I need softer landings

kmagnuss · Posted: Jun 05, 2005 5:41 pm Post subject: I need softer landings

Okay, my knees suck. They pretty much hurt any time I get some decent air anymore. This fact really sucks because I just bought a 05' V-ride...so it's not like I'm going to stop riding. Well...here's my current set up....tell me what I need to do to get some softer landings.

03 CWB Absolute 142
03 Hyperlite High backs...(04 Hyperlite ERA's on the way)
5'11" , 175-180 lbs

I keep hearing that a bigger board gives softer landings...but that just doesn't make any sense, physics wise. It would seem that the more surface area you have...the less the water will 'give' when you land because there is that much more to push out of the way. But if you have a smaller board...the board is more likely to actually sink into the water a few inches when you land...thus having the water act like a shock absorber. Am I wrong?

Shoot...I might go back to riding a 133 trip. Or my wife's board! She'd love that. All 128 cm of it.

Thanks guys.

-Keith

kmagnuss · Posted: Jun 05, 2005 6:09 pm Post subject:

one more thing...does my feet position make a difference? I ride in a pretty neutral stance...about shoulder width...toes pointed slightly out, but by no means 'duck stance'.

mhsb1029 · Criminal Joined: 27 Jan 2004 Posts: 74 City: spokane

I just picked up a CWB Marius. The truth is that I am still waiting to get to ride it for the first time so I cant exactly give you any info on it, but here is a thread from ww that has some good info. The board sounds like it may be what your looking for.

http://www.wakeworld.com/MB/Discus/messages/1/229834.html?1117526982

CHiLi DaWg · Posted: Jun 05, 2005 6:15 pm Post subject:

mhsb1029, please post a review when you do get to ride it. I am interested in hearing more about it.

K-wood Kid · Posted: Jun 05, 2005 6:16 pm Post subject:

When I rode my Roam w2w it was pretty soft because its so flexible. Also what might help is if you try moving yourself a little further from the board so you land on the down slope of the wake more and your landings will be easier. There really isn't anything that will just cure what you have. You should try a brace and see if that helps distrubute the pressure around your leg and help. Hunter

board_boy · Outlaw Joined: 04 May 2003 Posts: 230 City: blacksburg

yeah just ride farther back so you dont land in the flats as often

wakerider07 · Posted: Jun 05, 2005 8:47 pm Post subject:

derrick · Addict Joined: 13 Jan 2003 Posts: 723 City: Orlando

Your knees hurt because you need to BEND YOUR KNEES! No board in the world can save you if you don't know how to absorb your landings.

tuneman13 · Soul Rider Joined: 26 Mar 2003 Posts: 392

I say buy LF sphynx. I switched from LF alpha to sphynx and my knees never hurt since, even when I go big over the kicker, so I think the right binding would help a bit.

Phil H · Criminal Joined: 14 Jan 2003 Posts: 50 City: UK

This may sound dumb, but whatever.

I find the the closer you have the handle in, the softer the landing feels. If you get dragged out, the landing feels much harder. Land with the handle in and the knees soft and it all feels so much easier.

No, I didn't work this out for myself - Will Christien told me a couple of weeks ago, but it seems to be true.

Stephan · Guest

The new CWB's have the softest landings in the industry. They stretched the center spine from your '03 and made the spine deeper as well. You can satnd on your board and rock considerably edge to edge. The Transcend lands a little softer than the Absolute & the Marius a little softer than the Transcend. Check em out!! You will not be dissapointed! The 2005 Absolute is a big upgrade from the 2003.

Tyler~Moore · Posted: Jun 06, 2005 10:10 am Post subject:

kmagnuss, you might want to check the width of your stance...I
ve heard of peoples knees hurting if the stance is too wide...

Wakebrad · Ladies Man Joined: 11 Dec 2003 Posts: 12257 City: Dallas

I hate hard landings also. I take very small cuts into the wake and try to land on the transition every time.

