When it comes to choosing wakeboard gear, there are several options to consider whether you’re a beginner or an experienced wakeboarder who wants to be towed behind a boat.
In terms of wakeboard size, base construction, weight, flexibility, rail design, fins, and bottom features, a decent cable park wakeboard would differ from a boat wakeboard.
Wakeboard Base For Cable Park Use
Usually, rail riding over park objects is required to ride in the cable park. As a result, cable wakeboards have a considerably superior, more durable foundation than boat wakeboards; if used on park modules, the former would not survive very long.
Dedicated wakeboard decks with a sintered or “grind” base, a type of manufacturing process that makes the board on most surfaces considerably more resistant and slidable, are available. As a consequence, great cable park boards can withstand even bigger impacts from rails, kickers, and boxes.
Wakeskates designed for specific cable parks have different wakeboard sizes and are generally flat on the bottom between the tip and tail in order to improve jumps and air trick landings.
Cable Park Wakeboard Size Recommendations
Another distinguishing feature of cable park wakeboards is that they are generally bigger for a particular rider height. The most common lengths for cable park wakeboards are 141cm, 145cm, and 149cm for cable park riding depending on the wakeboarder’s size and height.
For skaters 148cm to 155cm tall, bigger boards, for example, can soften the impact of landings while jumping off kickers. However, a larger board will enable you to execute harder skateboard tricks like spinning off a rail.
A wider board with a flatter bottom, on the other hand, would help to reduce drag in the water when a cable is pulled rather than a boat.
Cable Park Wakeboard Flex
Cable wakeboards generally have somewhat more flex in comparison to boat boards. Medium to soft flex patterns are ideal for park tricks like butter slides, taps, and presses. A cable board’s softer flex allows you to perform nose and tail presses on a rail.
Because there is more flex on a bigger cable park board (e.g. 147cm), the size and flexibility of a board are somewhat related (e.g. 6’17” x 21 x 3, 4-0 flex).
Cable Park Wakeboard Rails & Fins
Usually, chined rails that angle upward for extra clearance when riding over a rough feature are found on high-quality cable park wakeboards.
The majority of cable boards, as opposed to boat wakeboards, do not include any bottom characteristics since they are intended for flat water butter slides and slides without catching or hanging up on any features.
In comparison, boat boards have fins and channels to keep the board riding straight, but they aren’t ideal for sliding because they can get caught on rails and ramps.
Because many parks prohibit the usage of fins that might damage the park’s kickers and slides, cable park wakeboards usually have detachable fins (unlike boat boards). On rails and kickers, riders are compelled to remove the fins.
Some wakeboards have gently moulded fins that are great for riding in the park.
Cable Park Wakeboard 3 Stage Rocker
A wakeboard’s 3-stage rocker describes the lengthwise curvature of the board — how it rides, particularly in terms of pop, landings, and speed.
A 3-stage rocker has a lot of pop and allows you to shoot straight up from a boat wake. Riding on the water, on the other hand, makes the board slightly slower and the landings rougher. The impact is absorbed by your legs when riding on the water.
A 3-stage rocker has more pop than a continuous rocker, allowing you to ride faster and smoother. Because continuous rockers soften landings by absorbing the shock, they’re an excellent cable park riding choice.
A 5-stage or hybrid rocker is a combination of the aforementioned two. It’s comparable to, but with an extra pop, a continuous rocker.
The central portion of the board is more rigid (e.g. around 3/4), while the tip segment is more flexible on both ends, producing softer landings.
Hybrid rockers for cable wakeboarding are also ideal.
Conclusion
Regardless of the wakeboard you choose, we are confident that by following the steps outlined in picking out the finest wakeboard above, you will have a fantastic wakeboarding experience at a wake park whether you’re pushed by a cable or pulled behind a boat.
