Teaching Kids

Does anyone have any advice or experience to share on teaching kids to ski and/or board? My kid is barely 5. He had great success snow skiing this past winter. This will be the first year behind the boat.

I have taught kids of all ages. Here is my advice based upon lots of experience.

1. The kid is in charge. Don't try to push them. They won't be successful. Kids have irrational fears. Explain to them in kid language that they are safe.

2. Start out with a kneeboard shore start. It teaches the kids how to hold the rope handle, balance and edging. It will shorten the wakeboard learning curve for younger children.

3. Use a boom for wakeboarding with small kids. It lets you be close to them and it is easier to get up when you don't have to manage the rope. The boom forces them to stand up with the boom rising.

4. After a few times of boom starts, put a bridle section on the boom. It still keeps them close to the boat and they have more control without 60' of line whipping around.

5. After a few bridle starts, put them on a 55 or 60' line. I prefer Fly High Tak over spectra. It is stiffer, lighter, and easier to manage, especially for lightweight riders (I use it too most of the time). It won't whip around as much pulling them over.

6. Without a boom, use a really short line. Run your boat at 14.5 and see where the table flattens out (usually 40-45 feet) and figure-8 your rope for a temporary knot. Slow, steady pull up to 12 and taper gently to 14.5 mph (or whatever seems comfortable). Ideally, the spray from under the board will be under the lead foot.

7. If they try - have a party. I mean take the kid out to the ice cream parlor and let them order whatever they want. Praise them to the skies. Be excited. Positive reinforcement works wonders.

8. Be prepare for mood swings. Kids are fickle. It may take all summer, it may take 30 minutes. I have been in both circumstances. Just be patient and enjoy the fact you are in the boat. If the kid senses disapproval, stress, anger, or any negative emotion, they will likey stop. All positive reinforcement.

9. Whatever method you choose, have a shore training session. Give them a rope handle, let them sit on the ground in position, and pull them up. Teach knees bent, toes up and back, when the boat pulls let your butt contact your heels before standing up. Swing you hip to dominate side. Ride knees bent. Make it short, fun, and game-like. Smile a lot and have fun with it. The kids will key in how you present the material.

Good luck and have fun with it.

Good advice from Karl. Only thing I would add is to tie the bridle real short on the boom the first time, about a foot. Then your child can get up using the boom and just grab the handle.
Also if you have other kids learning at the same time it helps make it more fun, peer pressure is much more effective than parental pressure.

Karl(boarditup),
Thats some good info. What do you do about kids starting off in the kneeboard, do you strap them in or just leave the strap off? I am wanting to get my niece up this summer using your techniques but I am afraid that if she wipes out that she may turn upside down while still strapped in on the kneeboard.

Try getting them up ona wakesurfboard first. It might help because it is easier to get up on then a wakeboard is.

No strap on the kneeboard. Just have them ingnore it. Put the wakeboard with the tail on the beach, nose in the water and have them lean back. Have an adult assist. Best board, Hydroslide Revolution - does not bounce with a lightweight rider. Any board will do.

I also have the kid jump off the swim platform so they trust the vest.

Do not kneeboard off the boom. It does not work.

I have a 6 year old that started wakeboarding at 5. We started him out on the kneeboard by pulling him around the lake while he was lying down on the board. We only went 8-10mph and after a few times he got up on his knees. I started him by holding the board off the platform and releasing it as the boat started and slowly let the rope out. We shortened the rope where he was close to the boat and did alot of cheering. Eventually he wanted to try to wakeboard and got up the first time. I am now teaching my 4 year old to kneeboard the same way. He got up on his knees last weekend. Alot of cheering and clapping for just the smallest thing does wonders. Good luck.

"peer pressure is much more effective than parental pressure."

That's a fact. If you can get another kid or 2 that are playmates to your kid to go out with you, do it. We tried & tried to get my son to try wakeboarding & he just wasn't interested....until his cousin of the same age had a really difficult time with it on our trip to Shasta. My son jumped right in to "show him how it's done", popped right up & the rest was history. Peer pressure & the competition between kids is extremely powerful, & you don't have to do a single thing to foster it.

i got my 4 year old nephew up last year (now 5)i used the same technique with him as i have with other kids that were not quite as young. i get in the water with them, of course you have to be either near shore or at a section of lake that you are sure you won't get run over when they leave you behind. but being in the water w/ them seems to take a ton of the fear away. it also gives me the ability to make their first try a bit more succesfull by "guiding" them w/ their life vest as the boat SLOWLY pulls them up. of course a TON of cheering and congrats all day as well as everytime i see them.

If you have access to a pool, put your kid in there with the wakeboard on. Teach them how to 'spin' the board into the correct position if they get turned around on their stomach. I also threw my kid the rope, and was darn near able to get him all the way up just by pullin on the other end from the edge.
The praise/reward suggestions mentioned earlier are also highly recommended.

Great advice from all so far.
Only things I can think of are obvious.

Teach them where it's not busy or boat crazy.Nothing will freak a kid out faster than big waves and boats all around.

I got in the water with my youngest,6 at the time,to help her set up.2 trys and she was up.

