suggestions...?

I've been doing a lot of research for a new board to buy this summer and have come across a lot of boards that would seem like they would be a good fit for what type of board im looking for. A board with big pop wake to wake and wont blow out my knees on every landing in the flats would be great. Speed isnt too much of an issue and i a board that breaks loose easily but isnt absolutely uncontrollable is what I need. It seems like the shane, one, ibex, transcend, axis, watson fit this description pretty well but what would you guys suggest would be best?

by the way i dont have a pro shop near me to demo so i need to find out as much as possible

CWB Faction.

Valhalla. grrreat pop, very forgiving on landings and that 80's retro NEON graphic for 08 is off the HOOK!

I gotta otss the Natural and the Player in the mix here as well, by far some of my favorite boards ever made. Both boards have huge pop and good speed.

If your looking for a fast board with giant pop I would suggest the Coda, that board is a rocket with massive pop.

alright listen to me bud. Thats all the same things I look for in a board and i dont live near a shop at all. You are going to go buy a Liquid Force Witness! This board is the •••••••••• Then you will recieve it. Don't bother puttin in the center fin, you don't need it. Then, you can thank me.!

take a look at the Mana as well.

Check out the fish!! seems like a good match, but then again I have been pluggin that board a bit too much lately...

Of the boards you listed, and limiting my suggestions to those, i would pic the shane because of the many reviews of its soft landings.

But if you want another personal suggestion to toss in the mix of others' than i suggest the Slingshot Recoil. I recomend slingshot because of the flex technology. The board lands softer than I have ever thought possible. The flex loads and springs back on a good edge to the wake boosting you even higher than before. The board has taught me correct edge techniques better than anything previously ridden. If flex, such as slingshot is too much to guess on for the moment for a purchase, definitely consider it in the future, because this technology/feature is on the rise!

The ibex is a fun board, but like the SS recoil WAY more... I wouldn't rule out Slingshot...they've got some cool stuff

yeah Ive been looking into slingshots a lot lately, what i dont really understand is how they are supposed to land soft when the entire board is one giant surface, same situation with the ibex. Ive only heard great reviews on them so im currently ignoring what they just happen to look like.

I have also not even looked into the o'briens yet so my bad for forgetting about them, Ill be sure to look heavily into every board that you guys suggested.. except for the fish because thats the board im currently riding.

Also are any of these models that have been mentioned have really unpredictable pop where you must have you technique dead on to get the necessary pop? I have a pretty solid technique so its not too much of an issue even though sometimes surprises after leaving the wake arent always the best thing for my safety or health so its best to avoid them as much as possible haha.

any more input would be appriciated

you should probably look into a really aggresive continuous rocker or a subtle 3 stage.

5 boards that come to mind are
- 08 murray with hybrid rocker
- HL marek supposed to be crazy good
- cwb faction which has a massive 3" cont. rocker
- cwb marius which is super wide with a big rocker.
- LF witness very subtle 3-stage thats predictable from what ive heard.

(Message edited by goride on May 17, 2008)

SS lands really soft because when you hit the board will flex under you and take most of the impact...like a spring on a car.

If you want more predictable the SS Response isnt 3-stage so it will be more consistant of the wake...

Check out slingshot, if you get a chance to demo do it, the choice will be easy then

The Watson's a pretty awesome board. Taking it out into the flats is darn soft, and barely impacts my knees. I'm a big guy, and the fact that landing in the flats on my Watson feels like wake2wake on my old substance, and that casing the wake on it is like landing in the flats on my old substance, then it says something about it's soft landings.

Should my height also weigh into what I am looking for? Being 6'2" I'm kind of out of place in wakeboarding it makes me wonder..

-maybe should get a board origionally designed for a bigger person?
-does my height also affect if i should ride a 3stage or continuous?

As far as boards being originally designed for tall guy i think Rustys new board is the only one to fit that description if you're ready and willing to pay 600-700 for it?

as for rocker, i have yet to hear anything about height affecting that one