O'Brien Woodie wakesurf board

Has any body used the O'brien woodie at all? I saw them in the O'brien catalog but it gives very little pricing info or specs on it. Does anybody have more info on it or any experience with it? Also, could I wakesurf behind a I/O boat? I've heard different things. Some say it's impossible to hit the prop at around 7 mph while others say you are most likely to hit it if you try.

I would avoid surfing behind and I/O, but that might be just my opinion. Something about the whole sharp spinning metal thing, just doesn't agree with me.

The old Woody might be a cool collector's item, but not too good for serious riding. It's a long directional board, circa 1996 or so. For one thing, the binding holes are lined up weird and may not accommodate modern bindings other than the cheapy sandals that came with it. Secondly, the binding inserts will rip out if you try to get any real air. This was back when O'Brien was just beginning to dabble in wakeboards, and there were some issues not yet worked out with construction. Don't get me wrong... I love the look of ours (and signed by Shaun Murray!) but it is not for serious wakeboarding and never really was. I'll try it out for wake surfing next chance I get and will report back, but I'm guessing there will not be enough surface area.

Oops, my bad. I did not realize that O'Brien had put out another new version of the Woodie for wake surfing. I guess that shows how old I am.

Oh yeah, and I second what Kristian said... There is no way in h*ll I would want to be wake surfing behind an I/O.

I tried wakesurfing behind my I/O. I didn't have the weight right though so I couldn't let go of the handle. I was originally going to make some kind of floating platform to protect me from the "evil propeller" but it wasn't necessary. I can't really see getting that close.

My home-made hydrofoil stabilizer thingy helps with the safety though. It rides a couple inches under the water, projects all around the prop and would make it EXTREMELY difficult to touch it with your hand or whatever...I don't know if you could do it if you tried. It might have been a little scarier without the plate though.

Here's a pic:

Thanks Salmon Tacos for the suggestion. We have one of those bolt-on stabilizers with just the two wings that bolt onto each side. Would adjusting the trim and tilt help make a good wakesurfing wake?

Max,

It will probably help. It depends on the boat though. As for safety though, the Doel-Fin, or whatever you have, will keep your hands/feet out of the side of the prop but I'm not sure about the rear. The edge of the plate I made extends a good 6" behind the prop. You could always make your own with the same hole pattern as your current fins. That's what I did. I had an SE300 stabilizer before. It's just $30 worth of 3/8" T304 stainless plate and an afternoon of labor.

Of course, you could just take your chances and avoid falling into it. I guess it's still safer than...say...surfing a giant reef break. You've just gotta pay attention!

The launch ramp to my local lake was closed on Sunday for about 4 hours as they retrived the guy who got his foot cut off in an I/O prop. he lived but has no foot they never did recover all of it there is no way i would even think about wake surfing behind an I/O just a bad thing waiting to happen....