In recent years, that new sport has proven to be wakeboarding for many people. What began in the mid 1980s as a neat new toy from surfers has since grown to encompass a worldwide organization (the World Wakeboard Association), complete with competitions and inclusion in the X Games (a wakeboarding competition first appeared in X Games II). The World Skiboard Association (precursor to the World Wakeboard Association) was founded in 1989, the same year that the Hyperlite wakeboard was introduced-a brand that continues to be one of the most popular in the sport. The biggest sign that wakeboarding has become a sport unto itself is the fact that teenaged riders are now lining up sponsorships for their wakeboarding skills-sponsorships that, among other things, provide new boats every year for them to use in their global competitions.

Maybe you’re not at that point. In fact, you’re probably just curious to try your hand at something new and wondering where you can start. Well, getting started is pretty basic as you need just two things: a wakeboard and a boat. Not ready to make those investments? No problem; finding boat and board rentals is easy. Hyperlite and Liquidforce are two brands that carry a full line of wakeboards and gear for when you are ready to buy a wakeboard.

Once you have your equipment, you’re ready to learn how to wakeboard. Of course, first you’ll have to learn how to get up on a wakeboard. Make sure your boat driver understands that a gradual speed increase is needed and that the overall speed should remain fairly slow-around 14-18 miles an hour. You should know that the shorter the rope used, the easier it is to get up. Try for a rope length of between 30 and 50 feet. When you’re in the water, you’ll want to face the boat and have the board perpendicular to the boat. As the boat pulls you up and out, the board will swing towards the boat naturally; just make sure the front of the board (the toe) is slightly above water. Squat with your knees close to your chest and your feet close together on the board; as the boat pulls you up, relax and get ready to have fun.

The first few times you try wakeboarding, getting up and staying up may be all you care about. In time, though, you can begin playing around with jumping wakes. In fact, the main draw of wakeboarding is its wide range of tricks that can be performed (similar to snowboarding). There’s any number of wakeboarding videos available online that will give you tips on how to perform these tricks, not to mention wakeboarding organizations and magazines. If you live in an area hosting a wakeboarding competition, head over and check out how the pros do it. Keep your eyes on their body placement and balance.

Overall, there’s enough going on in this relatively new sport to hold the interest of anyone board with putting greens, fly lines, or all of the hiking trails within driving distance of their home. So if you’re ready for something new, give wakeboarding a try.