Whether you're working up to something new, wishing you had a bit more confidence on the water or wanting to add style to your skills, these drills will cement your cable understanding and make you a master of the board. Sure, some of them might seem super basic, but it's nailing those tiny technical elements that will fast-track your progress in the long run. Ultimately it doesn't matter how many advanced tricks you can do if they all look super sketchy.
SEVEN DRILLS, SEVEN SKILLS
These drills are designed to deep-root the four wakeboarding fundametals:
Board control: learning to feel how it reacts to movement and responds to the shift of weight
Handle technique: learning the correct positioning for passes and rotations
Cable confidence: learning to build up tension and utilise the slack
Switch stance: learning to ride both ways. Yes, you DO need to
Whatever your level, it's important to stay humble because as soon as you start to think you're 'above' something then it's only a matter of time before you start to stagnate. Everyone progresses at different rates, but no one wants to be consistently overtaken by newer riders just because they didn’t want to go back to basics.
Nag over. Now, for those drills...
EDGE, EDGE, EDGE!*
*Even if you think you don’t need to. ESPECIALLY if you think you don’t need to. Every level of rider should always be looking to up their edging. Even the pros. Because at championships, board control will be the difference between first and second.
The Skill:
Smooth weight shift, heelside and toeside, one/two handed with equal ease, strong switch.
The Tips:
Bent knees
Avoid back foot slide (you are not snowboarding)
“Hip up, tight butt” when toeside
The Drill:
Lap 1: One-handed fast carving
Lap 2: Heelside edge experimentation (short, long, hard and aggressive, smooth ‘S’ing, straight legs, bent legs…feel the difference, adjust your response, discover what works. And - more importantly - what doesn’t)
Lap 3: Toeside edging around features
Laps 4 - 6: All that again. SWITCH
SWITCH CORNERS
The Skill:
Correct balance, absolute cable consciousness
The Tips:
Go wide before the corner, then between the buoys after it
Get low, arms in (no leaning back) to prepare
Stay low to avoid a front edge faceplant (the t-shirt’s sick, the whiplash? Less so…)
The Drill:
Laps 1 - until you’ve got it 😉
OLLIE OLLIE OLLIE!
The Skill:
Pronounced pop, clear 180s, 360s, ‘Tik Toks’ (back-to-back 180s)
The Tips:
Chest and head up (look with your eyes, nothing else)
Lock in a strong front arm
Rotate from your hips
The Drill:
Lap 1: Heelside Frontside 180 x 2
Lap 2: Heelside Backside 180 x 2
Lap 3: Straight riding Backside 180 x 2
Lap 4: Straight riding Frontside 180 x 2
Lap 5: Toeside Frontside 180 x 2
Lap 6: Toeside Backside 180 x 2
Laps 7 - you've done ALL Ollie 180 variations. How many laps does it take you? Great!
Now halve it...
Encore: All the above, then the 360s. Keep going until you can do them one after the other. To perfection 👌
SWITCH FEATURES
The Skill:
Overcoming the fear (it’s SO MUCH LESS scary than your head tells you - honestly!), using the front hand only
The Tips:
Start with the basics and work your way up
Weight on top of the board (at all times. ALL TIMES)
The Drill:
Session 1: Switch Toeside features x 10
Session 2: Switch Toeside features x 15
Session 3: Switch Toeside features x as many as you can fit in
POWERSLIDES
The Skill:
Solid front, back and switch, skimming on top of the board with minimal resistance
The Tips:
Get it on the water, THEN take it to the rails (not the other way round. Trust us on this)
Keep your toes/heels up without shifting your weight
Your handle and hips will help hold the position
The Drill:
Lap 1: Full straight Frontside
Lap 2: Full straight Backside
Lap 3: Switch full straight Frontside
Lap 4: Switch full straight Backside
Laps 5 - 9: AGAIN AGAIN!
SURFACE 360s
The Skill:
Smooth, effortless, a little bit sexy (just us?!)
The Tips:
Keep the board flat
Hips and handle. TOGETHER.Don’t rush, and keep your knees bent
The Drill
Session 1: Backside 360s x 10, Frontside 360s x 10
Session 2: Backside 360s x 10, Frontside 360s x 10
Session 3: Backside 360s x 10, Frontside 360s x however many you can fit in…(as you’re probably starting to realise, sometimes we are our own best competition)
7: NOSE/TAIL PRESSES ON RAILS
The Skill:
Zero ‘zeaching’ (if you know you know. And if you don’t, we’ve got a blog in the wings and a tee in the shop…)
The Tips:
Weight on one foot and pull the other up!
Flex the board
Keep the board PARALLEL (perpendicular* at 90º)
*Definitely never saw ourselves having a legitimate need for that word beyond GCSE maths…
The Drill:
Session 1: Flat bar nose press x 15, flat box nose press x 15, tail press x 15
Session 2: Repeat
Session 3: Aim to get off the water SO UTTERLY BOARD OF PRESSES YOU WANT TO PUNCH SOMEONE. Just don’t actually punch anyone.
So there's your seven.
It might seem like a lot, but take it in stages (and ideally, in order). If you stick with it, you’ll see a significant shift in your riding. Believe us when we tell you that putting in the groundwork pays off. Practice makes perfect, and all that 😉
Use your time on the water wisely, people…
Comentarios