April 11, 2008

Helium Still Cooling Up Life Jackets Like It's Their Job (Because It Is)

Not long ago we posted about Helium's ability to cool up life jackets like nobody's business. Well, some time has passed and we're sticking to our guns on that one. Why? Well to be quite honest there are about 15 different items we're presently coveting from 2008 Helium Product Catalog and new Web site, but it is "The Daisy" that is stealing our heart this year. Last year it was "The Tuxedo", but we've changed. We've moved on. We're going with something more casual - and we're shopping for a Women's jacket this year because my wife will soon be retuning to the sport after taking this past summer off to recoup after giving birth to our baby girl.

Whoever concepted and designed that jacket deserves a raise. There are real business reasons why making aesthetically pleasing personal flotation devices is a good thing - not the least of which is that it can serve to motivate your customers to actually wear one. Survivalist wakeboarders who like, and wear, life jackets can live to buy more of them.

Helium Wake's new Web site is now available.

We're serious about that Daisy vest. Buy it now for your wife, girlfriend or favorite female and see her look incrementally cooler while wakeboarding upon its arrival (you're welcome).

Posted by erik at 07:01 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

February 19, 2008

Don't Throw That Away! Our Top 10 Wakeboarding-Related T-Shirts (Now with More Stories!)

From my vantage point, people are endlessly talking about their board collection, their boat, their tow rig - but something so often overlooked is their collection of unmistakably awesome t-shirts.

When wakeboarding first got respectable enough to be screenprinted onto a shirt, we had only a few options. Most of the cool ones were cool by accident or became cool over time by way of entry into the vintage catgegory. Not the $60 "vintage" clothing found at Abercrombie or any of those other techno club mall stores that sell shirts that are meant to be worn with the collar popped or have women's sweatpants with things like "butt" written in an arc on the... butt. I'm talking vintage, like the shirt that was given to us when we bought our 1986 Ski Nautique 2001, in 1986 (don't skip ahead!). Soon after, Barts, Ski Limited and Overtons all had their entries into this foray with such gems as "Go Big or Go Home" or the remarkably idiotic "Big Johnson" themed shirts that featured wakeboarding, beer drinking, and being an ass.

So, over the 16 years that we've been wakeboarding, we've managed to avoid the cheese, compete in tournaments and seek out t-shirt gems that represent the sport better than a "rad frog" doing a fashion air behind a cell shaded cartoony version of a Glastron outboard. For fear of damaging them, we wear most of these threads as rarely as possible so that they'll last. And to my wife who will surely outlive me - I would like to be buried in my Denny's Marina Ski Nautique 2001 shirt. And now, on with this highly anticipated and riveting countdown!

10. PlanetNautique's Longsleeved T-Shirt
Though I pulled the CafePress store down completely from The2001.com due to product quality issues (everything was crap and I was so overcome with guilt for the few sales I made on my CafePress store that the few hundred dollars I made from the whole ordeal felt hollow), PlanetNautique seems to be on a different quality tier than I was. The items I have ordered from the PlanetNautique CafePress shop have been excellent. Though this is not a vintage shirt nor is it rare - it is classic and I like the design. This shirt gets worn a lot, as it is comfortable, displays the Correct Craft Super Air Nautique likeness, and refrains from being in any way obnoxious.

9. MasterCraft CSX Promotional T-Shirt
Handed to me by Zane Schwenk himself, this shirt (along with a few stickers, a promotional DVD and a MasterCraft backpack) remain some of my favorite items simply because they came from Zane. The shirt is a very comfortable, sweat-wicking material and I received it the day the CSX was unveiled. So the combined historical value, product quality, and celebrity impact combine to put this at #9 in the list.

8. PlanetNautique's Boats of PlanetNautique T-Shirt
Yes another PlanetNautique entry. Well - Jeff and Luke from PlanetNautique.com are smart marketers and did the right thing. They pulled at their registered user base's heart strings and put some of the more vocal members' boats on the collage seen on this t-shirt. My old 1986 Ski Nautique 2001 is on there. So to make a long story short, I own this design as the t-shit shown in the photo, a mouse pad that goes with me on every business trip, and a I also own a giant sign that says "I am a sucker for stuff with a picture of my boat on it".

