New Year, New Sport: Wakeboarding

We love extreme sports here at Booicore, with mountain biking being one of our favourites - obviously! However, we are not immune to trying other things out to get the adrenaline pumping and so this year we are thinking about trying out wakeboarding! Our range of extreme sports clothing includes a surf changing towel after all, so it makes sense to try something where we might get a little wet!

 What is Wakeboarding?

Wakeboarding is a fantastic fun water sport for people of all ages, and is similar to snowboarding. What snowboarding is to skiing, wakeboarding is to water-skiing. You basically get towed across the water while being strapped to a board that is a bit smaller than a surfboard, a bit bigger than a skateboard and a bit wider than a snowboard!

What Tows the Board?

There are two main types of tow for a wakeboard - a water based craft such as a boat or a jet-ski, or the other option is using a cable.

Wakeboarding is traditionally enjoyed on the open water behind a boat or jet-ski which creates the 'wake' for the rider to do tricks on. This can be done on lakes, in rivers, or in the sea - wherever there is a body of water that is large enough for the tow to be possible.

More recently, cables have been developed, that are based on the engineering and technology of ski drag lifts and these are becoming more popular amongst people who don't have their own boat or can't afford to pay someone else to tow them. In the UK, there are two main types of cables the 4/5 tower cable which can pull multiple riders in a circle at a continuous speed, and the two-tower cable which pull one rider at a time back and forth between two towers. The two tower cables are springing up everywhere at the moment as they only need a small space in which to operate, opening up the sport to more and more people.

What Kit Will I Need?

As with any sport, it is best not to invest too heavily at first, in case you decide it isn't the sport for you. You will probably be able to borrow kit from the place you are learning anyway, such as a wetsuit, life jacket, helmet, and board and bindings. You will, of course, need your trusty booicore changing towel to dry off afterwards though!

How Can I Start?

It is easy to start wakeboarding as there are lots of water parks and water sports centres in the UK which allow you just to turn up, hire the gear you need (see above) and get going! A lesson or two is always worth investing in, to begin with, so you get the right technique from the start.

If you are thinking of taking up an extreme sport this year and need the gear to go with it, then check out our online store! We have everything you need - from changing towels to kit-bags and caps.