Lookin for a new board

Hey guys,

im pretty new to wakeboarding although i have done other board sports all my life, kneeboard, snowboard, skate. i picked it up easy.. currently i have a 2009 obrien ace...(its okay) and my bro ordered a 2009 hyperlite b side.

I just ordered 2010 Ronix frank boots but im looking for a board. i always use it behind a boat, and where we ride there are no rails. Im looking for something with good pop but soft landings. I like the Hyperlite Murray, and Marek. ive heard the murray is less abrupt in its pop and alil more forgiving on its landings. I was also looking at the LF shane, and watson. there is so much marketing crap to decipher through.

So what do you guys think would best suit me? i know alot is based on personal preference. again my 2 main things im looking for are big pop and soft/er landing. im open to many ideas. also would going up in size or down in size with a same style board provide more or less pop and more or less soft landings.

Thanks for the help!

slingshots are nice if ur into flex and i love my 2011 recoil just a lil slow but i have a 2009 ibex il sell for m$150 huge pop soft landings

i thought flex was really valuable in rails? i snowboard, and am aware of how the flex is that particular applications work, but water has give unlike snow. so what benefits do you get from flex? more snap or pop off the wake? can you load a board if it has flex for higher ollies?

Brand means nothing to me, im a bigger supporter of evo.com and their outlet stores i tend to buy the higher end outlet stuff as it still moves slow and they often have an extra 30%+ off sale often. they dont sell slingshots. im sure i can find them on ebay or other online retailers.

why dont you want the ibex? and didnt the 2009 or 2010 have bad cores? or was that the "One" series

i think it was the viva in 09 and i like the more pop a flex gives than a traditional board and my ibex is a 144 lol isnt too big but i was afraid to grind it so i got a board with a grind base but i may trade it for a faster flex board

are the flexible boards more likely to break? i see slingshot changed to a woodcore, id imagine this would act like a snowboard core, lots of flex no breaking (within reason). more so then a glassed foam core which would break easier? anyone have any experience with this? or am i worried over nothing....looking at the recoil

its no worry really man wood lasts longer but foam is better while it lasts but every board hass warranty but if ur just starting id use a traditional board first

i learn quick... started kneeboard last year and im already doing backflips, clearing the wake, and doing 360s, and switch tricks. my thought it why buy 2 boards one beginner one than a pro one. just get the pro and learn :P if it dumps me hard who cares. lol go big or go home. anywho.

How do you like that recoil? hows the pop/landing compared to the ibex?

the recoil is slower and feels alive on the water and slides a lil when landing but the ibex will buck u off the wake and will land smoother.. ALOT its all wat kind of rider u are

Hi Rob,

I'm one of those guys that's been riding LF for over 10 years. I'm a big supporter of their product based on years of great service and products. That being said I would recommend that you demo a few boards if you can. Everything is going to ride a little different, pop, release, edging, speed, tansitions, landings. The best way to find out is to try a couple. Beg borrow or steal from your friends if they have some different equipment you can try and there's no shops nearby to demo from.

thanks for the help guys... and i wouldnt have made this post if it wasnt for the following reasons.

I live in western mass, there isnt a board shop within 50 miles, maybe even 100. and im 23, and the only one with a boat out of my friends...so im the friend with the boat and wakeboards/kneeboards/tubes. lol there are very few people in this area Conneticut river above the turners falls damn. i believe last season i only saw 1 other boat wakeboarding, and they were using an older board.

This is why i ask you guys. through research i believe im gonna end up going with a hybrid rocker as i like the qualities of the continous and the 3 stage. the next thing im trying to weed out is bad boards like the liquid force FLY series. and them im just trying to find things that have an all around decent response from the wakeworld community.

You guys are more or less the people im gonna have to trust on this so yeah, everyone has a different riding style and opinion and swear by this brand or that brand. but really i just take everyone ones opinion put them together and give myself a couple different boards then choose personally.

Rob,

Not exactly sure where in western Mass you are, but I know that there is a nice, but small, watersports shop in the Candlewood East Marina. It is on the Eastern side of Candlewood Lake in western CT, just north of Danbury. I was there at the end of last season, they didn't seem to have much left, but I am not sure what's there now.

Rob, I'm in the same situation you are. I have several friends that have given me some insight over the years about boards. The Watson is by far the most popular among them. Great pop and soft landings. Classic or Regular, although the regular Watson is supposed to land even softer. I have an O'Brien Decade coming, which is also a soft landing board. It also has rounded edges in the center to prevent catching an edge during lip slides and such.

As far as flex boards go, they allow more control. However, if you land tail heavy, for instance, they can spring out and may trip you up. With traditional stiff boards, you can dig in and ride away.

No direct experience here, just what friends tell me.

Originally Posted by tuneman

As far as flex boards go, they allow more control. However, if you land tail heavy, for instance, they can spring out and may trip you up. With traditional stiff boards, you can dig in and ride away.

No direct experience here, just what friends tell me.

hmmm, i would say i have an opposite feeling about "flex-boards" (in my case slingshot boards) and landings. I feel that flexboards allow for controlled landings too. they provide a nice soft landing, especially when tail heavy. the flex helps ease the landing like a spring, bringing the board down more gradually in a sense. Even if you land a bit NOSE heavy on flex-boards you can ride away easier than a stiffer board: the tip will bend, adding more rocker in the front saving you from a nasty nose-edge-catch. i've experienced it and seen it time and time again, especially when teaching beginner friends.
I can do all sorts of surface moves easier with my slingshot... though the featureless bottom also helps here. I just have so much fun riding my slingshot, it is the number one reason (next to soft landings) that i ride it. made in USA too

BUT, on the other hand, the liquid force Trip is one of the most beloved shapes of all time, But it is one of my least favorite boards to ride,... go figure.

Two classic examples of how two or more people can have ultimate different experiences on the same board(s)

still lookin at boards. looking at bindings too... the ronix one, cell, and relik. i hear good things. just cant decide on weather or not i want a super stiff boot or flexy. i ride both for snowboarding and honestly the stiffer one provides much more control and i can tweak and do grabs the same, so im leading toward the cell or one. reliks still arent out of the question, as style wise they are slightly lighter and i think look the best. lookin at the 2010 models...but the cell gold stripe will match my 09 b side.