7. Tantasqua Regional Water-Ski Tournament T-Shirt
This shirt makes the list because it brings back a funny memory. You see, I never actually had a chance to compete in this contest. At the time I was the manager of a wakeboard and water-ski pro-shop. I convinced my boss to let me pack more than half of my inventory into the back of one of the marina's F250's, drove to the tournament and even enlisted a friend to run the shop while I competed. I submitted my attack sheet/trick list and was disqualified from the tournament immediately due to the fact that my run contained three inverts (backroll, roll to revert, halfcab roll). Much like snowboarders weren't allowed on mountains for a period of time after the sport went more mainstream, this particular tournament didn't allow anyone to do flips on their wakeboard so they sent me, and my proshop, packing. I sold a kneeboard that day, if it is any consolation (to my boss, it was not). For my trouble I got this t-shirt. It really should be an oil rag but it has a story so I keep it around and wear it from time because it is actually quite comfy and the story is kind of fun to tell.

6. Rainbow Fins T-Shirt
This poorly fitting shirt made of 300 grit sandpaper redeems itself by being the first shirt I remember seeing that contained the likeness of a real wakeboarder-style pose, without embarrassing me (see rad wakeboarding "Barts Bullfrog" or "Go Big or Go Home" crap that is still available in the Overton's catalog and on eBay even now). The vector graphic of a wakeboarder in the midsts of an OHH or tantrum, being pulled by what looks a hell of a lot like a Sport Nautique with an extended pylon was enough to get me to order this directly from Rainbow the moment I saw it. Once it arrived and I realized it was meant to fit a 370lb semi-professional Pringles eater and not a 165lb competitive wakeboarder I was pretty disappointed. I still, occasionally swim wear this shirt and when my wife was pregnant it made for a very cute maternity/sleep shirt for her. She claims to love the shirt. As of today I declare it as now belonging to her. Enjoy, B!

5. 1998 INT Amateur Tour T-Shirt
Another one with memories and baggage. Imagine inviting your family and girlfriend to a tournament, and absolutely failing in every aspect in front of them, and a crowd of onlookers. While I didn't take last in this contest, I did have my ass handed to me by the likes of Mike Mclin, and Ben Greenwood. Yes, the Ben Greenwood and the Mike Mclin. It was almost immediately following this abysmal showing when I witnessed an early Malibu Wakesetter have almost its entire transom torn off while pulling Ben Greenwood through a shallow part of the lake. The boat sat idle as the damage was assessed, and Mr Greenwood stood, with his bindings on, still holding the rope, in about 10 inches of water. It was not until 2005 that I changed my mind about Malibu after that. I disliked the wake on that direct drive Wakesetter and seeing a wedge virtually total the boat due to an errant run in with a log was a horrible, horrible advertisement. Now my second favorite boat available happens to be a Malibu so things sure do change!

4. 1997 Hyperlite Tour T-Shirt
Now we're getting to the nitty gritty - the final countdown if you will. Jason Weber and Eric Davis from Hyperlite were on hand to deliver a clinic and then judge a Pro/AM tournament that by some miracle I won. At that tournament and expo, I was introduced to the magic that is the original X-Star/direct drive Prostar 205. After this tournament, my name and the name of my #1 riding buddy who took second, both appeared in Wakeboarding Magazine. Thus this t-shirt breaks the top 5 and nears the top 3!

3. Wake Tech Byerly
Throughout my college years I ran the wakeboard and waterski pro shop at a large marina in Massachusetts. Between fielding phone calls from ...ehhh, frugal... owners of 1972 Evinrude 25HP outboards seeking the best deal on a $.75 (cents, not a typo) float pin for their carburetor, which involved about 20 min worth of work and a microfiche projector (wish I was kidding), I was thinking of ways to bring people into the shop, keeping them there, and selling enough stuff to convince my boss Russ to up my budget and let me order more goods for the the shop. At that time Wake Tech was still around and both Erik Lutgert and Scott Byerly were heavily promoting the Flight 69, and we were a dealer. In our second year of carrying Wake Tech, Scott Byerly was awarded a pro-model, and I was awarded the privilege of ordering 3 of them along with 2 t-shirts with his name across the back. Which I promptly applied my employee discount toward. Is the shirt comfortable? God no. Is it awesome? I think the photo speaks for itself. As a side note, I wore my Byerly shirt to a clinic with Scott Byerly and have never felt like a bigger dork in my life. That aside, this is my third favorite wakeboarding related shirt, and has been worn in the presence (embarrassingly, albeit) of The Byerly himself.

