| Life jackets, or live vests, must be used with most all | | | | board. The wake surfer starts by holding it against |
| water sports to be participating safely. This is true | | | | their feet as the boat pulls them out of the water, |
| for everything from wakeboarding to wake surfing. | | | | no bindings needed! The rope that is used is only |
| There is always the potential danger of hitting your | | | | about 10 ft long so the surfer ends up right behind |
| head and becoming unconscious. The personal | | | | the boat in the meat of the big wave. |
| flotation device (pfd) you have on could mean life or | | | | Once the surfer is up and riding, they enter the side |
| death in certain situations. One of the great things | | | | of the wake and start surfing, just like they were in |
| about most wakeboarding vests is they are made to | | | | the ocean. Once you really get a hang of this sport, |
| contour the body more and in turn are much more | | | | you can actually throw the rope back into the boat, |
| comfortable and less bulky than most traditional life | | | | but continue surfing because of the forces of the |
| vests. | | | | wave! Many wake surfers like to have a the lightest |
| Many people who enjoy the sport of wake surfing | | | | possible wakeboarding vest when riding a wave. This |
| love using a lightweight wakeboard vest instead of a | | | | is due simply to the fact that it is a super chill sport |
| typical bulky life vest. For those that don't know, | | | | and the less weight and bulkiness, the better. It |
| wake surfing is done by driving the boat very slow | | | | would be extremely difficult to knock yourself out |
| (around 10mph) in order to put off a very large | | | | while surfing, so flotation is not a huge concern. |
| wake. Typically the weight will be distributed towards | | | | Now that you know a little bit more about surfing, |
| one side in order to create an even bigger wave on | | | | and the wakeboarding vests of choice you have the |
| the side of the boat that the rider will be surfing. A | | | | information needed to get going and start surfing |
| wake surfboard looks a lot like a miniature ocean surf | | | | safely! |