Wakeboard magazine shut down
 

Hope everyone lands on their feet and moves on to something better.

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/busin...117-story.html

Not surprised since wake is slowly dying off

^^ or more the fact that print is dead

Yeah I wouldn’t say wake is dying... I think the next few years the economy is going to be a bit better and you will see people making time and spending money to get their rocks off.

As per the article, it is more about print than wake.

"The layoffs for New York-based Bonnier come as the company shutters five magazines: WaterSki, Wakeboarding, Sport Diver, Baggers and Dirt Rider."

yep
 

Last time I visited wakeboardingmag.com there was a constant barrage of popups, adds, auto-play videos... never went back.
Still have a subscription and enjoyed new mags so this is a bummer.
*We need WakeJournal back!!

Call me old school if you like but I’ve been in the game since 98. I will miss wakeboarding magazine. I remember being so fired up when it showed up that I would often breeze thru the whole thing in the driveway. Then go thru it front to back later. I know print is during just like brick and mortar stores. Doesn’t mean it won’t be missed by many.

Doesn't Bonnier own learnwake.com as well? Attention to that site has also been terrible the last couple years. It's really too bad as that was a great resource while it was going.

wake is far from dying off, here is an interactive map of all the cableparks in the world. check out europe

https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/vi...4900000003&z=1

<iframe src="https://www.google.com/maps/d/embed?mid=1_2-3msEu83LIxfEm9TSn_V9c0zo" width="640" height="480"></iframe>

https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/vi...4900000003&z=1

I feel like most people feel like wakeboarding equates to boat. I totally feel that is dying off. Access and boat prices are killing it. That is what that magazine is centered around. However because of that your seeing cable grow. There is little to no excitement in wakeboarding. I love being on my boat and behind it but the truth is the truth!!!!!

I could not agree more. I hate the website. That said I have held the same subscription to that Mag since the 3rd Issue that they handed me in like 1992-93 Bud Tour Stop in MN. It was so long ago as I recall they had a Skiboarding Slalom contest at that event. Sad to see any wakeboarding related company die. Alliance has been dominating the web game for a while, ever since Wakeboard Mag redesigned the website.

Sucks its going away but when the last magazine I got was centered around wakesurfing I was ready to give it up.

[QUOTE=gnarslayer;1973652]wake is far from dying off, here is an interactive map of all the cableparks in the world. check out europe

Are you kidding with growing via cable parks? Were the cable parks boomers for water skiing? Yes or no? - and you got answer man. It's just a carousel but not a core of wakeboarding.

Good times, great friends and tons of memories! Wakeboarding Mag has been very good to me over the last two decades. But lets face it. Print media is dead. Although I do enjoy the occasional newspaper...

My Danny Harf cover 2008 #RIPWBM

Here is the thing with Cable. First off many people don’t have access. Second, most wives and families of various ages don’t really enjoy family time at a cable park like hard core riders do. Third, well, you go around and aroundnkn a circle. It’s great for working on tricks but it’s also kind of boring for people who aren’t as “into” wakeboarding and tricks.

While there will always be a few exceptions, cable parks are always going to be more popular and designed around hardcore riders in their teens-20’s. As a 41 year old I still love being on the boat and riding glass but hitting obstacles at a cable just isn’t that much fun for me. While you can wakeboard at a cable, the freedom and feeling of “boating” can not be replicated there. A 6am set on glass watching the sunrise with your close friends or family on a boat is my idea of heaven lol.

Ran an AD in the first Mag.

Cable may be growing, but behind the boat wake boarding is obviously going down. You can see that in how boats are marketed these days to surfers. I think owning and being out on a boat requires a pretty large commitment in time and dollars, even on a used cheap boat. And the reality is that people are IN GENERAL when it comes to making that size of commitment looking for something family friendly. Wakeboarding is not near as family friendly as surfing, or tubing or something like that. The wife or kids catch an edge on a wakeboard, and many guys for that matter, and they are done.

To be a wakeboarder you have to have a bit of extreme sport blood in you. And most human beings just don't. To be a wakeboarder you have to know to get better your are gonna get hurt. And most people are simply not up for that.

I took my wife wakeboarding one time and she get up easy, being light, but then fell down a couple times, and was pretty much done. I said when you learned to play golf did you fall down? She said no. I said, this ain't golf....Point is most people simply don't want to learn anything that requires much falling down.