2. 80's Era Ski Nautique Promotional
When I was 9 years old, and my little brother of just 7, we were faced with a difficult decision. My Dad was in Orlando, FL for business and we had a day to do one of two things: visit the old Correct Craft factory on Orange Boulevard or go visit Mickey Mouse & Pals at Disney World. Being Warner Brothers' fans, the choice was easy. Easy for me anyway, but with a little bit of negotiating (atomic wedgies, punches, swirlys, random threats) my brother decided that the Correct Craft factory tour was the correct option. During that tour, we received lots of keepers from the good people at the factory, most of which I would love to have retained - among them a fiberglass cutout from a bilge hole that had just been drilled out on a 1985 Ski Nautique, which blew my mind. The one relic that remains, and the shirt at the number 2 slot is this amazingly kept shirt that actually still fits, not that I would ever wear it in the vicinity of such things as cranberry juice, dust, or air.

1. Denny's Marine Ski Nautique 2001
Having decided that it was time to sell the 1973 Correct Craft Mustang, my Dad visited the Correct Craft dealership local to my hometown, Denny's Marine. He fell in love with a 1985 red & blue Ski Nautique 2001, but it wasn't quite right for him, aesthetically. We then visited the late Bob Warner of New England Correct Craft, now owned and operated by his son and friend of The Wakeboard Report Craig Warner, and picked out the boat of my Dad's dreams - a red, ivory and maroon 1986. The boat was still sold through Denny's Marine, but marked the second boat we had purchased from the Warners, and in 2011 when I buy my 2008 230, it will mark the third. Craig, I hope you're reading and making sure to sell an all white 230 this year so that I can pick it up on the used market in a few years. Thank goodness the folks at Denny's Marine were not heavy designers, as this shirt could have been flashy, it could have undergone design revisions that introduced such 80's design themes as tie-dye, but for the most part Correct Craft has always been about timeless, lasting design and this shirt shares these characteristics with the boat that served my family for nearly 20 years with not a single major problem. The only problem with this shirt? I barely wear it.

Slow news day. OK? Perhaps. But we're making the best of this with this article which has been in draft mode for some time. So being in the doldrums between the Boat Show season and the early signs of the 2008 wakeboarding season, we hope you enjoyed this featurette as we showed, and ranked, and explained the shirts & other items of clothing that we basically consider to be priceless and even more importantly - ours and reasonably unique!

Posted by erik at 06:35 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

April 03, 2007

Extended Pylon Maker to Tower Industry: "Oh Yeah? Take This!"

It is always a sunny day in The Wakeboard Report offices when the Bart's, Overton's or Northern Tool & Equipment catalog arrives. Canvas enclosure canopies, **gasp** slalom skis (The Wakeboard Report crew plans on seriously stepping up its slalom game this summer), fenders and various boat trailer accessories are all on my mental wish list and the Overton's catalog is always fun to flip through.

So today as we were flipping through the Overton's Spring Master catalog, we noticed the Pro X Series Tower Extension from Fly High - something we didn't even know existed. Apologies all around for our late arrival to this particular party. I have to admit I did laugh out loud when I saw the photo. But only for a moment. After a quick search on my favorite online wakeboard shop, I learned that Boardstop sells this product too.

Step 4 in our Beginners Guide to Getting Equipped for Wakeboarding asserts that getting a tower or extended pylon is a crucial and pivotal step for equipping yourself for this sport. The improvement that The Wakeboard Report crew saw when we first equipped our boat with an extended pylon was remarkable. So before we laugh at this tower extension product, think back at what those original extended pylons did for your riding. If you are lucky or young enough to have not known pre-tower and pre-extended pylon riding - then this concept may not hit home for you quite as strongly.

It is plausible that this 5 foot extension could be a very beneficial training aid for learning tricks that require a lot of hang time, such as raleys, glide variants and rotational tricks. So, is it a funny looking contraption? Yes. Does it have potential? Certainly. Would I be willing to try one? Most definitely.

Boardstop sells the Pro X Series Tower Extension, and that's where we recommend you buy yours. Report back here with your results in the comments section.