Im teaching some 12 yr olds right now. To help them get up, I would sit in the water with them and give them instructions. I only had to do this a few times because they got up on there 2nd tries. Now after only 2 trips they are trying wake jumps. Show them visually and verbally what to do because they listen. This one kid has been twice and he is already talking about advanced tricks and asking questions like 'is a KGB an FS or BS 360?' They will listen and they definately progress faster then us 17 yr olds.

quote--They will listen and they definately progress faster then us 17 yr olds.
or us 34 year olds

The two most important ones from my experience are "The kid is in charge. Don't try to push them" and "peer pressure is much more effective than parental pressure" which were mentioned above. Show them other kids younger then them riding and they will take it from there.

Here is a sucess story. Last week, I used the techniques above with my 8-year old son and he rode for the first time on Tuesday. On Thursday, he rode again - actually made it around a corner and rode out the double up wake chop. Sunday, he rode in the INT in MI and got a First Place Medal. He was the only kid in the Mini-Outlaw division, but it did not matter to him. This morning, when he got out of bed and go dressed, the medal was around his neck. Last year, he was too scared to ride at all.

Use the INT, if available, it puts the kid "peer pressure" on in a positive way. Even the teenagers were cheering him on and giving him high-fives on the starting dock. It was a wonderful day and his face was lit up like the sun.

If any of the wakeboarders from the first MI INT event are reading this board, thanks!

(Message edited by boarditup on June 21, 2004)

I have a very small 9 yr old son. He gets up great. Staying up is his challenge. The board wiggles alot and he inevitably falls. What more can I do to help him.
Thanks

I have a 6 yr old that is burnin to try wakeboarding after seeing me and his uncle do it. (and the ft worth coverage on ESPN2) My question is what are the little kids riding? I mean there is no way that hes going to be able to do anything on my 143. I took him to the local SportChalet and tried on a Blindside 121 Voyager Biolite but the bindings were too big, even fully tight he could get out of them dry(they dindn't know of any smaller sizes). I saw the LF Blade but I am a litte sketchy about buying him such an expensive board ($300) if I am not sure he is going to use it, he might not enjoy boarding until he is 10 or even later.
Any sugestions?


(Message edited by marcaq on June 21, 2004)

I had my boy start out on the MOTIVE 119 great beginner board:



The biggest thing I can say about starting them out is tell them to squat down almost all the way on the board when they are coming out of the water. If he or she is bouncing around a lot tell them to lean back a little more as well as bend the knees to help absorb some of the wake. My son really took off when I brought his little cousin out. Having his cousin in the boat makes all the difference in how her rides. If it is just my wife and I he just cruses but when someone like a friend or relative his age is in the boat, he really wants to advance. I even got in the water with him this last weekend and got up on his board with him to show him how to cut a lttle harder. This helped him out greatly, thought i was going to drown myself but it made a big difference. He said it helped him understand how to apply more pressuer to his toes and heals for turning in and out. If you are just starting out I cant say enough about teaching them to flip the board over on their own that is a big first step.
Good luck.

I sell the Hydroslide Renegade for $139. It has kid sized bindings and is 121 cm with rounded ends for a more forgiving ride.

For the guy with the bouncing ride, the kid is leaning back too far or the speed is too fast. I recommend about 12.5 to 15 mph. My son at 80 lbs rides at 14.5 on a Double Up Soul 135. He should be on a 125, but he rides better on the bigger board. It is a benefit of being a dealer and being able to try out several boards in a day. My daughter likes the 121 better. She weighs in at 72 lbs. Another great option is the Blindside kid's board at 125 cm. Square ends, more agressive.

Marc,
One thing that helps is letting the kid help choose the board. We tried our son on a Motive 199, LF Nemesis 124 & HL Era 124. We ended up with the Era, because that was the one that he grooved on & was really inspired by. (Don't demo one that you aren't willing to shell out the dough for.) My son's a little big for the Motive, but we tried it for him anyways. He's 9 & almost 70 lbs, so we were happy that he liked the bigger board - he'll be able to stay on it for a lot longer than the 119. My theory is that as long as you think that he/she will stay with it, try them on the most advanced board that they'll be comfortable with. The Era is last year's Premier, so it won't hold him back whatsoever.

that kid has a nicer board set up then me

I know, it's pretty trick. We had some 30/60 bindings from a couple of years ago that are size mini-medium - a little big, but not too bad. It's a very trick setup, but I have to say, he's totally stoked & rides at least 2 or 3 sets whenever we go out (& we're not usually out for more than a few hours at a time). So I feel a lot better about spending a little more than I would about spending less on a board that he wasn't excited about & didn't care about riding. In the end it cost us about $100 more than the other 2 boards (blank), but I think it was worth it.}

OK thanks for all the quick advice. I cant buy my kid a cheap kmart board if I have a nice board/binding setup, just wouldn't be right. Today I found a killer deal on a New Double Up Gromet 125 (just a couple of coins over $100)

Now I need a set of bindings for it, Karl, you made mention for kid sized bindings. Who sells kid sized bindings that have some room to grow and dont need compression equipment to get into.

Good stuff...thank you all!

Hey Marc check out the Liquid Force Micro Series, that is what I got for my boy on the bottum pic. Whats cool about these bindings is the whole upper tounge opens up reel good so he can almost just stand into them then tighten them up.
Good luck!