buying now or waiting...

was just wondering if now is the best time price wise to buy a new board or should i wait until it starts getting warmer. thanks!

If you are lookig for a deal, buy 06 closeouts. Check out www.DWCBoardShop.com

If you want to find a good deal and want to support a company that is all about supporting the wakeboarding community and its riders I would check out http://www.innov8actionsports.com/

Good luck finding a board.

Best time to get a good deal on a board is the end of the season when all the companys are trying to get rid of their old stuff to make room for the new stuff. You should look for closeouts from o6 like tommyc said.

Don't just go for the best price. Do you have a board picked out? If you local board shop has a demo program, use it. The best time I have had finding a board is when the local shop did the demo sale. People camp out over nite just to be the first ones in when the sale starts. Good luck with the board search.

now is a decent time to get a new board. I just got my CWB kink141 from a local board shop for 375 and that came with the vapor bindings. They were very close to online prices and when the bindins were one size to small they just took a new set out of the box and bolted them on. There is a big advantage to having a boardshop that takes care of you rather than a online distributor. I was also lucky that my boat dealer had a really good proshop so that helped me get a deal on the board too.

Support your local boardshop by not buying online- They'll let you ride whatever you want and usually put rental fees towards your purchase. Best time to buy is when you're sure of what you want. Try a few brands and shapes....

Well I see your from CT and personally I think if you are going to go to a shop now they will have NOTHING! yes you will get a good deal buying online now but not a local shop (if you can even find one, I don't know about around where you live but up here there really isn't anything decent) I made that mistake with my first board...unless you have some amazing dosn't seem like it belongs in CT shop around you wait! If not go for it online, you'll get a great deal.

BTW if you can find 07 stuff in a shop now it will be more expensive, at least that's what I've experienced from the shops around me.

In store shops cannot compete with online pricing because the online retailers offer nothing but pictures. Your local boardshop is there for you always- to answer your questions, sell you the latest in gear and clothing, rentals plus you get to see touch and feel all the products. I'm a fan of online buying as well but I will always support my local BS cuz they are the ones spreading the stoke.

IF everyone bought online local events would die.

I sell on-line. I also:

Am the MI INT State Coordinator and put on 5 events a summer.
Demo plenty of boards behind my own boat. Had a guy come in from Canada just to demo a bunch of boards and bindings.
Ride in tournaments and test virtually all the gear before it goes on the website. Some gear does not make the cut.
Take a smaller profit margin since I don't have the "captive customer."
Have to compete with Overton's, Bart's, and the local shops.
Answer the phone on Sunday afternoons to assist people in replacing a prop.
Am digging the largest, specifically designed, towed watersports lake in world.

In the "new economy" I represent the new "mom and pop" store. I will never get rich, but I have a lot of fun. Hopefully this year, year 6 of operations, I'll turn a profit.

How about this? Support the "rider owned" shops!

Hey Karl- believe it or we've met a few times and I applaud you for your efforts with INT. But seriously, to DEMO one of your products I need to pay membership and entry to an INT event to even TRY a board? Thank you for making my point.....

To the kid that has limited money, lots of questions and no idea what he wants, the local store will answer your questions, let you demo boards and will be there whenever you feel like swinging by, checking out some videos and BSing with the staff. I grew up as a grommet hanging at a surf shop and I know the stoke they produce which you can't copy selling online. When they started selling Wake Tech's we got to demo it at Marine Stadium- Lots of kids learned to ride on that Flight 69. Thats what i'm talking about.....

Sorry for the hijack

INT to demo a board? We had demo day ONCE for the members. I pull anyone who wants a demo. I don't send boards out for demos with a few exceptions. Too much damage (kid hit sliders, err, logs in the river, and sent the board back). With me, I know I can control the damage.

Everyone has a choice as to where they buy and the retailers have a choice as to how they operate. I operate on the water and on-line. I teach about 40-50 people how to ride every summer at no charge. Often they buy a board, but often not. We still have fun on the water.

I don't paint all consumers in one brush stroke, please don't paint dealers in one stroke, either. Those who operate on-line also have to have a fixed location for almost all major manufacturers. Overton's and Bart's included. We also have minimum advertised prices to contend with. If it were easy, everyone would be doing it. I get a couple of phone calls or e-mails a month asking how to break into the business. I answer all of them with honest, experienced based answers. Most don't make it.

Glad you had a great experience growing up and you still ride. Drop me a line and I'll give you a tow. I should have the new MC in April or May.

My first board was the original Skurfer in 1983. Lots of people demoed that one, as well.

dude, help me "spread the stoke" by not pissing on other people in the industry. go ride something

Karl, i put some more bags in my boat. I may need a new prop. i'll snap a pic of my prop and we can talk.

Adam, your shop or many of the reputable outlets will have closeout '06 gear. check 'em out for some deals. i would include online shops in my search.

