Imagine a trip to the beach or lake without some type of water sports involved! There are countless types of equipment designed for pulling behind boats to create fun for the entire family. Skiing still ranks as the top competition sport, but water ski tubes are wonderful for children and adults of all ages.
So, what is going on out there that is new and exciting? Read on.
Skurfing
A noncompetitive sport that is thought to have originated in New Zealand lends itself to the towable venue but requires more skill than the water tubes and floats. The combination of water skiing and surfing produce what is known as skurfing, which is akin to the American sport of wakeboarding.
Allan Byrne and Kevin Jarrett are believed to have been the first to use a modified surfboard pulled behind a motor craft in the early 1980′s. Byrne lent the Skurf board to Jeff Darby who began to produce it with some friends. Later, their design was produced under royalty by Tony Finn, from San Diego, a surfer who was erroneously given credit for the invention. Bruce McKee and Mitchell Ross manufactured the first plastic molded skurfboard named the McSki, which changed to the SSS ski board, and finally settled on the name Wake-snake in Australia. The board featured adjustable foot-straps, a concave tunnel underneath, and a fin at the rear.
In 1984, the same two men, having negotiated with a company in the United States, launched the American version called Surf-ski. Tony Finn was at the show for the release of the Surf-ski and went on to negotiate with Darby for the rights to produce it under the Skurfer name.
Skurfing is still more popular in Australia than the United States, but it is catching on fast. Although it is a non-competition sport, the freestyle pastime has many highly individualized forms. There are primarily two different types of skurfing, because of the board. Noseriding is skurfing on a long surfboard;the freestyle includes turns,
cutbacks, even spins. Boards have various designs, some with dual fins, and some with none at all, which require more balance.
What about the times when you are loafing along the shore and you’re not being pulled around behind the boat? What kind of activities can you associate with water sports besides swimming and diving? Check out another import to the states.
Waboba
In the late 1990′s, Jan von Heland of Sweden was experimenting with a Frisbee, throwing it upside on the water trying to get it to bounce. This led him to brainstorm about an object that would do just that. He began to experiment with different materials and compositions.
Heland eventually came up with a ball that would bounce off the water. He patented it the Waboba, which stands for “water bouncing ball.” It took him several years to perfect the ball, and then it took off on the Australian and Swedish beaches. Recently it has entered Europe and the United States.
The ball spawned the game by the same name, which is played in shallow water to allow the players to toss the ball down and out to get it to bounce. Waboba is a team sport in which points are awarded by bouncing the ball to teammates.
Each team has at least two players. The person with the ball attempts to bounce the ball to a teammate while the other team attempts to intercept. The ball must bounce at least once between teammates for the catch to be legal. When a team has successfully passed to every member without interruption, they receive a point.
Of course, the other team attempts to do the same thing if they can intercept the ball. Players must also pass the ball within five seconds of receiving it or forfeit. The defensive team can tackle opposing players as long as they do not tackle the one with the ball. Holding another player is not allowed.
The special ball is about the same density as water and floats when not in use. The ball is not made for use on land and hard surfaces, but it will take rough handling in the water. There are a few versions of the ball, some larger and some lighter.
There’s an official Waboba site, with videos, blog and comments from different boating and sporting groups. So check out something new this summer!
What kind of water sports do you do that other people might not know about? When the weather’s getting hot, it’s time to cool yourself in the most natural and fun way you can.
There is simply no excuse not to have fun at the beach with the wide variety of recreational products for the water available today. Whether it’s a game, a sport, or riding on a towable tube, there is fun to be had. Suit up, and cool off.
About The Author
Jane Warren is a water sports enthusiast who swims, scuba dives, goes boating & sailing, and rides and pulls towable water tubes. She spends 6 months of the year at the beach in Grand Cayman, or other natural water locations. During that time, Jane has plenty of opportunity to enjoy the water, and always has plenty of friends and family who visit, and want to be out on the boat, riding around or being more active!
Out of this love of water sports, Jane publishes the website TowableTubesDirect.com where she provides information and reviews on water sports equipment including towable tubes, skis, wakeboards, kayaks, and water trampolines. Some of the brands she has reviewed include Sportsstuff, Aquaglide water tubes, and Rave Sports, and Airhead. One of the most popular boat ski tubes this season is the Multipsport inflatable, a great versatile tube for towing, windsurfing, and kayaking.
