Wakeboarding

The wakeboard can be driven more slowly due to the greater buoyancy compared to water skiing. This means that even beginners can get started after just a few attempts. Wakeboarding is a fun sport that is particularly easy to learn and allows you to experience the fascinating feeling of gliding on the water particularly quickly.

Wakeboarding originated from the idea of being pulled by a motorboat on a surfboard. But since the normal boards were much too long for this, so-called "skurfers" first appeared - a mixture of water ski and surfboard with foot straps like in windsurfing. These were suitable for a dynamic riding style, but only really tough athletes could handle the weighty boards. 1990 was then the real birth of the wakeboard: Herb O'Brien, owner of a water ski company, designed the prototype of the wakeboard, the "Hyperlite". Compared to the "Skurfer", it was an extremely flat board with a small volume that was much easier to control.

The original shape of the "Hyperlite" was further developed into a symmetrical twin-tip board with fins at both ends of the board and two bindings. The new boards therefore look more like a freestyle snowboard than a surfboard. They are shorter and wider for optimal water displacement that enables many tricks, and unlike the snowboarder, the wakeboarder stands completely symmetrically on the board - i.e. both bindings have the same angle to the outside and the same distance to the ends, just like on the kiteboard. This gives boarders the ability to ride in both directions, expanding the number of tricks they can perform.

Competitions

As early as 1990, Jimmy Redmon, who is considered the guru of wakeboarding, founded the World Wake Association (WWA). Two years later, wakeboarding was recognized as an official sport with the launch of the "Pro Wakeboard Series". This professional competition series became more and more extensive every year and now professional wakeboarders all over the world can participate in different wakeboard competitions. For more information, please contact the German Waterski and Wakeboard Association (DWWV): www.wasserski-online.de

In recent years, wake parks, where riders and their boards are pulled over an obstacle course by cable cars, have become more and more established. The facilities offer wakeboarders the advantage that no wake boat is needed, eliminating costs for rental or maintenance. In the 65-meter-long action pool at boot Düsseldorf at the Beach World in Hall 8a, beginners have the opportunity to try out wakeboarding for themselves every year in January. A cableway is installed under the roof of the hall especially for this purpose, which pulls visitors through the pool. If that's too much action for you, you can enjoy the fast-paced jumps and tricks of the daily wakeboard shows at boot.