Posted by erik at 05:24 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack

November 29, 2006

The Beginners Guide to Getting Equipped for Wakeboarding

As our sport grows, is televised, shown on cereal commercials and has managed to find a place among other respected action sports, many are interested in the requirements for getting started. The sport is still somewhat of a fringe one, but we're certainly making strides and people want in! Many people are interested in what is really required to get the most out of a wakeboarding experience. The answer is not to run out and spend $60,000 on a 2006 MasterCraft X2, and a $600 honeycomb stick although some companies may disagree with that assertion.

The items I will mention in this post apply to the most modest of situations. Not to say that a nicely equipped Super Air Nautique Team Edition or Malibu Wakesetter 247 wouldn't make your wakeboarding experience more enjoyable, but the items below apply to runabouts, IO's and even early tournament inboards; and more importantly the riders that enjoy them. Essentially these recommendations apply to just about everyone equipping themselves and their boat as wakeboarding phenoms.

So on with it.

An Equipment Build-up Plan for Beginners, in Order of Importance:
1. Get a non stretch, wakeboarding specific line (rope). Don't jury-rig your rope or use a slalom line, ever. The only exception is if you are riding somewhere far from civilization as a guest. The poor connection you'll feel to the boat, increased fatigue, and loss of control over your body while you're in the air are almost unavoidable with a standard polypropylene sectioned slalom line. Head over to Boardstop and get into a nice non-stretch line.

2. Get bindings that fit, tightly and perfectly. In our opinion it is more important than rushing into a high end board. Keep your bindings out of the sun and do not let them get shoddy & ripped - and still expect to start landing inverts in them. Bindings provide the connection to the board and are probably the most important piece of equipment in your arsenal. There is a significant risk of injury if one binding releases and the other stays in place. Remember that you have every right to guard your bindings, even if it means buying your own set that only you use and you don't let Biff & Brutus slide their size 17's into them. In my opinion it is 100% ok to be snobby and selfish about bindings. I say that as someone who has broken his leg because of poorly fitting ones.

3. Be a wise consumer when it comes time to buy a board. Look, most of the big name wakeboard manufacturers' boards made within the last 6 years or so years will do fine for most people. The shape that was released as the 'Hyperlite Fluid' from about 1998-on (otherwise characterized by the then-new Murray with the Sunburst graphic or the VW Bug graphic, depending if you opted for foam core or honeycomb) was a giant leap forward in design and is so successful that Shawn Murray himself still competes on a variant of it to this day. Also the Liquid Force Squirt/Trip lineages represent an evolutionary watershed moment, after which not a whole hell of a lot has REALLY blown me away, and one that many other manufacturers have rightly copied. Not that I don't get a new board every few years, but the Hyperlite Fluid and Trip/Squirt family lines were revolutionary, not evolutionary leaps in board design and elements of each became the norm from that point on. There have been some gimmicky attempts to push design, but I think it was at that point when boards sort of hit a plateau. Anecdotally, I learned more on my Squirt and Super Squirt Necrassen than anything else - ever.

4. Now without getting into an unwinnable brand or method argument, get a tower or extended pylon. It helps to get that rope up high, but it is not more important than the your connection to the board vis-a-vis the bindings, or the connection to the boat. That's why it is fourth on the list. Putting the pulling/attach point above the riders' shoulders allows them to learn proper body position and edging. Towers and extended pylons are not trends - they will be on our wake boats from now on - period. And though I prefer huge wakes, I have personally witnessed Scott Byerly effortlessly nailing switch mobes behind a Flightcraft Outboard with a laughable wake. All he cared about was getting that extended pylon fastened, and he took it from there. With specific regard to order of importance, it is more important to get the rope attach point up high, than to slam the boat with ballast. Get used to the high attach point and use it to the best of your ability - THEN slam the boat.

5. Now you can look into ballast and wake enhancement devices. Most boats respond well to a 40/40/20 weight ratio from stern to bow. This translates to careful weight placement in the rear, but do not forget about weight placement in the center of the boat. This is particularly applicable to boats that were designed as tournament slalom boats (and unfortunately most of our boats do fall into that category).

Get those things added as your budget permits, in that order, you will be incrementally happier with each item acquired and equipped. Get a good connection to the boat, get a good connection to your board, and your chances of success begin to grow. Complete the list and we'll see you competing in Pro-Am events in no time.

Posted by erik at 03:36 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

October 19, 2006

Dear Helium: Will Wear Your Vests for 1 "Prom Night"

Not to draw your attention away from the very important text on page 60 (see October 21 post, please), did you see the Helium vest that Colin Wright was sporting on page 61?

