Beginner needs help.

I bought a used beginner board on e-bay (EP 5150), and I've been out twice. I've gotten up on the board TWICE in about 30 tries. How do I get up easily and properly? (my forearms are killing me). I'm starting out in the H20 with the board perpindicular to the boat, knees bent, and arms tucked in. I either get yanked out of the bindings, or let go of the rope. Please help. The boat has plenty of power.

The best example I have heard is to sit on the ground with your knees slightly bent and feet flat on the ground in front of you. Have a buddy grab your hands and 'pull' you up till you are standing. That same motion is how you should get up on a wakeboard:
- Arms are straight out
- The boat pulls you (do not pull the rope to your chest)
- Knees slightly bent, and as the boat starts out let the water push the board towards you, this will bend your knees all the way to your chest.
- As your knees bend towards your chest wrap you arms (which are out straight) around the outside of your knees.
- Do NOT stand up too fast. The board will come up on the water by itself, you can ride around the lake all day long in a tucked position (like you are doing a cannonball off the high dive.)

Classic mistake I see all the time, is people trying to stand up way too fast - and guys pulling the rope to their chest. Let the boat pull you.

ALSO, the driver of the boat is key - do not pull to fast, slower is always better then fast. The key for the driver is to be smooth with the power. The driver needs to start out slow and progress very smoothly to 18 to 22mph. Pulling a wakeboarder is nothing like pulling a water skier. The driver needs to take it easy.

Hope that helps a little....

Thanks!! We're going out Sunday, can't wait to try out your advice.

another thing to keep in mind is to not stand up. standing up causes people to naturlly fall forward. instead, try to push your board away from you with your feet. it is more of a mental thing, but it helped me!

good luck, and welcome to the greatest sport in the world

[]Deace
~Jesse

Brad and Jesse, great advice. I am a new guy who is getting up on a pretty regular basis, but I find that the times that I do have trouble it is because I am trying to stand up too fast, or I am stiffening against the pull of the boat, and not relaxing.

Don, my biggest problem the first times out was my natural inclination to make things more difficult than they need to be, and putting way too much thought into what is (in theory) a very simple operation. Once I began listening to my brother, and putting his advice (the same as Brad and Jesse's) into practice, I found the act of getting up to be very natural; I'm sure that you will also find this to be the case.

Good luck, and let us know how how it goes Sunday!

Another good trick is to think about rolling your feet forward as the boat first starts to pull you.This makes you come up on plane fast so you don't have the board out in front pushing water=pulling arms out.hope this makes sense.

If you are getting yanked out of your bindings, It tells me that you are falling over forwards. You may be standing up too soon. stay crouched until the whole board is above the water. When I get up, I start in the position you describe. when the boat starts to pull, and I roll my shoulders up and over the board, there is a couple of seconds when the board is actually fully submerged. do not stand up yet....wait for the board to plane above the water before standing.
It cannot be said enough that you should let the boat do all of the work. your hands should be the only muscles getting a work out while getting up.

Be careful if you start rolling your feet forward...to much of that and you will flatten the board on the water before your body is in position and fall over backwards.

keep your weight centered over the board and dont try to shift your weight back and forth to get up

Last weekend was my first time wakeboarding... so I hear your pain.... fortunately I got up on all my attempts... First time I followed what people are saying above... and it works great if you want to have huge (and long) arms. It really isn't that hard. The trick is to immediately go from the horizontal board position to the turned position. DO NOT DRAG for more than 1 sec in horizontal position... really rips the arms... and there is no reason. Have the boat driver take off slow for 2 sec and then accelerate at a steady pace. Crazy thing is how I learned this technique was a girl who had never wb before... she got up right away doing it this way... give it a try.