Perhaps I'm wrong, but don't most on-line shops also have a brick and mortar store as well? Here's a few on-line shops that I am fairly certain have a brick and mortar store as well:

Buywake/Ambush
Evogear
Wake Giant
Boarder's Paradise
Performance Ski & Surf

That's just a few I can think of off the top of my head. I also think that not all markets are the same. I live in the Dallas area and we have about 6 shops in the immediate area and a few others in the surrounding areas. Three of the 6 shops in D/FW I will buy from and all three are also boat dealers. These guys are submersed in the sport and staff their pro shops with knowledgable staff. Their prices are typically at or just above internet pricing, but they are more than happy to meet an internet price most of the time. My only knock on these shops is that they don't always have a very deep inventory and are quite often out of the gear I am looking for. The other three shops I wouldn't buy from period. They are way over priced and underwhelming when it comes to knowledge about wake gear. Their selection is pretty thin as well.

I do find that on-line shops like Evogear know how to merchandise. Unlike some of my local shops and other on-line shops (Overtons) they don't hang on to product from three years ago offering you a $20 discount from the original MSRP. Shops like Evogear understand what a blended margin is and they are more than happy to throw out some killer deals at the end of the season. They also are very customer service intensive. I've also had great customer service from Wake Giant as well when I needed to return or exchange something.

I'm sorry, but business is business. If I can get the same board for $150 less and still be taken care of after the sale, your damn straight I'm buying on-line.

I spoke what I felt about the kids original question here which was what do I buy- now or later? Buy when you're ready. READ all the posts instead of the knee jerk reaction. My bad though for not saying the online retailers do offer up some great products at great prices. BUT, that being said, how many of them are REALLY responsive to what riders want and/or need? There are exceptions, so don't waste my time pointing them out. MAJORITY of online retailers are in it for the $$ only.
(Karl no offense to you and again I applaud you for all your efforts to the wakeboard community)
.
Don't kill your local shops is what I was sayin'

I have no agenda here and don't need to kiss any behinds so I say what others think....

well, i can only speak from personal experience. Grizzly-Sports in Washington helped me warranty a blem board i bought two years ago. same product, great price. with service after the sale.. two years after the sale. call Tony.

haha thanks guys. as some pointed out i dont really have a local board shop where i live (closest thing to a shop is Boaters World ) so unfortunately i have to limit all my shopping to online. thanks again tho.

Boaters world carries boards.....
Point taken bro. Good luck on what you decide

We are a brick and mortar shop that is adding an online shop as well, the website should be up and running this week, we are just adding product.
Jeff

Dude - All retailers are in it for the money$$$$. Show us one local or internet retailer that doesn't at least try to make a profit.

Profit is the American way for sure. But let me give an example- WAKESPORTS UNLIMITED in So Cal not only sells boards and gear, but they also sponsor local events, Demo days and stuff like that. Video premieres also. They don't make money off many of those events- they do it to spread the stoke. They're just an example as there are others in this area that do just as much....

My fish for $154.00 shipped should be here Friday. Great deal. As far as not making $ for sponsoring events and such, I don't believe that. I feel that's a great business gesture to help out....and get the name to everybody.. get them seen, get's more people into the shop or buying from them. = more $

Obviously you've never been involved with sponsoring an event because its a money LOSING deal.... No one does it just to get thier name out.

Check that Fish closely because it may be a blem

OR an 06 closeout. Do you think that companies care about spreading the stoke? They do. Here's why: more stoke = more sales

"Obviously you've never been involved with sponsoring an event because its a money LOSING deal.... No one does it just to get thier name out. "

Dude - Sponsoring an event is advertising! Shops sponsor events because giving away a few grand in gear is far cheaper than the $25K it would cost to advertise in the paper, not to mention TV or radio. What's more is when a shop sponsors an event they are marketing to their core specific customer. They are not sponsoring an event just to be nice, they are sponsoring an event to ultimately bring more customers into their shop. They may temporarily lose a couple grand in gear, but they will more than make that up in the coming year because they exposed their shop to a specific customer base who wants to buy their product. Of course they are sponsoring an event to get their name out. That's the point! Yes, they are helping grow the sport by helping out an event. That's also the point! The larger the sport grows the more customers there are to buy goods from their shop.

(Message edited by nauty on March 07, 2007)

I would think it'd be a closeout coming from closeout-dude ? I like an ol business rule that says ya gotta spend money to make money

How many shops can afford a couple grand??? I'm not talking about Overtons- your local boardshop can't make money cuz you buy online yet you expect them to lose a few grand so you and your bros can compete? Get real

The deals online? Closeouts, blems, overstock and some good deals on fine products. Buyer beware is all i'm saying. I said it MAY be a blem

I don't think some of you realize what is spent in a month to advertize for a shop. We offer sponsorship programs to our local shops and vendors for our events and it is an incredible deal for the money they spend with us vrs advertizing with magazines and phone books ect. Product is an additional savings and one of the greatest marketing moves they can do. Putting your name and products directly in front of your target customer in a enviroment where it is influnced and used is worth so much more than a $500-$5000 add for a month.

Oh and Adam to answer your question if your looking for 07 products just keep in mind that what your interested could be gone if you wait for the end of the year deals.