Hi guys,

I just started kiting in December and now the wind is patchy I'm looking at wakeboarding as a substitute.

Had a couple of trips to the wakeboard park and reckon it's worth a crack so looking at getting a board.

I notice a lot of the park boards don't have fins due to the ramps. If I'm looking at this as a way to improve my kiting should I go for a board with fins? I know some have removable fins so I guess that's ideal but if I find a decent priced board with no fins is that a deal breaker?

Any other tips relevant to starting out wakeboarding from a kiting perspective would be welcome!

Cheers

Jim

Theres a fee decnt crossover boards now a days. Refraction, tranq / billy, gambler and so on. Only issue would be that since you're atarting at kiting they will suck to learn with.

Get a secondhand cable board and do both. It'll help soo much with board control.

Most cable parks will have sales on end of season and demo boards from may/ june until sold out.

Thanks Nick.

So turns out kiting is possible with no fins! Learning every day!

So a wakeboarding with no fins will be fine right?

Tona pop rides fine with no fins.

Second the tona pop.. I got mine new for $570 delivered. Great value and bombproof. Goes upwind great too

there is no off season.

just add a wetsuit....

light wind gear and storm gear

Select to expand quote

jimg said..
I notice a lot of the park boards don't have fins due to the ramps.

I think you'll find that they don't have fins so that if you run over the top of another person who's recently come off you won't slash them open. I've been handed a screwdriver and told to remove my fins before using my kiteboard at a cable park.

The worst part about cable parks is lining up in a conga line of 14 year old kids for 20+ minutes after every go.

Better to find a mate with a boat (like me lol).

If you're looking to get into the wakepark, don't bother with a crossover board. Sure, they work like the Tranq, Tona, Stomp, Gambler, but nothing will be close to as good as a proper park wakeboard.

Invest in a Hyperlite or Liquid Force wakeboard from 2013 onwards, no fins. You can practise all you air tricks at cable with no fins (harder than kiting), but the main thing will be to learn kickers and slider, which you can't use fins on. Cable parks are a heap of fun and a perfect match with kiting, although can get a little stale doing laps of a lake haha.

Here are some boards I would suggest for park riding.

http://www.liquidforce.com/wakeboards-raph.html

www.hyperlite.com/product-detail.php?id=wakeboards-union

www.hyperlite.com/product-detail.php?id=wakeboards-wishbone

www.liquidforce.com/wakeboards-tao.html

www.liquidforce.com/wakeboards-peak.html


Any of these from the last few years will suit you, and they are bombproof compared to most kiteboards so will last you forever!

How does a CBL rate? It has P-tex base, 10mm flat fins supposed to be a cable/wake crossover. I for one don't need any more boards.

If all you want to do is cut a few laps at the park and your not worried about hitting rails, just use you kite board with straps or boots. But if you are planing to hit rails and want a board to last, don't waste your time with anything less than a grind base wake board. If your anywhere near Brisbane I've got a few old cable boards and boots I'd sell cheap.

Slingshot Refraction would be the only kiteboard that really works awesome for the park.

It's based off the Slingshot wakeboard the Whip. It's actually the only kiteboard in the industry with a .7mm grind base on it...

Sam Light shreds on his at the cable fulltime and I prefer mine as well to all the other park wakeboards I've tried.

yep i ride the refraction at cable. works well, but if you want to get some sweet presses, its hard with the little rocker that kiteboards have. if your serious about getting into cable just buy a wake board. and they are way cheaper then kiteboards too. cant go past a slingshot shredtown.

Thanks for all the replies.

Will go for a dedicated wakeboard I think. Had a look around on Gumtree, Facebook doesn't seem to be much in the way of second hand here in Perth, so if anyone is selling anything half decent or knows of a marketplace let me know...

Cheers