Category Archives: Kneeboarding

Why One Should Take Up A Watersport

It’s safe to say that summer is the season to go out, be adventurous and try something new!

Floating around in a garden paddling pool is great and all… but how many times can you handle the children jumping on you, or turning the water a different shade before you want to “accidentally” puncture the side?

This article is here to throw you a summer lifeline by giving you the ins and outs of why one should take up a watersport!

It doesn’t matter how old you are, who you are or even what current fitness shape you are in. Here at Tallington Lakes we host numerous different sports that are suitable for all ages and fitness levels.

Being a boat driver and wakeboard instructor, I can assure you there is no greater feeling in watersports than when you first get up on water skis or a wakeboard.

water skiing tallington lakes

Water-Skiing

Water-skiing involves the use of two separate skis whilst being towed behind a boat. As you progress in your skill, you learn how to mono-ski by only using one ski. Finally, once you have conquered the turning and stability on one ski, you will be able to slalom through our course and look exactly like the guys on our posters! (who doesn’t want that).

If that doesn’t convince you to give it go, then here are a few benefits I pulled from “Health Fitness Revolution”:

  • Increased Balance and Core Strength: getting up on the skis- and staying up- require you to develop both your balance and core strength.
  • Resistance Training: water skiing forces you to hold yourself up and keep going using resistance. It works core muscles, arm muscles, leg muscles, and all the muscles around them.
  • Easy on the Joints: Water skiing uses just about every muscle in the body without wearing down joints because it is all body weight resistance in free range of motion.
  • Meditative aspect: Being on the water, much like in sailing, can have a calming effect on the mind and forces you to focus on the task at hand, forgetting about the day to day stresses and worries. Not to mention that the endorphins from being active will keep you happy and healthy!

wakeboarding tallington lakes

Wakeboarding

The best way to describe wakeboarding is essentially by saying it is a snowboard on water… minus the snow. Just like water-skiing, you are pulled behind a boat. The way in which you progress in wakeboarding is by learning how to “pop” the wake of the boat to achieve “gnarly air man” (a term commonly used by boarders).

Rest assured it is a fantastic feeling to be able to glide smoothly across the water, whilst also learning how to soar through the air performing 180s or 360s!

Again, if that didn’t convince you, my friends at ‘Health Fitness Revolution have these benefits to persuade you:

  • Strengthens arm and leg muscles: When you wakeboard you have to flex, resist and hold positions for periods at a time. Often you also have to build on these held positions and then explode or move from these static flexed positions to execute tricks and techniques.
  • Improves flexibility in the hands and feet: All the jump and turns performed while wakeboarding require hand and foot flexibility to avoid injury. Being agile and nimble on your feet will carry over to everyday activities.
  • Improves reaction times and versatility: With sudden changes of direction and position required, especially based on the boat’s direction and the shift in waves, regular practice improves reaction time and ability to adapt to differences in the water, direction, etc.
  • Develops hand-eye coordination and balance: Stability and balance are the foundation for wakeboarding, so core strength is a key component to this sport. Also, many of the tricks require fast hand switches, rotations, and jumps — all of which require hand-eye coordination and balance.

Wakesurfing

We have lakes, but they are no ordinary lakes. For here at Tallington Lakes we have the power to create an almighty tsunami behind our boats. This tsunami will release the inner surfer dude inside you just dying to rad on out. If skiing or wakeboarding seem a little too strenuous, then wake surfing is for you! It is exactly as it sounds, using the smaller version of a surfboard on a boat wake, in order to continuously glide and surf around the lake!

Once you have learnt to comfortably get up on a wakesurf, you will look the epitome of cool as friends, family and passers-by look at you in awe.

Kneeboarding

We understand that these activities may look daunting to a young child which is exactly why we offer the option of kneeboarding. This is great for children who are less confident on the water and is a fantastic way of slowly building them up to water-skis or wakeboard.  A kneeboard is similar to a body board which many use in the sea. To start, you lie on the board and wait for the boat to slowly pull the board to speed. Once the child feels comfortable they will move to a kneeling position on the board, then simply hold onto the handle and enjoy the ride!

So… Water you waking for?  Come down to Tallington Lakes and try something new!

Thanks Adam (Boat Driver and Wakeboarding Instructor)

 

 

 

 

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A Guide To Kneeboards

A guide to kneeboards. Kneeboarding is considered the ideal towed watersport for beginners.  You are on your knees, so it is easier to balance. If you should fall, how close you are to the water along with the lower speed reduces the risk of injury.

That said, it is not a watersport for only beginners, it is a fun way to enjoy yourself out on the water, regardless of your previous watersport experience.

A beginner on a kneeboard should always look for a board that has an integrated hook on the front. This allows the rider to be pulled out of the water by the boat without having to hold onto the rope. Once the boat is up to speed, and they are strapped in, they can take the rope into their hands and begin to ride. The foam padded kneeling area is shaped, so absolute beginner to do have to be strapped in tight.

Beginner Intermediate Kneeboard

A beginner, or a recreational boarder, should use a rotary molded board. They have a softer board, with wider edges. This design lets even the less experienced knee boarders turn smoothly and control the board. This reduces the risk of falling, and if you do fall, reduces the chance of injury.  The material and thickness of the kneeboard will allow for user knocks (a little more robust) and can act as a flotation device after a fall.

Advanced Expert Kneeboard

However a competitive boarder should consider using compression molded boards. These are thinner, lighter boards, with sharper edges allowing the rider to generate more speed and offer quicker turns and tricks.

A trick kneeboard should have a lot of rocker, and the rails of the board should be thick. However a slalom board should have a flat bottom and sharp rails, this makes turning easier and allows a rider to hold the edge through a turn.


2016 HO Sports Kneeboard Collection © HO Sports

Some boards will come with built in fins, retractable fins, or no fins at all. Trick kneeboards have no fins, as they would catch in the water, making tricks harder. Slalom kneeboards will have fins as it makes them easier to steer and carve through the water. Beginners may also want fins to give them more control of the board.

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