Tricks when helping newbies - ?

One of the things I noticed about getting new folks up and riding while at the Moomba Jamboree was that there was a tendency to point the nose of the board away from the wake out towards the flats. This would cause a wild oscillating motion (front to back) until we got folks under control. On the Outback that we were using, I was asking folks to align the nose with the gap between the rear hatch and the outside glass of the gunwale.

When I ride backside, I have to visually align the nose with the back corner of my boat. In order to find the pocket.

This "trick" seems to help folks get the orientation of the board going down the line. It's particularly hard for folks that come from a slalom skiing background that want to open their shoulders to the boat.

What tricks or tips do you folks use with newbies when trying to get them oriented to wakesurfing for the first few pulls? We've all heard the lean forward and back stuff - I'm more interested in the esoteric stuff people are doing that is working well in resolving particular problems for riders.

Yep, well said. I've noticed the same and keep telling people to point the nose more towards the back of the boat..Easier to teach wakesurfing than wakeboarding, IMO....

I try to teach them to keep the board and shoulders parallel to the lip of the wake. It seems to keep them from shooting into the flats. Staying at the bottom of the face also helps to keep them from over speed checking from the drop in.

Jeff,
I think that holding the rope only with the front hand helps turn the shoulders and makes it more difficut to go away from the wake. Remember with Ally it was what got her surfing along with a more balanced stance without the wakeboarding back knee bent pose.

If a rider has trouble getting into the pocket we have them put the rope in their back hand. That way they can use their front arm to reach for the boat. This carries them into the pocket. Reaching for the boat with their front arm helps the rider get their weight on their front foot.

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One issue we have with litle kids getting up is that they don't have enough weight to get the board to "flip up". When we have this issue, I jump in the water with them, and hold the board so that their feet are on the board exactly how it should be. Then I have my wife just put the boat in gear so there is a little pressure on the board. At this point most little kids can almost stand up, only takes a little touch of the throttle. We take LOTS of young kids out with us as we have a young family. Last year, I probably got 30 kids under 8 up using this method.

1. hold the rope in the front hand
2. bend the knees and touch the wave with back hand
3. keep the edge of the board in the wave

There are newbies and then there are NEWbies. What I mean is not all new people to the sport are equal. People with water sports experience have some advantages and skaters or boarders of any kind start well. Then there is the not so coordinated newbie with "Gumbie Legs".... they are the most difficult to teach. With all that said, there seems to be a progression of sort.

1. Getting up... bend your knees and stay small
2. Move your feet ... learning to get your feet into the proper surfing position
3. Balance and posture ... weight on the balls of your feet and facing/touching the wave.
4. Find what works for you ... each of us have our own certain way we like to stand or do tricks
5. SMILE ... Have Fun ... Listen to your favorite sounds

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