Best and worst boat-bumming stories
 

The thread with girls looking for a ride brought this topic to mind. When I was younger, I was desperate to ride. I've flagged down boats from the dock waiving a $5 bill (back when that was generous for a set). 99% percent of my experiences have been awesome, but I have had a few really strange ones.

1.) I met one of my best friends at the boat ramp. He just got a new 210 and I hopped out of my car to check it out. We rode together for years up in Dallas.

2.) My worst. I met a dude on a message board and was stoked to find a someone riding in the early spring so I offered to hop in and chip for gas. We are pretty far from the dock when he asks "do you party?" I'm thinking cocaine so I go, "Not while I'm riding" (just trying to brush the questions). Then he goes, "do you mind if we smoke". I breathe a little sigh of relief (I'm a pretty laid back guy). Then he and his buddies duck behind the windshield and proceed to smoke crystal-meth, crack or something... Wow, to say the least, that isn't what I thought he meant.

I had another one where things got really flakey with a dude and his wife, but I'll save that one in case the thread gets good.

The point of the story is be careful. Get out there and meet people, but do it safe.

cracheads in boats...thats always safe i would have been finding a way to have to get back to shore LOL

The WORST - my friends

The best - all WW's ive linked up with at the Delta.

I see this turning into a worst bumming thread.

Worst: I invited a guy out that seemed cool. I knew him a little through some of my lake friends. He had been riding for a couple of summers. Not going wake to wake or anything but could get out there and play. Well on two seperate occassion (the only two times I invited him out), he didn't chip in on gas or even offer to. I never ask for gas money, If I couldn't afford it, I wouldn't own a boat. Then when he wakeboarded, he rode forever without trying to progress or do tricks. He insisted that he could drive a boat better than one of my normal riders and then screwed up pulling me horribly. Needless to say, he has never been invited on my boat again.

Best: A WW member on here asked for a pull behind the boat back in April. Despite my boat having a couple of issues causing my first couple of outings to end short. He still askes to come out with me and I enjoy having him on the boat. He has never ridden behind the boat and already doing the same surface tricks I do after a few outtings. My normal crew love it when he comes along too.

Worst when I used to bring my friends and they would all "forget" there wallets but show up with tons of beer they bought on the way which I wouldn't let them bring on the boat cuz we were all under age then they would all take off as I'm pulling the boat out so they wouldn't have to help clean up. They didn't get invited too many times

Never had a bad experience with people bumming rides, everyone I have met on our club page and the moomba forum has been very cool. A few of the guys I met on the Moomba forum are now good friends of mine that I hang out with on a regular basis and not just when we go to the lake.

Met most everybody I know riding with Whoring around for years and thanks to Wakeworld! Positive people and some of my best friends and still ride weekly together.

No bad experiences really. Nothing beyond just having an unweighted boat or bad driving. That's better than having a crack smoker!

90% of the people I hang out with with met on Wakeworld or through the wakeboarding community. Overall, I've had great experiences.

All I do is bum rides, and I have had nothing but great experiences.

Pretty much all my riding buddies I met through wakeskating.com or norcalwake.com and now most of those guys are my best friends.
I've also met a bunch of people in the find a pull section on this site that have been great.

I always bring gas money, I always help clean, and I usually bring extra boards for people to try too.

I would have hardly been able to ride without wake websites like this. But now with the cable park in Norcal I have another option at least.

I am just bummed I did not know about WW when I lived in Sacramento and purchased my first boat. I could not believe how difficult it was trying to find people to ride with.

I have never had a bad experience everyone has been pretty positive. When I first moved to Dallas about 12 years ago I didn't know anyone and met everyone through dallaswakeboarding.com. Some of my best friends where met when I invited them out on my boat for the first time. Hell, l I even rode with you a few times on my boat.

Exactly..... Thanks for all the pulls Matt!
I have had a few less than exciting experiences but pretty much along the lines of what has been stated.

One interesting note, I hopped on with somebody and he handed me a laminated list of boat rules. At first I thought he was kidding, but no sarcasm smile came afterwards. lol

I have had several people stiff me for boiled crawfish though...... ahem.... Justin. ;)

all good experiences from here even my first time getting up was from some of the local crew teaching me if not for them i probably wouldn't be boarding

My best experience came when I laid eyes (er, AIM keyboard) on a pretty girl who was in the same grade as me at the time, 7th grade. Fast forward to junior year of High School, I received an invitation for a boating/camping trip to Central Oregon. Needless to say I was terrified of being out on a body of water, let alone her father. Fast forward to today, 8+ years with the same girl, her father is the man I look up to, and as an added bonus I still have a seat on their boat! All great experiences here.

I have been fortunate enough to always have a boat and have met most of my wakeboarding friends through WW or similar site.

I have had a lot of great experiences have hidden with some guys for years that I have met.

One sketchy experience was this couple that needed a ride and we rode together twice. I do not know if it was their personality or what but they never really talked to anyone on the boat. They just sat there and did not even speak to each other. The last time they went it was my GF and them and it was the oddest experience I have ever had on the boat due to no one talking lol. If we tried to talk to them it was short answers and all.

The other experience was not bad just annoying. I had one guy come out a few years ago and no matter what you said or did he could do it better or had a friend that has done it better. The most annoying thing to me on my boat is when there is a know it all that does not know anything and tried to impress everyone but instead looks like a jacka**.

