Essay/Term paper: Wakeboarding

Essay, term paper, research paper:  Term Papers

Written by: Bjorn Tonne 990-202777 Due monday, February 03, 1997
Wakeboarding

Wakeboarding is a fun and challenging sport. A couple of years ago I
was boating with some friends when one of them pulled out something I had
never seen before, a wakeboard. In the past I had tried water-skiing and
kneeboarding, but until then I had never heard of wakeboarding, I
haven"t picked up a water-ski or kneeboard since that day.
A wakeboard is shaped a lot like a snowboard. It is 150 cm long and
about 60 cm wide. Riding a wakeboard has been compared to surfing,
skateboarding, waterskiing, and snowboarding.
At first I was nervous about learning a new watersport at age 18, because
I remembered how hard it was to get up one ski. My friends convinced me to
give it a try and I loved it. At first it was hard to get up, but after four try's I
could get up almost every time on the first pull. One of the reasons this sport is
so great is that once you get up you can learn and excel very quickly. By the end
of that same day I was almost able to jump over the wake. I have friends who
are able to do backflips, so this gives me a goal. But for now I have to be content
with jumping the wake. I like this, because while there is always another level
that I'm aiming for I still feel and look competent on a wakeboard.
While jumping is the first skill that I learned, the second skill I began
working on was riding fakie. Riding fakie consists of riding with the opposite
foot on the back of the wakeboard. Normally I ride with my right foot on the
back of the board, this riding stance is referred to as regular. While riding with
your left foot back is called riding goofy. When I first started going fakie it was
like learning to wakeboard all over again. Just recently I have gotten to the point
where I can ride regular or goofy in any water conditions, choppy or smooth as
glass, and feel like I am doing well. Just recently I was able to land a jump that I
started in the regular position executed a 180 degree turn and landed in the
goofy stance. This took me hours and hours of practice, but overcoming the
challenge was so exhilarating that it was worth the time and effort, and made me
even more excited about the sport.
The next skill I have been working to acquire is grabs. A grab is
contorting your body into different positions then grabbing the board with one
of your hands while jumping. The most complicated grab that I can currently
land is starting the jump in the regular stance, while in the air I reach
through my legs grab the back of my board and execute a 180 degree turn
landing in the goofy position.
I'm excited about continuing to improve and learning to tweak big air in
this new and exciting sport. I am working towards a goal of being able to land a
backflip within the next year. Currently I am really good at landing on my head.
But for some reason when I am wakeboarding even landing on my head doesn't
hurt. I am totally stoked about this awesome sport that I have found, the thing
that will continue to bring me back to boarding is that it is a sport of never
ending challenges and I will never be at the point where I can't get better
anymore, there will always be something to improve on.