Grow the sport?

The Rathy thread got me thinking about wakeboarding trying to gain acceptance and move into the IOC fold, the immediate question is why? There seems to be an unspoken agreement that the sport should "grow". Why do we want the sport to be more popular? To be honest I preferred the sport a few years ago when it was less mainstream with boats and equipment which was less developed, less expensive and way less played out. Lakes were quieter and seeing other wakeboarders was a novelty. From now on I will refer to them as "the good old days"

Add your thoughts if you think the topic is valid.

the only way i see the sport to be growing is in the cable or straight line systems.... Boats,Trucks, and Trailers are all luxury items... that being said most of the cables and straight line systems are making the sport bigger and more accessible for people who can't afford a boat/truck and gas to feed theses machines

I asked this same question about 6 months ago. My concern was that wakeboarding might get too impersonal and commercial. One of my favorite things about the sport is being able to talk to and ride with pros like they're "regular people." Most of them are.

That said, wakeboarding has to continue to grow, or it will die. Unfortunately, that's what happens to sports that stagnate. People lose interest, the money dries up, and you're left with a few diehards clinging to the remnants of a once vibrant sport. Growth brings innovation, connections, and new opportunities for us to ride in new places, but all of this comes at a cost. It's a tradeoff. Corporate interests in our sport may be an evil, but they're a necessary evil.