I am still a little confused as to whether a shorter board will land softer or a larger board. After some thought I think that you should get a board that's in the middle. If you go too large you will increase your surface area of your board which will cause you to land upbruptly. If you go too small you will sink too far into the water making your landings unstable and tough to ride out of. Neither of these are easy on the knees. IMO, that's why it's best to get a board for the middle of your weight range.

The main thing you want to look for to get soft landings is a continuous rocker. A large continuous rocker will give you the softest landings. The main thing you want to look out for is a wide board. Wide boards will give you the hardest landings. Spines will help a little but their actual effect on landings is still waiting to get proved. It's a stretch to say that CWB lands softer than everyone else because of spine technology. The more important factors are width, and rocker.

HatzicMotive140 · Soul Rider Joined: 18 Jul 2004 Posts: 261 City: abbotsford

get a binding with a thick foot pad, i would recoment=d the cwb zeus i have the vibes which were replaced with the zeus, and i have never had any problem.

freerider4 · Posted: Jun 06, 2005 2:39 pm Post subject:

Start wakeskating.

kmagnuss · Posted: Jun 06, 2005 3:34 pm Post subject:

Stephan · Guest

Wakebrad, have you tried the CWB's? They don't just put it there for a gimmick. Why do you think Hyperlite added the spine to the Era? Because it works!! Trust me, I rode my '04 Absolute and went straight to my '05 one day, you can feel the difference noticeably. Honestly CWB isn't the first to use spines. LF boards have had a single concave for years, Blindside had a spine but it was too rounded & didn't help all that much. CWB is the first to make it deep enough & long enough to effectively displace water to the side. It's not waiting to be proven & I know it lands softer every time I ride it. The LF Fish has it, the Byerly has a modified spine, so does Parks' board. It's proven, you just have to want softer landings.

Bruky · Guest

Tyler~Moore, you're very right. Your knees weren't intended to squat outward. I'm surprised noone else has mentioned that.

With that said, I still ride with my bindings as far out as they will go, but my knees are still young. However, I can feel the difference in impact between boards, and the CWB Absolute has got a good thing going for it. It's the only '05 model CWB I've ridden, and it's noticably softer than any other board using similar technology.

wviveen · Addict Joined: 03 Mar 2003 Posts: 705 City: Loosdrecht

I would not suggest going back to the trip 133.
I used to ride a trip 133 and now I ride a substance 134.

Last weekend I rode the trip once more (because I still have it) and the landings
were much harder on my knees. The substance lands so much more softer.

Don't get me wrong about the trip, the board is very good board for both beginners and advanced riders, but the landings are much harder compared to the substance. I have not ridden many other boards, actually only these 2 types.

sorry I can't give you any more advice..

wviveen · Addict Joined: 03 Mar 2003 Posts: 705 City: Loosdrecht

I just saw this thread on the 'other site'

http://www.wakeworld.com/MB/Discus/messages/1/232876.html?1118120180

maybe you shouldn't listen to me Mr. Green

But the substance lands much softer compared to the trip, in comparison with other boards i wouldn't know ?

Andrew_Moreton · Newbie Joined: 28 Feb 2004 Posts: 14 City: Dallas

Just a little thought on board size. I had knee surgery last year on my ACL and have a 136 TFD and a 142 TFD. When I ride the boards back to back, the 142 rides much softer. I am 5'8" 160 lbs., so the 142 might be a little big, but then again, a lot of the pros are riding boards bigger than 140 and are my size. I'm going to stick with the 142 for a while to help my knee.

masonmeuth · Newbie Joined: 01 Sep 2003 Posts: 42 City: henderson

Guys i agree with you the stance is the key to knee health. i rode a byerly 137 bindings all the way out and snapped the board in half, i traded it in for a byerly 142 and kept my stance all the way out not knowing the inserts were different (doh!) and blew my knee out 4 days later. Since blowing my knee out I had been plagued by both my knees bothering me for a year. how come they hurt then but never hurt me before? I saw an article in WBM and narrowed my stance up slighty as a last resort and instantly my pain went away. and havent had a single pob since
Sorry I wrote a book on here, just trying to help