfboard).  The facinating part of this innovaton is that both men developed at the same time without knowing what each other was doing! With these new footstraps riders were able to get big air and start performing airborne tricks. This is probably the first true resembalences to wakeboarding and led away from surfing and more toward snowboarding and water skiing.

Skurfing soon transformed into skiboarding which Tony Finn was a strong advocate for and the first skurfer championships were televised on ESPN in 1990. However even with its claim to fame the sport was struggling with a stagnant patch in technology and innovation.  The skurf board was still very primative in comparison to the modern wakeboard in the fact that because they were very narrow and very buoyant, they required alot of energy to get them planing and leaving only experienced riders cabable of preforming deep water starts. The skiboard on the other hand was designed for performance, however could not withstand the punishedment of constant poundings dished to it by the sport.

One name changed all of this, Herb Obrien. Obrien was a successful businessman in water sports and the owner of H.O sports. With an idea of revelovtionalising the sport, he began experimenting with boards and developed the first compression-molded neutral-buoyancy wakeboard, known as the hyperlite. The advantages of  a neutral buoyancy board allowed ease in deep water starts which opened the door for the sport to boom in all demographic age groups and skill levels. This was the begining of the sport as we know it today.

Obrien did not stop there, he soon incorporated a thinner profile to allow the board to carve like a salom ski, phasers or dimples on the bottom of the board which broke up water contact and produced a looser feel on the water and softer landings. All of these refinerys made possible by the compression molding process founded by Obrien. Seeing H.O sports success in the wakeboarding industry sparked other companies to follow in it’s foot steps, putting more boards on the market and growing the sport further.

The Redmon “Twin Tip” wakeboard soon followed this boom in the industry and is still the standard shape of modern wakeboards. The twin tip had a symetrical shape with a fin on each end, allowing for omidirectional tricks and adding a  new dimension to the sport. This shape of board shyed away from the “conventional” wakeboard at the time which still resembled a mini surfboard.

1992 was the year that pro wakeboarding events took hold of the public with World Sports & Marketing, (a Florida-based sports promoter and event organizer) staging wakeboarding events (known as the pro wakeboard tour). This gave wakeboarders a opportunity to compete and gave them exposure to ESPN and ESPN2. Wakeboarding Mag was soon produced in 1993 to cope with the growing of the demand of the industry giving the public a chance to follow what was happening in wakeboarding and keeping them up to date on comps and leaderboards.

With the ever expanding popularity of the sport and number competing athletes the Vans Triple Crown of Wakeboarding and the Wakeboard World Cup series were created in 1998. These are still today the majors titles up for grabs by pro international wakeboarders. In 2000 the sport diversified adding rails, sliders and kickers to the course giving opportunity for different style riders to gain reckonition for their riding.

As far as wakeboarding has come in its short history there are are still new innovations being added to the sport today. From better technology to new additions, the innovators of the sport will never cease to amaze me. With growing popularity and finacial backing it is just a question how far this sport will go and how big will it get.

For some, wakeboarding is a good time out with mates, for others it is a way of expressing themselves just like an artist does through his canvas and paint, and for a few it is a job in which they get to travel around the world with the best riders in the world, riding behind the best boats and in some of the most beautiful places. All of these aspects of wakeboarding make it what it is today and form the backbone of the identity and culture of the sport.

Wakeboarding as a sport has come a long way from its primitive days and has largerly to do with the evolution of the wakeboard, boats and equipment, however  the culture of the sport has not changed that significantly. It is true that there is a growing monetary value, but I bet my boat that 99 out of 100 pro wakeboarders would say that they would still do what they do without the endorsements and big pay checks.  For them it is almost a novelty or gimic that they get paid to do something that they truly love doing. In todays world this is a rarity, that someone could feel this way about the how they make their bread and butter.  So what makes all the early starts, endless interviews, sponsor commitments, hours of training and injuries all worth while? If you have ever strapped on a wakeboard you would know the answer to this question.

My answer to this question is passion, and is something that wikipedia have failed to mention in there definiton. Wakeboarding is a passion that makes you get out of bed early, makes you put on that wetsuit and jump into a freezing river, and drives you to land that trick that you have been trying so long to get down (disregarding the hard face plant you may take if you don’t quite get it right). Through this passion a lifestyle is moulded. Get a group of people with the same lifestyle together a community is formed. From a community derives a culture. As you see wakeboarding is much more than a sport or anything that can be expressed with pen and paper.

I leave you with this question now and it is one that may have a few answers. However once you ask yourself this, i am sure that wakeboarding will have a whole new meaning in your life. So here it is “why do you wakeboard“? Pretty philosophical i know, but it maybe easier to answer than “what is the meaning of life”?

Welcome to the world of wakeboarding. This website is designed for the purpose of bringing everything that is wakeboarding to those that know wakeboarding. From trick tips, wakeboard  equipment reviews, boats and wakeboarding videos to news from the Big players in wakeboarding and up and coming events.

This site is here to give back to the wakeboard community so much that wakeboarding has given me, and in saying this please feel free to give any feedback to help better this site.  So fellow wakeboarder, whether you are visiting to check out that new vid, or reading up on how to pull off that new trick that will have everyone in the boat in awe i hope this site can help you out.