Kids and Wakeboarding

brew · Posted: Oct 04, 2005 6:43 pm Post subject: Kids and Wakeboarding

How old were your kids when you got them into wakeboarding? I have a little girl and some young nephews and am womdering when to try and start them out. I know with the skies that tie together, you can start them real young, but I wasn't sure if they had anything comparable in boarding. If you did start your kids out young, what's the best way you figured out how to do it?

QNev · Posted: Oct 04, 2005 6:47 pm Post subject:

Any age. If they want to try it, get em to go for it Very Happy

. My sister was 10 when she started. I started at 12, and it rubbed off on my dad. As long as they can balance it and understand instructions, it shouldn't be tough getting them up.

wakejumper17 · Outlaw Joined: 25 Aug 2005 Posts: 234

im 13 and i just learned this year. make sure the board isnt to big though

brew · Posted: Oct 05, 2005 4:32 am Post subject:

I have brothers and nephews that are 2,3,4,7,9,13,and 14. The 13 and 14 year old already ride, so I am trying to find out about the younger ones. I have seen some pictures on here of kids that look to be 4 or 5, so I am wondering how they got started.

boarditup · Addict Joined: 01 Dec 2003 Posts: 731 City: Allendale, MI

About 3-4 years old if they want to try it. We use a boom for training them at that age. About 4-5 yeas old for long line. It takes a lot of patience. Let the kid decide whether they want to learn or not. Make sure to praise them to the sky for trying and have an ice cream cone run as soon as you get off the water. Get a 121 or shorter board for the little ones. Also, a lot of dry land traing.

Good luck! It is a lot of fun!

Bambamski · Posted: Oct 05, 2005 8:12 am Post subject:

I'd stay away from the whole ski thing unless you really want them to learn to ski. Our friends bought the kids skis and we tried to get the 6 year olds up on them with no luck. We tried them on the wakeboard right after and both kids popped out of the water instantly.

The perfect age is the age when they come to you and say they want to try something behind the boat. We start the kids out on the knee board first around the age of 3-5. It's buoyant enough that you can drag them along the shore line (while you run) for a hundred yards or so and they can get the feeling of holding on and also letting go of the rope. Try them behind the boat next if they feel comfortable enough. Once they are comfortable enough with that, they'll ask to try the wakeboard. Just before the wakeboard sit with them in the water and try them on the wakeskate, there feet aren't locked in so when they wipe out they won't panic. That will give them a bit of an idea of how to get out of the water. ONce you strap the board on them it usually only takes 1-2 tries to get them up.

We've taught countless kids how to wakeboard and they're all different. The biggest factor is how comfortable they're in the water. Make it fun and don't put any pressure on them. Oh and make sure the first thing you do when they put the board on when they're in the water is "turtle them". That's just our term we use when they're lying on their belly with the board still on, that's when most kids will freak a bit because they can't turn over onto their backs without help. As long as they realize that they'll still float and the board floats in that position they'll be ok.

Good luck.

bmartin · Addict Joined: 05 Feb 2003 Posts: 794

My kids probably starting boarding at around age 7 to 9 years they may have tried when they were younger but weren't riding a lot if they did. My oldest is 13 and has been ridng for about 5 years and is just learning inverts. I have taught maybe a dozen or more kids to ride and can't think of one less than 10 that could go w2w though - they will learn to ride before that, but most don't have the strength or the nads to go w2w but heck they are having fun most of the time. My kids all started out kneeboarding though - much easier to learn how to start than wakeboarding and that way they got used to the strength required to hold onto a rope going 18MPH behind a boat without having to 'think' too much.

greygoose · Newbie Joined: 24 Feb 2005 Posts: 14 City: Athens

My oldest started this summer, she turned 5 in March. As others here on this baord have said, let the child be the one to ask or initiate the try. My 5 year old and I were looking at wakeboarding pictures and some wakeboarding videos and she said she wanted to try the next time we went to the water. Sure enough, when we got to the water she couldn't wait to try. She got up on her 2nd try. Lots of patience and encouragement. Also, make sure your child can right themselves with the wakeboard on and it is a good idea to have a helper in the water. We don't have a boom so we started long line. We are looking at getting a boom to work more onthe mechanics and ease the frustration level. A boom and then short line is really the way to go.

Greygoose Laughing

greygoose · Newbie Joined: 24 Feb 2005 Posts: 14 City: Athens

My oldest started this summer, she turned 5 in March. As others here on this baord have said, let the child be the one to ask or initiate the try. My 5 year old and I were looking at wakeboarding pictures and some wakeboarding videos and she said she wanted to try the next time we went to the water. Sure enough, when we got to the water she couldn't wait to try. She got up on her 2nd try. Lots of patience and encouragement. Also, make sure your child can right themselves with the wakeboard on and it is a good idea to have a helper in the water. We don't have a boom so we started long line. We are looking at getting a boom to work more onthe mechanics and ease the frustration level. A boom and then short line is really the way to go.

Greygoose Laughing

teamvaldez · Outlaw Joined: 09 Jul 2004 Posts: 131 City: Canyon Lake

We started our kids in the water before they were 1 year old. Just to get them over any fear of water. I remember putting my 16 yr old in a car seat when he was a baby and strapping bouys to it (just in case). They started with the knee board and it was a natural progression from there. Our youngest Jacob rode in the Phoenix Pro Am when he was 4 1/2 yrs old. (He is 11 now)

justsomeguy · Guest

My son started at five on a normal line. No boom, etc. just a few test pulls by hand and then he got up"like the big kids."

His first day:

ballywho · Wakeboarder.Commie Joined: 05 Feb 2005 Posts: 1725

I started kneeboarding at maybe 12 and started wakeboarding when I was 14 (I'm now 15). Kneeboarding helped me ALOT. It gets you comfertable with being pulled and carving around. Also, have them do alot of surface 360s. The more handle passes they do now the less they'll have to practice them later. Handle passes are like second nature to me and thats from kneeboarding, my record was like 15 spins without stopping. Cool

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holdsworth · Posted: Oct 05, 2005 5:45 pm Post subject:

waterskiing since i was four (on 2 and kneeboarding), slalom at six, wakeboarding at 7.