Spring is fast approaching, and for us, that means packing up the car, hitching the boat up and heading for the water. Seriously, not many things compare to the feeling being of being back behind the boat after a long, cold winter (not that we don’t love our winters).

If you’re new to wakeboarding, welcome! If you’re a regular boarder and just looking for some tips, also welcome!

Like any sport, success in wakeboarding can have a lot to do with the equipment you use. That’s not to say you need to fork out the big bucks to be a good boarder. Wakeboards come in all shapes and sizes, and whilst there are no black and white rules for choosing a beginner board, our recommendation for a beginner is to try a few of them out before settling on the right one.

Whilst beginners should typically look towards choosing a longer board for stability and float, choosing the right wakeboard is all about personal preference and should be fun!

You’ll also need a jacket to keep you afloat, to be safe, and it’s important that this fits you properly. Usually, shop by your clothing size, put the jacket on, buckle it up, and if you can lift the shoulders above your ears, it isn’t tight enough.

Pro tip – Buying board/boot packages is a cheaper and easier way to get set up. [Browse our wakeboarding range here]

No, we don’t mean Goofy the cartoon, in board sports determining whether you’re goofy or regular is about which way you stand on the board. Goofy means your right foot will be forward on the board and regular means your left foot is forward.

If you surf, snowboard, skate or even play football, you’ll probably know which foot is your dominant one. When wakeboarding, usually this stance will come naturally as you are pulled out of the water.

Pro tip – A good way of finding out which foot is your dominant is to stand with your feet together, fall forward and whichever foot stops your fall, is the foot you’ll want at the front of the board.  

Using a shorter rope is better for beginners for a multitude of reasons, including being able to hear instructions from the people in the boat. A shorter rope will make standing up easier as there will be less slack for you to work with. It will also position you in the narrower part of the wake, making the water more manageable.

Pro tip – let the rope out slowly as your skill improves and have fun cutting up and over the wake.

It’s natural for beginners to want to pull on the rope to stand up. Try your hardest not to do this. The boat will pull you from the water without too much effort on your part, just keep your body strong and let the boat pull you up.

Pro tip – Keep your eyes on the distance and the rope low at your hip, this should help you to focus on the natural forward movement of the boat and reduce too much arm movement, thank us later, you’ll quickly learn that wakeboarding is hard on the arms.

Every beginner gets a mouthful of water at the start. Embrace it, welcome to the club. Falling is a part of the learning experience, and you will fall, a lot.

Unlike skating or surfing, wakeboarding has a very steep learning curve. Meaning you can generally get the gist of it quite quickly, sometimes after only a few hours of practice.

Just make sure someone has the camera rolling to get the best shots for your gag reel.

Pro tip – Fall down seven times, get up eight.

Wakeboarding is one of the best activities to get your friends together, get out on the lake (or river), blast some music and have fun!