Wakeboard History | When did Wakeboarding Start?
Wakeboarding is a popular water sport that involves riding a board across the surface of a body of water while being towed by a boat. It is a relatively new sport, having only gained widespread popularity in the 1980s.
The origins of wakeboarding can be traced back to the 1920s and the sport of water skiing. In the early days of water skiing, riders would use a single long ski to glide across the water behind a boat. However, in the late 1960s, a new style of water skiing emerged that involved using two shorter skis. This style, known as “snurfing,” became popular among young people, who enjoyed the greater maneuverability that the shorter skis provided.
In the 1980s, a group of surfers in California began experimenting with combining the two sports of surfing and water skiing. They attached a rope to a surfboard and used a boat to tow the board across the water. This new sport, which they called “skurfing,” quickly gained popularity among young people, and the first skurfing competitions were held in the mid-1980s.
In 1991, a company called Hyperlite introduced the first commercially-available wakeboard. The Hyperlite board was shorter and wider than a traditional surfboard, and featured specialized bindings that allowed riders to easily perform tricks and stunts. This new design quickly caught on, and wakeboarding became a popular sport in its own right.
Today, wakeboarding is enjoyed by people of all ages and abilities, and is a popular activity at beaches and lakes around the world. Professional wakeboarding competitions are held annually, and the sport continues to evolve and grow in popularity.