P.S. I would love to have a cable park nearby me. I would be one of the first to sell my boat. It is very inefficient - although fun to hang out with the guys - you take 4 guys out. You are on the water 3 or 4 hours, and maybe being pulled 30 minutes. Then you gotta fight for good water. Lot of hassle.

So..... this is a bummer, I am just getting me and my family into wake boarding over the last two years, I subscribed to the magazine in the late summer and have been waiting for my first magazine to come this spring. Actually ordered it with my daughter's name so that she could get her own copy.
Cable/Boat, I love the whole thing about being on the boat, if there was a park near me I would go occasionally by myself or with my oldest, but that is not family time on the boat wakeboarding etc. and last I checked you can't throw the cable park on the trailer and take it where ever in the US you want.... New boat manufactures for sure market to surfers as it is the current market, I don't think wake is dead... young guys/gals who can will drift towards wakeboarding more than surfing eventually since surfing is so slow.... (IMO)

Print is dead...No surprise there. But dang, you guys sound like a mix bitter beer bellies only fit to surf and sissies. For years I have shrugged off the sports move from counter culture, to Xgames, to mainstream, to family friendly. Where I grew up riding 20+ years ago we used to remove (some people even burned) the no wake buoys. Just this past year the local wakeboard group was celebrating the installation of a new no wake buoy right in the middle of the prime riding zone because it was in front of the new party beach.

The leading edge of wakeboarding should belong to the youth. You (or I) may not understand the latest trend, but you should respect it. The 30 something dad-bod with the $100K boat is not the future of wakeboarding. Sit down, shut up and listen to what guys like JB are saying. They carry the torch--Not you and not me. The sense of entitlement in WW wears me out.

Just a reminder to everyone complaining about $100,000+ boats....
3k plus $20 in gas for the day

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/wcRhSU_SBhg" frameborder="0" allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen></iframe>

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wcRhSU_SBhg

I think boat riding is growing honestly. Seems like even the mainstream top cable riders are ripping a little boat now. The two of blended for the better.

Cmon every-time something comes up about 90% of new boats being 90k plus someone posts this type of thing. Hell I have seen people do inverts behind a crapy ass jet ski. Im ok that its a rich mans sport now. I like rich people good for them. Im not one of them. Again thats ok. But please dont act like a sport where a new wakeboard set up is 600 to 800 and new low end boat is 75k is making the sport grow bigger. If it were me I would do the same product 100 boats make more money than producing 1000 for less. Of course those are made up numbers. Good for the inboard market.

The part I disagree with "the 30 something dad-bod with the $100K boat is not the future of wakeboarding".

I'm the person you describe in that statement and yet I've been involved in organized wakeboarding for over 10 years. I've helped organize, or have organized local wakeboard contests; trained/coached riders, officials, and coaches; acted as a mentor and sent riders to professional camps and coaches.

I'm one of the 30 year olds with the boat who is sharing their passion with their children and their friends, spending every weekend at the lake, coaching, cheering, encouraging risk, reward, and success and maybe just maybe some of the young people I've shared my passion with will be part of the future.

If we don't share in our passion and provide the opportunity there isn't much of a torch to pass.

I think there is some truth to that... I also see it as in my situation... I couldn't afford to get a boat and dive into this sport until I was in my 30's, I did not grow up on the lake like some did, now I get my kids, family, friends, all involved .... not to say my demographic is the driving force, but I surely think us Dads contribute to sharing this water sport with others.

This is also something that I doubt. Or not understand. Why did everybody in the 80's and 90's enjoy a dose of good ol' adrenaline, and now only a sip of beer on a surfboard? Everybody was doing BMX, snowboard was huge, wakeboard grew faster than any other watersport. Now everybody's in a gym or if on the water then on a surfboard. Or behind a Playstation or on their cellphone...
The wuzzification of society I guess :(

Gonna miss WBM!

When you play with fire you're eventually going to get burned.

The 30 something dad-bod is the guy pumping money into the industry and without this guy, there would be no industry. The hard core guys getting free gear and discounted boats are promoting the industry, but the old family guys, weekend warriors, or "Wallies" as we used to call them are supporting the industry financially. Always have. The guy that is pulling his kids on the tube in the middle of the lake wrecking your water spent 100K+ on a boat and gear is making it possible for us to be here unfortunately.

