This special edition of Wake Merch brings you cool stuff you can buy for that wake enthusiast in your life for Christmas, Hanukkah or just to be nice!
 
Slingshot Nomad (MSRP: $419)
 
Quite possibly the coolest new wake item I’ve received this year is the Slingshot Nomad. Basically what Slingshot is attempting to do is to cater to a segment of the market that has not gotten much attention from wake companies in the past. Slingshot calls it “reenergizing legacy wakeboarders,” but that’s pretty much a nice way to say those who may have shied away from the rigors of wakeboarding because of age or injury and are looking for something a little easier on the body. It’s also a great option for those larger individuals or those that are just learning to wakeboard.
 
Slingshot has dubbed the category “longboarding” and, given that the sizes in which this board is available are 150, 155 and 160, it’s quite appropriately named. I’m 6’4” and, as you can see from the photo, that 160 cm board looks pretty big next to me.
 
I was really excited to try it out, but was a little shocked out how comfortable the board was right away. I normally ride a CWB Vibe, so it’s actually a very similar shape and they both have a completely flat bottom with four low-profile bolt-on fins (the Nomad actually comes with an additional set of larger fins for beginners or those that want a little more grip). It took me a while to actually start feeling the difference. However, I’m betting those that normally ride different shapes will feel a bigger contrast. It didn’t seem that spinning was hampered too much by the extra length and swing weight and the landings felt softer. The whole vibe of riding the board was very much like longboarding. It just felt more chill and relaxing.
 
Not only do I think that Slingshot is on to something here, but I’m wondering if maybe they need to go bigger. I would love to try a 170 or 180 Nomad just to see what it’s like. Is it possible we’ve been riding boards that are too short all these years?

SheShreds Clothing
 
SheShreds is a new company, but they sure don’t act like it. They’ve been putting out so much cool stuff and updating it so often, you’d think they were a multi-million dollar corporation! As the father of two teenage daughters, I was stoked to see a company grab a hold of the women’s boardsports clothing market and give it a shakeup. Just browse their website and you’ll see all kinds of cool clothes, hats and they’ve even got some limited edition bamboo sunglasses, which float. Make sure the women in your life are looking good with some SheShreds gear.

Turbo Siphon (MSRP: $35)
 
For years I’ve been a fan of the shaker siphon hoses that are available for pretty cheap. However, I’ve only seen those available with very thin hoses, so it takes a while to get your siphon job done. Turbo Siphon has sped things up with a larger 1” hose and a nicely manufactured version of what many of us have been doing for a while now, which is using your hands to seal create a seal between the gas can and the siphon hose and then blowing into the can to get the siphon going.
 
Turbo Siphon provides a rubber piece around the tubing that can easily be pushed into the mouth of the gas can to create a tight seal. Then blowing air into the can is a cinch with the built in straw. This gets things flowing very easily and the wide tubing empties your gas can in no time. They claim it will empty your 5-gallon can in 90 seconds. I didn’t time it, but that sounds about right. I haven’t used my old shaker siphon since I got the Turbo Siphon, so it’s highly recommended.

O’Brien Water Carpet (MSRP: $500)
 
If you’re looking for something for the whole family, this is it. I don’t know what kind of foam this thing is made of, but the O’Brien Water Carpet is almost like a portable dock. It holds lots of people (up to six, and dogs seem to enjoy it as well), it’s easy to climb onto, it’s great to jump off of and makes for a great platform on which to relax. I bet you can even do a dock start off of it.
 
It’s 18’ x 6’, but still rolls up and can be easily stored because it’s so light. Watching kids play on this thing is great because they invent game after game and figure out how to use the Water Carpet in ways that O’Brien probably never dreamed of. However, it holds adults as well and was incredibly stable even with my 210 pounds walking around on it. We even took it to the beach and introduced it to the waves. Sure we probably pissed off some surfers, but we sure had a good time!

Underwater Audio Waterproof iPod Shuffle Bundle ($140)
 
This one is a no-brainer for anybody that rides behind a boat or, especially, on the cable. Music always adds to the riding experience and Underwater Audio has found a way to make it super simple. They take an iPod shuffle and somehow make it waterproof. Then they throw in waterproof headphones with several different ways to get them to stay in your ears. They even stay in on some pretty hard bails. However, you never need to worry about losing anything because it all floats as long as you use their iFloatie that comes with this bundle.
 
There’s nothing better than being in your own musical world while wakeboarding, but it also works great for a lot of other sports like snowboarding, stand up paddleboarding and even swimming. Since it uses the iPod Shuffle, the controls are really simple and easy to use and it clips right on your vest for easy access. Plus, it has real buttons (not touch screen), so you can work them when your hands are wet or even if you have gloves on. If you’ve got an active watersports athlete on your shopping list, you can’t go wrong with this bundle.