Learning to wakeboard before waterskiing

I have a friend who wants to learn to wakeboard. Myself and everyone I know who wakeboards all learnt to waterski before starting wakeboarding, and a lot of people have been saying learning to waterski is easier to first pick up than wakeboarding and she may be best to learn to waterski first then take up wakeboarding. She has had a 15 min lesson on a training bar and managed to stand up and ride down the lake, then a long gap when she came out on our boat for 20 mins or so and tried to get up on a rope and couldn't quite manage it. What are your opinions? Do you think shed be better to learn to waterski first? Did any of you learn to wakeboard before waterskiing?

She should just learn on a wakeboard.
I don't think skiing would help.

Have her watch the book or something similar, she will be up the same day.

i think learning to get up on a wakeboard is easier anyway.

I still maintain and ski our slalom course, but haven't taught anyone to ski for years. Just teach wakeboarding, although I don't know many who have never skied who have a strong toeside pull.

Natural tendency is to lean against the rope for support, thus on a wakeboard putting it on heelside edge and rocketing to that side, never able to come back in because they're leaning against the rope. When leaning back on skis, you stay straight. IMO, better to get your "ski" legs first.

I have taught several people to wakeboard who have never skied. If you watch the CWB TV thing they make mention that a couple of their pro wakeboarders did not know how to ski.

It took me like 12 tries to get up on waterskis when it only took me three on a wakeboard.

Same, I've gotten a bunch of people up who've never skied before. A lot of it just depends on the person. One guy that I got up just last week got up second try, fell, and then third try stayed up for a very long trip around my cove back to my dock (cops came to try to pull me over for whatever reason they pleased). Once the popo left my cove, I pulled him back up, and made a full circuit of a very long cove. It was pretty damn incredible. My other friend that recently I got up took a while, but he's sliding around on the surface no problem now (only been out around 15 or so times), and he never did any water sports ever.

I don't think that skiing is a prereq for wakeboarding, since I knew how to ski, and getting up on a wakeboard felt completely different to me...

I have never learned to ski and I got up on my first try on a wakeboard. To me getting up on a wakeboard is easier than trying to ski, I tried skiing once and couldn't get the hang of it to much so I gave up on it.

I am a long time slalom skier and I have had a difficult time breaking the old habits while wakeboarding

I am always fighting the back foot heavy syndrome

but, I did teach the kiddos to waterski first.....mostly bacause the falls are easier

we didn't stick with the skis long....

A-dub, perhaps that's my toe-side problem(especially switch)
if you don't lean against and down the line....what do you do?

thanks

I have a feeling most everybody these days learns to wakeboard without learning to ski.

Cliff, I was referring more to a first timer just leaning against the rope, which obviously we are doing the entire time while riding. I think it is a matter of controlling and changing edges, while having a centered type lean or pull on the boat. I can't describe it well in words, but it's like you have a tight line, with hands down low and out, and then you swivel your torso and hips on/around the handle/your hands and forearms. If that makes sense?

I was meaning when someone gets up, and automatically shoot out the wake heelside. More than likely they are leaning against the boat, and are rocking big enough fins they aren't slipping out yet.

(Message edited by behindtheboat on June 09, 2008)

got it

don't get me wrong, my regular toeside is good

but that goofy side is just plain goofy

to answer schuey's question, do what ever will build confidence

our concern was the kids catching a from edge and hitting hard their first time on top of the water

we got them hooked on riding on learner skies first

(Message edited by ord27 on June 09, 2008)

I have never skiied and have been wakeboarding for a while now. I think I have pretty good toeside edge, in fact my first w2w was toeside mostly because I didnt know any better and was teaching myself, no-one was there to tell me that heelside was easier!

Anyways I am considering giving skiing a try just to change things up occasionally!

i used to ski for two years before i heard about wakeboarding, so i started riding, and didnt touch skis for a couple of years, and put two of them on and struggled to get out of the water and could barely stand on them....... i think just learning to wakeboard would be better. the only similarity is that in both your riding across the water

I learned to wakeboard before i learned to waterski. I still haven't learned to waterski and i am doing fine on my board. So let her learn to wakeboard first.

You should definitely teach them wakeboarding because it is the easiest and not what teaches them better balance and control on the water...

Most schools teach skiing so that you have the balance and water control, before learning terrible techniques from wakeboarding. No wonder no one does anything else, they can't.

It's a trip to hear people say wakeboard before waterski, I guess growing up in a ski family screwed my perspective up. That & learning to ski back in '86 when the wakeboard options were a little thin. Double skiing as goofy as it is, is by far easier than wakeboarding, get her up on a pair of combos and let her get the feel of going over the water, honestly no one should have that hard a time on a wakeboard. Everytime we teach one of the girls they either get up the first or second time. We alsways do the "trick them into wakeboarding", where you tell em that you are just going to slowly pull them through the water so they can get the feel of the water on the board. Do that for like 10 seconds and if all looks good just take off without telling them. 80% of the time, it works everytime.

I don't get how doubles is easier than wakeboarding. I learned to slalom when I was 5 so it's been a long time, but when I was learning to jump, I had to ride jumpers for hours to get used to the two skis again. To me, it is WAY easier to have one thing on your feet.

Cliff, you shouldn't be back foot heavy on your slalom either!

They didn't screw your perspective up Big Heavy. You were a well rounded water person. I would like to know the % of top pros that did NOT have waterskiing in their background. I also said TOP PRO's, not freeride freddy who makes a huge deal about not having a ski background, but he had a skateboard like every other 10 yr old, it's almost like he's jealous. I just don't get the tude towards skiing. Feet on fire is a good example, most of these guys are good at most watersports.

Nick, you were always a goofy jumper. You watched Huey too much

It depends on the individual what works best. If I'm teaching a small kid or someone who has never been pulled behind a boat, I start them off with something easier so they can get used to holding onto the handle. I have seen too many go into a mild panic mode when that line gets tight the first couple of times and if they have a wakeboard on they are not going to get up. I think grabbing a kneeboard will get someone used to holding onto a handle and build a little confidence going behind a boat with some speed. A pair of skis would work too. After they get that, we build on those successes and get them up on a wakeboard pretty quickly.

Most people I get started start with a wakeboard though, but will pull out the kneeboard if I think it is going to be sketchy getting them up.

For the ones that cut out heelside and stay there (most first pulls), usually they are bending at the waist and pulling against the boat. I try to focus them on standing taller and keeping the rope close to the front hip.

i can't get out of the water on skiis... two of em, or one... lol sad i know haha

I never learned to ski first I just went right for the kill

I tried to start my SS (5-6yrs old at the time) on skis but he didn't have the muscle discipline to keep it all together. Strapped his feet into a wakeboard and after a few tries he was up and...faceplanting!

I think it is all in what you want to accomplish. Went waterskiing once and didn't get up. Watched wakeboarding a few times, and decided that I had to do it. Difference was my attitude. I think because she wants to wakeboard, she will be more motivated to get it, and will try harder than if you switch her to skis. Best advice I got in trying to get up is wait one, two then stand up, last turn the board.
Tell her good luck! and not to worry if it takes going out a couple of times before getting up becomes automatic. Occasionally I still blow it. I just blame it on the driver!

Been riding for close to 3 years and never touched a set of skis

I know that now Nick

guess that's why I relied on my strength

but man it was alot of work to get through the course