Don't confuse sport and industry. Some of the best wakeboarding came before it was an industry. My point is let the athletes lead the sport and let the money follow. Not the other way around.

Truth.

I have had my photos dozens of times in WBM and made SOOO many friends through the magazine. I am seriously bummed. I agree with most here- I waited every month for that magazine and went through it dozens of times. I was in awe the first time I walked into their offices and met all of my favorite writers, photographers, and athletes. None of that would have been possible without that Mag. I would have never got to meet Parks, Darin, Shaun, Hussey, King, etc... without that magazine. Today it would be very difficult to meet your favorite riders. Also back than, the tricks were almost doable by the advanced ridder. Today's "outlaw" rider is not doing all the crazy tricks that pros can throw now. I almost wonder if that is why their is a little disconnect. This bums me out for sure.

Wakeboard magazine shut down
 

Wakeboarding magazine is where I would go to get all the latest on the sport before I found this forum. I have been out of the scene for some years(having kids and life happens), but getting a new boat I feel like I am 24 again. Where do you guys see getting the latest on the sport and everything that goes with it?

Alliance Magazine is still great. I think the sport is what you make of it though.

John (JohnnyK) Now you go directly to the brands and riders through social media. I follow pretty much all the boat brands on Instagram, a hand full of riders, and others like Hyperlite, Phase 5, Soulcraft etc.

Print is dead. All the benefits of the internet are great but I definitely still like having tangible content from time to time. I hope pro's continue to make full length films. whenever one comes out I am willing to pay a few bucks to see some good wakeboarding. Sure, people upload new content all the time on instagram but something about it being edited and packaged in a particular way is way better.

Sucks for those who'll lose a job. While ads were really starting to overrun the site, they were one of the OG mainstream magazines and I remember getting my first issue in 2004. Hopefully this gives way to more grassroots content, either in print or media. Wakeboarding needs a reset like Justin said- let the athletes lead the sport.

Sorry to hear this.

did they at least go o or keep an online Mag or blog of some sort? have an archive online of old issues in an Eformat?

Bill & WW,
From what I understand WBM continues with their website and specialty issues throughout the season. So, while their 8 WBM prints may be done the team is still intact and will continue the site and the PWT. Lots of good people there. I may not know everything, rarely do, but that's the latest I've heard.
-Cheers GN

Print is dying in some markets and this may be one but don't kid yourselves, wakeboarding is dying too. The reasons are many and most are spoken of often, boats cost too much, aging boarders just want to surf etc but often overlooked is the evolution of the equipment and specifically the bindings. Snow skiing would be long dead if they had not invented quick release bindings. The dramatic increase in injuries, especially knee injuries after wakeboard bindings became tall boots with not provision for release is a big factor. The same thing happened with waterskis for a brief period when they went to hard boots that didn't release. There were so many injuries they we discontinued.

I'm old but I know many young people who've given up on wakeboarding after being hurt multiple times. And its a shame because its a far better sport than wake surfing which isn't really a sport, just a pastime. Technology that makes the sport safer would be a big step in bringing it back to life.

I wish there was a technology that would save knees while riding. Over the past few years I've seen riders come up with very cool releasable binding innovations, the problem is if there is a failure to release then the manufacturer is liable and up **** creek. I wish it weren't so as we'd love to develop a system that protected riders from gnarly crashes. I don't feel Wakeboarding is dying by any means, not to say we haven't seen a dip in participation - we have - but it's still the best sport for hot days on smooth water I know of! -Cheers

What's up G? Looks who's back hanging on WW. Good to see you here.

As an old guy that has gotten pretty beat up over the years, I still hate wake-surfing. I think I would rather just chill on a boat in the sun, then wake surf. I have wake surfed a bit and can do all the basic tricks, but I like to be upside down. I'll take my handful of inverts and have given up the rest and certainly given up doing things like raleys, but I love to fly.

It's really depressing to hear that releasable bindings could and should be made but aren't because companies don't want to get sued. I always wondered why they haven't been developed but assumed that the bindings currently on the market were better.