I run a laid back boat and get a long with most people. I let anyone ride free the first time out just to be thankful for them hanging out and then after that chipping in for gas is much appreciated.

havent done much boat bumming, how i met one of my good friends though, we are on a small semi private (publicly open to fishermen, not all boats) lake though. 90% of my riding is done with my brother and that friend, and i twelve year old neighbor im trying to turn pro.

i do have kids/adults come up to me and ask me stupid questions like "Bro, can i ride behind that?" "Bro, come out at sunset so i can ride" from huge douchers with south Boston accents and tribal tats on jet skis. Yea bro, im gonna take you out so you can kill yourself on my thigh high wake because you rode a wakeboard twice in your life and then sue me when you have a blown ACL...

but i have met a few people at college for the stickers on my laptop, thru my dealer and local shop though and i will ride with them every now and then. Most people that ride have been good to ride with and nice kids, i weed people out by asking "how much weight do you run?" and often get some puzzled looks.

that said if any wakeworld-ers wanna come out just give me a shout if youre in new england!

The best- the people that bring beer and/or gas and help wipe the boat down, basically the crew I ride with everytime.

The worst- the guy who came on through a friend, says he rips then saddles up with a ski-grip and barely gets any air. Every now and then someone comes out who is too stoned to even be a useful human being, they are pretty bad too.

My best was me bumming way back around 1995. I had attempted a backroll about 200 times behind my unweighted 92 Ski Nautique and never landed a one. Some guys with an older weighted 2001 Nautique asked me if I wanted to try behind their boat and I landed 3 in a row first try.

Yo simplej, I'm in NewEngland bro bra lemme catch a ride behind yo boat!

Haven't had a bad experience at all, every person i have ridden with on wakeworld has been cool. If it wasn't for WW i wouldnt be nearly as good as i am today.

Usually people who are looking for people to wakeboard with through a forum are people who are really into the sport and want to progress their riding. They are willing to take that risk to meet up with strangers. my parents used to think i was crazy going on a strangers boat but usually people who are well off to afford a wakeboat looking for people on a forum are genuine people that have families and great jobs. their just looking for people with a similar passion for the sport and looking to get out more. atleast thats what ive come to realise.

Worst: we were riding after taking my set these guys came up and said "sick wakesetter" my first thought was at least they can read the side of the boat..after small talk they ask to ride and we say sure. No,gas in had or anything which was fine. We assumed they had a board nope so we let them use one of our slingshots goes out and rides for a bit try's a tantrum and crashes we turn around and he says it doesn't feel right. So he gets in the boat and well he snapped the board. Didn't say sorry or offer to pay for it or anything.

Met my best friend courtesy of wake world. Turned out he literally lived 2 blocks away from me at the time.

Coolest thing, one time we were approached by a single-skier wanting a tow behind our boat. We told him it was weighted down and with a bigger wake. He didn't care, He even used our non-stretch rope. Anyway, we get out there and after seeing him ride, He then tells us he is an ex-pro. I can't remember his name but the stuff he was doing was insane. The biggest sprays I have ever seen and he would ollie and do a 180 and start riding back wards etc. It was pretty cool. He also, threw us a $20 for 5 minutes of tow.

Back in the day us old folk called that "slalom".

hahaha

^^^lol

lmao

GOOD:
I used to thumb rides all the time in college. I found it easier to just go to the lake and ask random people vs trying to align schedules with those on WW... i think i have rode with upto 5 people from wake world, who were all really awesome too.

BAD:
When i went home dry and did not get a ride (RARE). OR when i could not find a third (OCCASIONAL.. but recently better)
Really i have NO bad experiences thumbing rides or with friends who i invited along with my family or crew that i ride with

BEST- All of the dudes I ride with here in Minneapolis that have been awesome and created a really cool network of frends and riding buddies.

Worst- the two D-bags thatr showed up to ride with me who claimed to have an X-star and would trade a ride for a ride. Both rode REALLY long sets, didn't offer to pay for any gas, just said" we'll get you out of the star sometime" - didn't help with the boat wipedown and while holding the boat at the dock, let it bang into the dock ,putting the only deep scratch I have in my boat on it, and then vanished- Some people's kids!

Just remembered another semi bad experience. How many times do you invite someone and they show up with their buddy or buddies? This one guy I knew for about a year before I invited him out and the first experience was pretty good so I extended him another invitation and he shows up with 2 of his buddies without asking. How do you guys handle that? I had room so I let them ride but it cut all the sets short. Only one of them helped with gas etc so he never got another invite. I just felt that was pretty rude and disrespectful.

@ Raymond...Can't invite on an invite...that's the rule.

^ This...except if it's girls.

But no trolls allowed.

True. Maybe I should've been more specific, ie. "girls with lots of chest ballast".

HAHA i agree with the unless its women and no trolls.

This thread reminds me of the good ol days!!!

Brought our own boards.., ropes, sacks, pumps, beer, gas money.... in college and ballin on a budget.

When i bought my first boat (1994 sea ray 180 with a 350 mag and home-made tower) i did not even have a car. Walked to work and bus or car-pool to school.

I was bumming "pulls" (tow vehicle) from neighbors, classmates, church friends, anyone!

That lasted about a year until my brother bought a truck. I can only remember one time we did not get to the lake when we wanted to (it was probably more though).

Good times!