How much of wakeboarding is skill?

So, I wanted to ask peoples opinion on this. How much skill does it actually take to be good at wakeboarding and how much is it is just water time, coaching, etc? Cause I see all these young kids coming up and just killing it but then I remember that they probably live in Florida, ride multiple times a day and get coaching from the best in the world. Cause I think that given the same opportunity, many of my friends that wakeboard and even some people that don't even ride could be as good or better these people. I think wakeboarding might break down like this,

50% water time.
25% coaching.
15% drive.
10% skill.

Also what are your guy's/gal's opinions of parents pushing there kids in wakeboarding? Because I go to contests now and see parents yelling at little johnny cause his indy grab wasn't wake to wake. When did wakeboarding suddenly become like baseball? I remember back when I started wakeboarding, one the the things that drew me to the sport was it was all about having fun and parents didn't yell at their kids if they did something wrong. My parents were always encouraging me wether I did a HS jump or a moby dick it didn't matter. But Soccer mom/dad wakeboard parents are what is now ruining wakeboarding for me cause it's turning into any other sport, like baseball. Wakeboarding should be about having fun and self-expression, not your parents pride and their imposed will on their children.

Water time (with/without coaching) = 70%
Skill = 15%
Luck = 10%
Gear = 5%

Water time-75%
$$$$$-25%

water time = 80%
skill = 15%
gear = 10%
gas money = 100%

Skill 100%
Style 100%
Gas money 100%
there is no luck in wakeboarding 0%
its not about water time either i ride 1 mabey 2 times a week so...
Determination 100%

Yeah Larry, because everyone knows that with 70,000 dollar boats that have 60+ gallon tanks with gas going at over $4 a gallon everyone has an equal shot at "going pro" at wakeboarding.

I was told

5% skill
95% mental

Skill 26%
Water time 24%
Work Ethic 20%
Equipment 10%
Determination 10%
Guts 10%

IMO

Opportunity, in which I group the following: determination, $$$, coaching, water time with a lifestyle (parents) which is totally geared towards success, will get get the individual about 98% there. It's that last 2% where you either have the God given talent or not that's the deal breaker.

And as this sport gets more popular that 2% will shrink just as it has in the mainstream sports like baseball, football etc. where the kids that actually make it are a tiny percentage. I think Nick makes a good point about the parental commitment and the "emotions" that brings along that journey, some handle it better then others obviously.

Guys, you have it all wrong

it's actually

10% Luck
20% Skill
15% Concentrated Power of Will
5% Pleasure
50% Pain


There's one thing I cant really remember though...

(Message edited by homedawg678 on July 18, 2008)

theres a couple possiblities on this one, if some one has good coaching, listening skills, and perserverence, thats all it takes. from there you could go 100% flavor through 5% flavor.

Ahahahaha. Very nice homedawg.

style was mentioned only once so far

would style be tied into skill or separate? I think most if not all will agree they are separate.
deffinately something to throw in the mix. especially with the way things (comps) are being judged now

but i am sure this thing can be broken down even further into every separate thing creating an endless combination and an endless thread of numbers.

interesting though

Nice thread Nick. here's what i think,

Watertime 60% which equals money,
Money 30%, so, money + money = money...however, you must be coordinated, so 10% is skill.
Here is my conclusion....

$ + $ = $/10% skill = 11 year old girl doing backmobes

Hahah yea nick, i was liek wow what a perfect oppurtunity

no over-thinkin here

100% WATER TIME

Because with water time, you develop skills and style, your determination grows stronger every time you ride.. the better you get the more gutsy you get.. and gas and money and gear is figured in w/ gettin on the water
Plain And Simple!!

-50% my skill

-50% what "The Book" tells me to do.

Add one part pain, three parts wallet, and sprinkle in some time on the water. That my friends, is wakeboarding to me.

Here is how I break it down..
mastercraft boat = 35,000
trip to gas station only to have to reset pump to keep filling it up. = $130.00
Gas for the Denali= 100.00
Listening to my sons scream and laugh as I pull them on the tube,,, and seeing the joy on my nine year olds face as the finally pulls a wake to wake.. PRICELESS

20% Skill
75% Mental
5% Equipment

Here's the way I look at my previous seasons of riding. I trully only progressed the more I was out on the water. First few summers: sucked. Only went out about once a week if even. Last summer: much more comfortable and skilled. Went out three or four times a week. This summer: suck. Go out once every two weeks.

It's all WATER time and time you put into it. But I must say, you have to have the skill and talent to take it places and have a competitive spirit and will to do competitions against other riders.

I would break it down more like this with the population in general, regardless of water time etc...

Capable of:
Pro level riding : 10%
Amateur (3-5 inverts) : 80%
Beginner level (never get much past a wake jump) : 20%

I am an amateur rider and have hundreds of hours of water time. On the flip side, I have 2 friends that ride 2-3 times a year and land 2-3 new tricks every time they go out. In fact one of my old wakeboard buddies from the early nineties came out with me last year for the first time since then (about 12 years) and landed 2 different 5's, 3 different 3's, TS front roll, HS back roll, scarecrow, and a roll to revert grabbed. He he had never landed anything beyond a back roll or a 3 the last time he rode. He has not wakeboarded since because he thinks its too much impact on his body and does not want to mess with his surfing.

(Message edited by Alan-S on July 19, 2008)

Gymnastics on the water doesn't equate to wakeboarding skills...I 'VE seen people do rolls,tantrums, flips, but can't grab the board wake to wake. It's water time plus a sense of style. . You can't teach or coach STYLE, it just comes naturally. Take Lyman for example, he rode for two weeks and turned pro

I like Alan's breakdown. I give no real percentage to equipment after just riding with a pro level rider. Friggin guy was riding an old hyperlite honeycomb and a pair of brand new c-dub answers...hate that guy.

I do not think there is any luck involved and there will always be people, in any sport, that have that something extra. That something that you cannot teach.You combine that with training, dedication and obviously the means (ie money) and they become unbeatable. Phillip, Woods etc

15% water time.
5% coaching.
10% drive.
55% skill/balls
15% Equipment........ IT IS MOST LIKELY THE INDIAN and NOT the ARROW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

(Message edited by slob02 on July 19, 2008)

(Message edited by slob02 on July 19, 2008)

I see it as this:

99% -confidence
.66% -skill
.165% -luck
.165% -money

but i also kind of see it like this too.....

going back to my comment about my buddy that ripped the one time he rode behind a wakeboard boat. When he was doing back rolls and 3's it was behind a 13' Boston Whaler with a 1975 Evinrude 25 hp on a Connely Stick.

I don't think you're using the term "skill" correctly. Skill is the end-product of combining training and in-born talent. So, no matter what, it's 100% skill. Skill[=ability. A much better question is, how much of wakeboarding is talent (what you are born with) and how much is training, guts, et al?


In my opinion, talent is your capacity, and all the rest contribute to how much of that natural capacity you fulfill. No matter how much someone may train, they could never be an olympic runner without the talent for it (naturally long legs, fast or slow twitch muscle, etc), but they can certainly get significantly better than where they started.

Alan your wrong and I am going to stay on all night to prove it.

100% determination

If you want it bad enough you gear wont matter, your time on the water wont matter because when you are on the water your determined to get the most out of every second you have. If you are determined you will make decisions to have the money/time to go. With out the determination and desire to get out there and try then you shouldn't be out there.

HomeDawg678,

100% reason to remember the name

WATER TIME 50% SKILL 50%
one is only 1/2 as good without the other.

100% GOOD LOOKS...

no skill is involved in wakeboarding, just the ability to make a live vest look good. . .

or

99% want to
.5% confidence
.5% people that are cool to ride with, not some jerk that you only like because he has a boat.

For me its been.....
95% mental
5% skill
Thats not saying I lack in skill its just I get a mental block when learning a new trick and it F's everything up until I get over it.

Ohhhhh thats what it was, thanks BSWake

You ever see when you throw something at a friend and he just ducks out of the way..... All the watertime in the world is not going to give that kid the balls to try a 313. so i say water time and athleticism go hand in hand and coaching helps.

Lyman rode for two weeks and turned pro? Seems unlikely.

Also I love some of the math used in this thread, it makes me laugh.

Jeff,

Give some credit to the girl that goes out there everyday and pays her dues with hard crashes to get to where she is. That was a slap in the face to the wakeboarding parents. You can't buy determination and guts.

Jarrod. I agree about the determination and guts and you have to give props to the girls who take big crashes. The problem is without talent or inherent skills you are not going to get to the top.Mobes and the tougher tricks are going to be brick walls. And the crashes are gonna come thick and fast.

I say it takes three things:

1. Ability - provided by god
2. Support - provided by mom and dad
3. Desire - all you

Another thing no one has mentioned yet is the type of crew you get that water time with. I am usually out on the boat with a group of guys who are only wake to wake riders learning 180's, myself being the most advanced with only fs 1's and basic inverts. When I finally rode with someone better than me, it really pushed me to ride with confidence, more amplitude, and try some new tricks I wouldn't try otherwise.

90% drive, tenacity, heart, natural born talent
10% water time

All of the greats have loomed in the wings until they've had their shot.

IMHO there is the X-factor of natural falling ability and injuries. There have been so many athletes that are amazing yet seem to fall off/below the radar due to a few poorly timed injuries. A perfect cross-over example of this is motocross. The best in the world not only ride well but fall very well. I have personally seen guys get back up from falls that would have left me in the hospital...they are like cats, always landing on their feet. Falling well will keep you healthy and riding. Granted some of the falling "technique" is learned through water time but there is also natural ability as well.

50% practice (water time, ect ect)
30% Determination
10% skill
10% balls

J-Rod,
In no way was that meant to be a slap in the face to that girl. I find it absolutely amazing the skill level she has at her age. However, imo, it proves the point that if you are out there everyday multiple times a day, you can be as good as anyone who gets to ride everyday.

This depends on your perspective. Most of you are thinking in terms of comparing amongst wakeboarders which is an EXTREMELY self selected group.

Without access to a boat, gas, and wakeboard, you will NEVER participate in this sport. Not too many wakebaroders coming out of sub-saharan Africa now are there??? That pretty much wipes out 95+% of the world population. Once you have access to equipment, drive - determination - interest AND skill take over. You have to want it and just as importantly you have to have some basic inate ability. This sport self selects people to those that have some basic balance and strength so that people that can't walk on a balance beam without falling or do 5 sit ups will not even try. Similarly lots of people with access and basic ability just do not see the point or are those that like 'their feet on the ground' and will never try or will give up really easy.

Once you find someone that is a wakeboarder and has access to the equipment, some interest, and some basic ability, this might be the proportions for the ripper:

Practice / water time / disposable income = 50%
Determination / pain / nads = 20%
Innate ability = 15%
Mentor / coach / training = 10%
Equipment = 5%

Of course these things feed on each other: more determination can increase water time, more skill can increase determination, better equipment can increase determination, etc.

50% Water time
35% Skill
15% Beer