A little against the grain... but I don't think releasable bindings would help. When I take a big stack, I get ejected. If it's not big, I stay in. I have well fitted bindings and never had a knee injury. (about to turn 40) Not sure if you guys were around when bindings were essentially rubber straps (think sub rosa etc), but if one foot came out and the other stayed in it was knee op city, so releasable bindings would want to be amazing. With that said, Pretty much every sport has knee injuries, I've seen more football (soccer) players blow out knees than I've seen wakeboarders. You know what will cause injury more than bindings? Jumping onto a giant wake when you don't have the experience or ability to handle it. Too many new riders think they need a G wake when they really need to spend time behind a ski boat learning the basics (and if possible, good coaching). My 2c

I Can't speak for anyone else but I know that both Greg Nelson and myself were around before Sub Rosa, Bad Ass, Wileys and any other off shoot of a better water ski binding made for a wakeboard. Off topic real quick, I burnt through my share of copies of the wake video I had that Greg was sliding docks and bonking bouys on the old K2 Woody. what video was that? Wake the Beast friends section? Now I have to pull my box of VHS tapes out of the attic! LOL!
Anyways, I agree with both parties on this subject. My first ever serious injury wakeboarding (it might of still been called skiboarding at the time LOL) I was riding my original HO Hyperlite Pro with the purple bungee footstraps with a makeshift bicycle tube support Darin Shapiro taught me about. I did a toeside raley and came up a little short catching the nose of the board. My front foot came out of the bungee strap while my backfoot stayed locked in. The board rotated and shattered my ankle in 3 spots, I was off the water for about 10 months after that one. My next major injury happened while I was filming for a section in Justin Stephens first wake film called Cactus Juice that came out sometime in 2000. I had a pair of prototype bindings I was riding. (All white wraps with red tongue and heel pieces) I did a whirlybird ( don't laugh, it was a popular trick back then and you had to have it) and came down on another boats roller. My front foot rolled upside down in the binding and broke in 2 spots, I remember my buddies on the boat had to take the binding apart to get my foot out. The bad part about this one was that The first Phoenix Pro/Am was taking place at the same time and I had qualified from the open Mens division to ride in the Pro division the next day. Instead I hung out the dock with everyone playing around on my crutches. My last really major injury was at the end of the same year. I blew my knee at worlds in Orlando. This time I didn't crash, I didn't have a foot come out and I didn't have any weird thing go on with my bindings. I landed off a nose grab roll to revert and I landed a little funny and my board snapped back forward. I had a sharp shooting pain in my knee but thought I could ride it out. I cut back into the wake for a TS trick and my knee completely collapsed when I hit the wake. So long story short, I've had both injuries coming out of my bindings and staying in. It really just depends on the fall you take, how strong your body is, and overall how it gets tweaked. I would love if both feet would eject on a ts or hs edge catch. That would help with the concussion and neck injuries. But they both need to come out and we all know that is probably the least likely thing to happen.

Greg & Brett,,,Been Wakeboarding since DAY 1 NEVER Ever Hurt myself or any Moose Board owner EVER hurt them self ,I invented the BEST Binding you can Ride Soft Arch Bar with 3 in straps ,,,See are boards are NOT as wide as everyone else...People LOVE my bindings ,Even Laird Hamilton came to me and Bought a pair ,,,YES he Bought a pair ,I don't give anyone Equipment,Not even Laird ... Wakeboarding is Far from Dead,and Now that Im almost Better ,I'll be back SOON,with the DOPEST Equipment Ever,,,My binding Are tight But you will come out in a Bad crash,,,It scared me at first when I started riding them ,But NEVER a problem,and Now that Wakesurfing is what everyone wants ,,,HELL we've been WakeSurfing since DAY 1,,,That was my BRO Kurt From CORE Wakeboards,He Loved them ,,,RIP Kurt miss ya SOOOO Much...

Moose your a good guy but those bindings are the equivalent of windows 95!

Mark,I can make anything I like ,I don't put out anything if it don't work ...Butter Rap are the Most comfortable bindings around ,Its the way I glue all the rubbers together,the way the 3''strap comes around from the back over your foot,and when you fall you come out of Both bindings at the same time ,,,I should of put up a better picture ,,,Look at Kurt's Face BIG Smile and he was only riding the board like, 1 min.at the time of the shot,,,Everyone who tried them LOVE them

This thread has officially come full circle.

Mr.MooseMan, thank you for your continued innovation

I couldn't agree more.... I just can't afford another blown knee or disc although I know it will happen. Especially riding some of the newer stacked wakes these days.

On the flip side if you like to get boosted you are not going to sack your boat? I rode a G21 sacked out for the first time last summer and was immediately like..... "I have to get a new boat" :D