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Tuesday, May 28, 2013

Wakeboarding | A Beginner’s Guide


The butterflies in your stomach, the excitement running through your veins—pure adrenaline takes over at the thought of getting on a wakeboard for the first time.  Recently, I was lucky enough to have my first wakeboarding experience…it was awesome.  I haven’t felt a rush of nerves, excitement and happiness since my “rebellion” riding on the back of my friend’s motorcycle.  However, I probably wouldn't have enjoyed it as much if I hadn't received a few tips on the wakeboarding basics.

What you’ll need:
-Wakeboard
-Wakeboarding boots
-Life jacket
-Sun block
-(Ladies, I recommend wearing some kind of shorts over your bathing suit bottoms if you wear a bikini)



Learning to stand:
Practice on the boat first! Before strapping yourself into the board, sit like you would in the water with your knees bent.  Have someone stand in front of you with their arms out for you to hold on to (like gripping the handle attached to the line).  Then let them pull you up.  It’s key in the water that you do not just stand up—you’ll just fall over, trust me.  Let the boat pull you, and once your board is on top of the water pop up.  You may fall a few times, but don’t worry you’ll get your balance.

Until you get very comfortable standing up, It’s best to stay in the middle of the wake.  As your comfort level increases, you can advance to trying to cross the wake.




Crossing the wake:
To get across the wake, lean back on the board and you will cross from the middle to the other side.  Warning, if you keep leaning back you will keeping moving farther from the middle.  To get back, find your neutral stance.












Jumping the wake:
To get air when you cross the wake there’s one thing to remember: don’t jump.  Many new riders feel like they have to jump in order to get air, when you actually need to use the wake and let it launch you.

There you have it. Wakeboarding is a fun, exhilarating sport that recommend anyone try at least once.  My own piece of advice is to not over think it, just relax and have a good time.  


Ride On,
        Colleen