Be Responsible Or Be Banned

Published: Wednesday, August 1, 2018
By: Norm Schultz, Soundings Trade Only

Participation in water sports is seeing explosive growth as more and more people are enjoying wakeboards, kneeboards, and, the latest craze, wakesurfing. That’s not to say that good old water skiing is out. Hardly. Skiing and tubing are still the most widely-enjoyed water sports.

But, wakesurfing is growing fast. So fast, in fact, that top brands like Nautique, Regal, MasterCraft, Malibu, and many more are responding to the demand for new designs that will enhance wakesurfing. In fact, these models are hard to keep in stock this year.

With success can come potential problems, and wakesurfing could easily become one. That’s why, with an eye toward another summer of water sports growth, the Water Sports Industry Association (WSIA) is pushing hard to head off problems by calling on the industry to help educate wakesurfing participants about safe, responsible practices.

Dubbed the “Wake Responsibly” campaign, WSIA is urging wakeboarders to get out in front of potential trouble by making available applicable materials to dealers and clubs and anyone who wakeboards. Ironically, the problem is... well, the wake! It’s a blessing and a curse.

In order to have good wakesurfing, the boat has to make a large wake. The major boat builders have engineered these boats to produce just that: a nice, big wake. But, when the surfing action gets too close to waterfront homes, marinas, seawalls, and other moored boats, the larger wake becomes a real problem. So, there’s growing impatience among property owners and other boaters on many lakes these days, even to the point of calling for wakesurfing bans.

Accordingly, the “Wake Responsibly” campaign stresses three key points that address, at least in part, complaints about water sports, particularly wakesurfing:

Stay at least 150 feet away from docks, structures, and shorelines. Indeed, the further away, the better.
With the super sound systems on today’s sport boats, keeping the music at reasonable levels is a must. After all, we boaters know well that sound really carries over water. So, if it’s loud enough for the surfer to hear, homeowners on shore can likely hear it, too.
Minimize repetitive passes. This is critical and it means that once you’ve run a particular shoreline, move on to another area and let the waters settle where you’ve just been. Continually pounding facilities is asking for trouble.

Here’s one more, not in the WSIA materials, but equally important. Do not wakesurf around small, anchored fishing boats. Hitting them with a big wake will not only be disturbing but could easily endanger occupants. And, that brings up a legal point:

At the bottom of the WSIA materials, there is a reminder to all readers that boaters are legally responsible for their wake. Indeed, one can easily speculate that if claims from property owners for damages start to fly, insurance premiums could rise and/or exclusions for surf boats could show up. That won’t be fun for anyone.

If you or your boating club wants to get handouts and cards, you can download materials - including extra-large, medium-size, and standard 8 1/2” x 11” posters - that you can print out from the WSIA website for free. Contact: [email protected] for more, and ‘Wake Responsibly’ this summer.