Help: body bent over after wake pop ...

[lar8]

I'm a bigger dude (6'5) and when I get pop for a w2w my body always leans forward quite a bit. I can still land (sometimes I clear the wake, sometimes case the wake) but when I do it's always in a leaning forward position.

I've read that maybe I need to pull the handle to my hip to help this problem?

Also, maybe it's because my legs are so long or I'm not pushing down hard enough on the wake, but as I progressively edge up the wake I find it very difficult to stand tall - my legs seem to buckle no matter what. I've read that I shouldn't push down really hard (or jump, so to speak) so I just edge towards the wake and hope my legs stay straight.

For me anyway, it's hard to push down while my ankles and attempting to 'dig' into the water, if that makes any sense.

Any help or hints would be great ...

[neverwinter]

don't think of it like a jump as you'd jump off the ground...think of it as a jump as you'd jump on a trampoline..

it's not about keeping your legs locked in a straight position while you edge. you want to be in what's called the seated position but that doesn't mean you have to have your legs bent 90 degrees either.

take a short approach from outside the wake and instead of going for distance go for height and land in the middle of the wake. make sure as your are edging in your at the strongest edge at the top of the wake and extend your bent legs straight( like you would on a trampoline ). After you are comfortable with one wake jumps..just go out wider and do the same thing...it's not about speed...it's about going as far as you can as slow as you can which means you'll need height(pop).

hope that helps dude.

[lar8]

thanks neverwinter ...

I like what you said about going as far as you can as slow as you can ... I will try that for sure

what about the handle? do you pull it towards your hip so your arms are basically bent while you try to build tension on the rope?

[pet575]

neverwinter, is right. Part of that "seated position" is to have your hips and belly button pointed toward the sky as you go up the wake instead of pointing them at the boat. This will help you keep your hips, back, and shoulders all in a relatively straight line to help you stand tall. Bending at the waist, back, and hunching your shoulders just absorbs energy from the wake and makes you feel like you're going to fly over your toes.

Also, what type of rope are you using? I've heard people say that a hard edge and jump with a line that stretches can pull you forward when the rope recoils while you are in the air.

[lar8]

Thanks guys, just got back from a few runs and the seated position/belly button towards the sky really helped! I was getting w2w and landing without being bent over ... I still need to extend my legs a little better at the top of the wake but leaning back definitely helped build more tension on the line ... Driver said he had to tighten up the tower cuz I was workin' it ... Thanks again guys

[Chocoholic]