VIDEO OF THE DAY: Professional Wakesurfers Show Their Skills On Florida’s Space Coast

By  //  June 27, 2017

water sport catching on fast in brevard county

ABOVE VIDEO: Professional wakesurfers show their skills here on Florida’s Space Coast.

BREVARD COUNTY, FLORIDA – New to wake surfing? You’re not alone. 

Wake surfing is a surface water sport which involves riding a board smaller than a surfboard over the surface of a body of water.

The board is a small, mostly rectangular, thin board with very little displacement.

It was developed from a combination of water skiing, snowboarding, and surfing techniques.

The board is usually towed behind a motorboat, typically at speeds of 18 to 30 m.p.h., depending on the board size, weight, type of tricks, and comfort level of both the wakesurfer and boat driver.

Wakesurfing in Space Coast Coast waters with friends along for the ride, like the dolphin in the background.

Wakeboarding and Wake surfing, which was originally called skurfing, arose in the late 1970s after the advent of skiboarding (now snowboarding).

The professional tour of wakeboarding and wake surfing, also known as The Supra Boats Pro Wakeboard / Wakesurf Tour, is the most dominant, highest credibility professional wakeboard circuit in the world.

The tour is comprised of five national cash prize events, which showcase the worlds top athletes from Europe, Australia, Canada, the US and more.

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There are a couple of key fundamental differences between wakeboarding and wakesurfing to note.

The first being the way a rider stands on the board.

On a wakeboard, riders strap their feet into boots connected to the board, similar to snowboarding. On the flip side, wakesurfers ride as if they are on a surfboard, freely standing.

On a wakeboard, riders strap their feet into boots connected to the board, similar to snowboarding. On the flip side, wakesurfers ride as if they are on a surfboard, freely standing.

Additionally, like skiing, wakeboarders hold onto a rope, connected to the boat all the time. Wakesurfing does not require the rider hold onto a rope all the time.

Like wakeboarding, wake surfers grasp a rope to stand up on the board, but upon gaining body control and balance on the board, the rider releases the rope and begins to surf the boat-made waves.

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