Normally The Wakeboard Report crew rides with JetPilot neovests (some USCG, some not so much) but I would be willing to swtich brands for a vest crafted in the likeness of a sleeveless tuxedo. I have to tip my hat to the manufacturers of wakeboarding vests who have actually managed to 'cool up' life jackets. And I have to raise my glass extra high to Helium for taking at step even cooler. I had imagined that life jacket design review meetings were extra boring, with phrases like "Johnson are we going with 3 stripes this year or 4?", or "I think we should go with black again, Anne." I guess these meetings are not as boring at Helium, in light of their new offerings of cardigan, paisley, checkerboard and TUXEDO!

We don't use this blog as a begging platform (except for some boats), but if Helium wanted to ship me one of these, I promise to lose 10 lbs and make it look at least marginally sexier than this.

Posted by erik at 06:46 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

May 30, 2006

I Could See Myself with One of These

From the forums at Wakeboarder.com, comes this nifty little custom mirror. For some reason, innovations for basic items on wake boats are few and far between. So when something like this comes up, that makes a lot of sense but was built by a small custom shop, I like to highlight them and hope that the big tow boat companies are paying attention. Tower mounted, articulating mirror arms are very cool in their own right - but then again it is the same convex safety mirror we've had on our boats for about 15 years now, just with a different attach point. They work just fine, but the 'technology' of a small windshield or aluminum arm mounted mirror is getting a little bit dated. And the sort of innovation found in this mirror design is considerably more important in states that allow water skiiers and wakeboarders to go without a spotter.

The only "problem" if you could even call it that, is the mirror looks pretty long, as it was meant, and built for, a single frame windshield and wouldn't be compatible with the folding windshields used on most wake boats. That is ok. It would be perfect for an older Ski Nautique 2001 or any of the current crop of closed bow tournament ski boats. And this may seem surprising, but the members of wakeboardreport.com who are also avid water skiers, barefooters and take passes in the slalom course once in awhile too, pay attention to water skiing products with interest. Something like this would be very appropriate for tournament-level slalom boats, who tow skiers that at the apex of their turn, tend to be outside the view of even the steepest convex mirrors.

More photos:
Carbon back
Next to an Integrity wakeskate to show size
Alternate front view

Posted by erik at 01:35 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

February 12, 2006

A Sensible Aftermarket Product for your Wake Boat

There are a few aftermarket products that have been a Godsend. Actually, in my mind, exactly 2 so far that have fit perfectly into the sensible category. Aftermarket towers add space inside the boat, let you put boards and other large items up and out of your way, and add an "I'm not screwing around" look to just about any boat. Not to mention they provide a stiffer and more even pull for the rider. And aftermarket ballast systems (automatic or manual pump) let us weight our boat without stupid concrete barrels and other nonsensical items. But the aftermarket remains flooded with other items that we don't really need.

Primal Marine Produx now makes seat covers for your Super Air Nautique, Wakesetter, and X-Star. Plus other models soon I hope. Ok so how come nobody has ever thought of this before? Why didn't I think of it, as a worrisome, overly careful boat owner? And these are not the cheezeball Tweety or Taz seat covers found at Wal-Mart that you'd install in a Geo Metro. These appear to be made of tight-fitting, comfortable material and make all sorts of sense, and they protect the boat from errant wakeboard fins, boot-wearing guests ($%#%#@!) and other potentially harmful items. I hope to see more of this kind of thing in general, and less neon-lights, 4000 watt tower speakers, rope wind-reels and other things that make tiny amounts of sense. If you have bad boat covering habits, or if you've ever had to deal with a cracked piece of upholstery, sun-damaged seats, or a combination of the above, these will make a lot of sense to you. If you need not worry about such things because you have a 2-story covered boathouse, then please disregard. And invite me over.

These are currently made for the following models:
-Super Air Nautique, years 2002-2006
-Malibu Wakesetter VLX, years 2005-2006

They are working on patterns for:
-Correct Craft 211
-Malibu Wakesetter 23 LSV
-Master Craft XSTAR, X2

Unfortunately they are not giving them away, but having recently replaced an ailing drivers seat on a Ski Nautique 2001, I believe that these seat covers are still a good investment. Now make the pattern for the 2001 Super Air Nautique please.

More information found at Primal Marine Produx's Web site.

Posted by erik at 02:32 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack