Wakeboarding In The UK

Wakeboarding in the UK is one of the fastest growing water sports and you can now find wakeboarding locations right across the nation.  If you’ve been looking for a new water sport activity to get involved with, well, maybe it’s about time you give wakeboarding a try.

We get into more detail below but as a quick intro to the sport wakeboarding is essentially standing on a board and being towed across water.  Once you get go enough you can then start doing jumps and tricks using the wake behind the boat or obstacles such as kicker jumps and sliders that are anchored in the water.

There are two main types of wakeboarding in the UK, either boat towed wakeboarding or cable towed wakeboarding.  As the names suggest the difference is you are either being pulled by a motor boat or you are being pulled by a fixed line cable.  Cable towed wakeboarding in the UK is the fastest growing version as it’s much easier to get started as a beginner and can be located on smaller areas of water, such as docklands within cities, opening up the sport to more people.

So, getting into a bit more details, the easiest way to explain wakeboarding is that it’s like snowboarding and surfing. But instead of using gravity or the power of the ocean, you’re being dragged across the water by a speed boat or by a cable.

In other words, you’ll be fastened to a wakeboard with bindings for your feet and towed by a motorboat, or cable, at speeds reaching almost 30 mph.  It’s been likened to surfing a wave that goes on forever, and the reason so many people fall in love with the sport.  However wakeboarding actually goes much further than this as it can involve huge jumps, sliding on rails and clearing gaps.

In the UK wakeboarding has been growing in popularity with the development of wake parks right across the countries.  These tend to be focused around cable towed wakeboarding rather than using boats(more about these below), however a number do offer both.  At the wake parks you can also often find other activities available such as paddle boarding, open water swimming and aqua park floating obstacle courses.

What is cable wakeboarding vs boat towed wakeboarding?

When you’re looking at wakeboarding in the UK you need to decided whether you want to do it using a cable or with a boat.  Cable wakeboarding tends to be an easier and faster way to learn, and is also very popular with pro’s looking to perfect their skills, but using a boat can provide an exciting challenge.  Here we detail the main points of each.

Cable Wakeboarding

As mentioned cable wakeboarding is simply being pulled across the water on a wakeboard by an overhead cable system with a rope and handle attached. There are 2 main types of systems, either a set of towers that go around a body of water which multiple tow ropes can be attached to or a straight line (system 2.0) cable that goes out and back that is limited to one person at a time.  Whilst both systems are becoming popular it is the system 2.0 cable that is the choice for most wake parks in the UK.  These tend to require less space and are better suited to instructor assisted sessions.

With cable wakeboarding you can start in the water or standing on the land and once the cable pulls enough tension on the rope you get pulled over the water.  And one of the main benefits of the cable over a boat is that if you fall off the cable can be stopped and reversed so that it hangs over you and you can jump back on without wasting time and effort.

Boat-towed Wakeboarding

Boat towed is the original way of wakeboarding and where is gets it’s name.  The person is pulled on a board with a rope and handle behind a motor boat in the water between the wake of the boat.  The wakeboarder can then cut across the boats wake and jump over it using the waves created as a ramp.

Boat towed wakeboarding in the UK, whilst still in use, is becoming less popular as more cable wake parks pop up.  However they do offer the flexibility of location as they don’t need to be fixed in one place.  And if you’re wanting to wakeboard privately then a boat is pretty much your only option unless you can buy or built a lake to set up a cable.

Who is wakeboarding suited for?

Anyone and everyone can do wakeboarding, but it certainly favours people that have experience with surfing, skateboarding, or snowboarding. It also really helps if you’re a fan of being on the water and don’t mind wiping out every now and again.

As for the age range, you can be as young as 8, making it an excellent sport for your whole family.

Where to go wakeboarding in the UK?

If you´re looking for places to go wakeboarding you have plenty of options to choose from throughout the UK.  You might even be surprised that you can wakeboard in London and other cities throughout the nation as well as the more expected rural locations.

For a view of the all the best places for wakeboarding in the UK check out the map above or see some of these examples below.

• Thorpe Lake
• Wakeup Dockland
• Wild Lakes Wales

And again, these are just a few of the best places you can wakeboard in the UK – there are many more locations for wakeboarding near to you.  So, whether you picked up the sport at a fancy beach club on holiday or fancied giving it a try for the first time here, you will have no issues finding somewhere close by.

Wakeboarding in the UK by region

To make it easier we’ve listed some of the popular areas for wakeboarding in the UK by region, country or city.

• Wakeboarding in London
• Wakeboarding in Wales
• Wakeboarding in Scotland

When’s the best time to go wakeboarding?

Ideally, you should stay away from the winter months when the lakes could be bitterly cold or frozen.  In fact many wake parks close from mid October until April so you need to get your riding in between mid spring and mid autumn.

Other than the winter, it doesn’t really matter what time of year you go. Even if it’s raining a little, you’re not going to have too many issues; you’re already getting wet, so there won’t be an issue.

But, of course, people’s favourite time to go wakeboarding in the UK is when the sun is shining, and the weather is sweet. It will provide the best experience so you and your family can enjoy a day at the lake or wake park.

What gear do I need for wakeboarding?

And one of the best things is that you’re not going to need your own boat, wakeboard, or wetsuit to get involved. Most places will hire everything you need to get started, so you won’t have to make any extravagant purchases.  That said the common things that you will use and can buy once you get into the sport are: wakeboard, buoyancy aid (life jacket), and a helmet.

Other than that bring swim wear and a towel and be prepared to get wet, work your body, and have a fantastic time out on the water.

How to get started wakeboarding?

If you’re looking to start wakeboarding in the UK, you shouldn’t have any issues. Most of the wakeboarding centres that we show on the map have qualified wakeboarding instructors available when you need them and most sessions on a cable set up will include instruction.  To get going it’s a simple case of booking and turning up.

As mentioned the wake parks will provide you with all the rental equipment you need which is often included with complete tuition from one of their coaches.

If you want to learn more about any of the fantastic wakeboarding centres in the UK, take a look at our guides which can be found via the interactive wakeboarding map above which list some of the best wakeboarding schools in the UK.