How to Pull a Wakeboarder (Boat Driving Tips)

Towing a wakeboarder correctly and effectively is a skill; some may even call it an art form. The way you drive will effect the way they ride. Driving properly and optimally will increase the wakeboarder’s chances of having a great run, while driving out of control and sloppily will make it much harder on the rider and also more uncomfortable on your passengers. Here are some simple boat driving tips to follow for when you are towing a wakeboarder:

The Dumbbell Pattern

When driving in a cove where you will need to turn and come back where you came from after you reach the end, you should use the dumbbell pattern method. This technique consists of driving in a straight line down the cove. When you need to turn, veer off to the right, make a wide looping turn, then come back to center and drive on the same line you were on before. This will keep the water much smoother than if you were going in big looping circles. This is because you are sending your boat waves out to the left and the right of your boat’s path, so it only makes sense that the path you were on is going to be the smoothest place in the cove, because all of your waves are going away from it

A tip to driving straight: pick out a landmark on the far shore where you are headed and aim to drive directly at that point the whole way. This should keep you going much straighter than if you were just winging it.

Rider Pick Up

When your wakeboarder goes down, there is a certain safe and effective way to go about picking them up. Many people whip the boat around on a full throttle and race back to the person in the water to try to get to them as quick as possible. The problem with this is that it is going to create more waves in the water, which will interfere with the pick up process once you do get back to the wakeboarder. These waves could cause the boat to drift unexpectedly at the wakeboarder, make it harder for the wakeboarder to maneuver to the rope handle, or just make the passengers in the boat more uncomfortable because the boat will be rocking back and forth.

What you should do when your rider goes down is begin to turn the boat back towards them and completely kill the throttle at the same time, you will make about a 90 degree turn with this action. Let the waves clear for about 4-5 seconds while the boat is stationary, the waves will actually catch up with the boat and start turning the back of your boat the rest of the way around, so that you are now facing the rider. Once the waves clear slowly idle back to the person in the water. Approach them on the driver side of the boat with about 12 feet of water in between you and them. This will give you eyes on the rider and make it so the boat is a safe distance away from them in case the wind, or waves pick up and start drifting the boat towards them. After you are about 10-12 feet past the rider, loop another 180 degree turn, and idle forward. This should deliver the rope right into their bread basket. Now you’re ready for takeoff!

Hand Signals

Establish some hand signals so the wakeboarder can communicate to the passenger and the driver while they are riding or down in the water. You can choose any you want, but these are some of the common ones that I use:

Thumbs up – Go faster
Thumbs down – Go slower
Pat your head – I’m okay (usually after taking a hard fall)
Motion hand across throat – I’m done

Make more as needed, these signals make driving the boat easier because you know what your rider wants and how he or she is doing!