Hello, fellow wakeboarders. In this article I will be explaining the technique and purpose behind wakeboard rope length. Most ropes are 70-75 feet long with 5-10 foot intervals that can be removed, or will have separate loops on them, so you can customize your rope length. Often you can take a 75 foot rope all the way down to 45-50 feet. You are going to want to use different lengths based on your skill level and what you are trying to accomplish. While I am going to give you a rough blueprint on how this works, please note that you will have to play around with your rope length and try different lengths to actually see what works best FOR YOU. Every wakeboarder and every boat is different; It’s all about how YOU feel out there, and finding YOUR sweet spot. So with that in mind, let’s get started:
Beginners
Alright, please excuse my crappy drawing, but I think it illustrates what you’re looking for pretty well. If you are just starting to learn how to wakeboard, put the rope at full length or close to full length. Do you see how the boat’s wake keep getting wider and wider as it flows further from the boat? This is beneficial for beginners. This means you have a lot of room to carve up some water in between wakes. You will be able to work on your turns and cuts better because you have maximum space to practice without having to go outside the boat’s wake. Outside the wake the water will likely be much more choppy, and harder to ride. However, once you start to test your skills outside the the “safety triangle”, you will probably begin to practice jumps on the wake. On your jumps at this rope length, you will have a lot of space to land within the wake. This makes for a safe, low risk jump and landing that can help you build your confidence as you progress towards the intermediate level.
Intermediate
If you are comfortable with your balance, cuts, turns and basic in-wake jumps on your wakeboard, you can probably call yourself an intermediate skilled wakeboarder. At this skill level, you probably are going to want to start trying wake to wake (w2w) jumps. A w2w jump is when your jump starts on one wake and you land all the way on, or past, the other side wake. When trying to do this, its best to bring your rope in to about 55-65 feet. That would put you right in the middle section of this graphic:
These w2w jumps are going to be much easier here because the wake of the boat is much more condensed. Its a total approximation in that picture, but I’m just getting my point across. At full rope length you may have to clear 20 feet or more of water to land a w2w jump. At a middling rope length you can land it only clearing about 10 feet. Another benefit of this length is, for many boats, the wave that the boat puts out is going to be slightly higher in this area. This will give you that much more leverage when trying to get some big air to complete that gnarly w2w jump.
Best Wakeboard Rope Length For Practicing Tricks
It is slightly intimidating to start trying new tricks at full speed and with a long rope length. Something that I’ve done, and had great success with, is actually not even using a wakeboard rope. I’ll switch out to a WAKESURF rope (about 24′), and drop the boat down to about 12mph and practice right in this area.
This speed and this length will give you a decent sized wave that will allow you to hit jumps with enough air to try out that 360, or whatever it is you’re working on. What it also gives you is a sense of comfort and confidence. I know if I don’t land my jump at this speed that I am not going to faceplant at 21mph and give myself a headache for the rest of the day. The slow speed ensures you that any wipeout you take is going to be less painful and much more forgiving on your body.
Experienced
Experienced wakeboarders typically have no problem launching themselves across the wake at almost any distance. They know how to get high and far, how to do it consistently, and have a lot of moves they can make before they land. Most professional wakeboarders actually move BACK out to full length (70-75′) so they can get maximum hang time and distance in the air. This is for all the backflips and aeriels they need to fit in before they hit the water again. This is no doubt what to strive for, and you’ll get there with hard work, but in the meantime practice makes perfect. And the best way to practice is to designate your wakeboard rope length to a distance that you feel the most comfortable at, and a length in which you think you can accomplish whatever it is you are trying to accomplish.
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