The following is a glossary of wakeboarding terms. Many of these are used in the trick tutorials.
Air:
Getting in the air, the amount of space between the rider and the water.
Air Trick:
A trick performed using line tension for lift instead of the wake.
Backside Spin:
Initiating a spin by turning your back to the direction you are traveling. A spin where the rider rotates with the back of their body towards the boat first. For a left-foot forward rider this would be clockwise. A direction of spinning, you jump and your back turns first, right foot forward spin backside counterclockwise. Back first.
Bail:
When a rider chooses to give up on their trick and fall. Often times a rider will bail when they're out of control, get too much air, or they know they won't complete the trick.
Ballast:
Extra weight added to the boat to make the wake bigger. Ballast can be people, fat sacks, lead, or anything else that's heavy. Some boats include Ballast systems which are built in systems that fill with water.
Bindings:
The equipment that is mounted to the top surface of the board, used to hold the board to the rider's feet. Usually a type of boot that is mounted with thumb screws. Originally, sailboard-style (windsurfer-style) foot straps were used and these were replaced by sandals before evolving to the boots of today.
Blind:
A blind landing is where a rider does a backside 180 and lands wrapped, so the rider does not pass the handle so they land with the handle behind their back with their back facing the boat.
When a rider spins backside and lands in rotation that he's completely ''blind'' to the wake or boat. The rider can't see his landing very well.
Board:
Abbreviated version of "wakeboard".
Boarder:
Abbreviated version of "wakeboarder".
Boardslide:
Sliding along a rail with the board perpendicular to it.
Boat Speed:
Refers to the speed the boat is going while pulling a wakeboarder. Most riders ride between 18-24 mph depending on rope length and skill level. Wakeboarders need a boat speed fast enough to help them accelerate so they can land a move way out in the flats but not so fast that it flattens out the wake of the boat.
Bone:
To extend one of your legs while doing a grab.
Butt Check:
When a rider lands out of position and lets his butt touch or slam against the water to remain riding, severely docking style points.
Carve:
To carve is to edge the board in the water to make the board move to one side of the water. It's also called edging.
Catch An Edge:
This is when the edge of your wakeboard catches on the water causing you to fall hard and quickly.
Dock Start:
One way for a rider to start riding, is to to do a Dock Start. The rider can either stand and jump off the dock as the boat goes, or sit on the edge of the dock and slide off.
Double-Up:
When the boat circles around and cross back over it's own wakes at about a 90-degree angle, the wakes converge causing the resulting wake to be twice the size. This is the Double-Up. If the rider times it right, they can edge in and hit the Double-Up, which will give them more air then normal.
A term that describes a type of wake that is created when the boat does a wide turn and crosses over its old wake. The rider cuts on the inside of the turn and when the wakes cross each other, he cuts back and hits the wakes coming together. The wakes crossing together form a ''double up,'' virtually two times the size and kick of a normal wake.
Deep-Water Start:
The normal way to start riding a wakeboard is to sit in deep water and let the boat start going and pull you up on top of the water.
Edge:
The sides of the wakeboard are called edges. You have a Heelside Edge and a Toeside Edge on your board.
Extended Pylon:
A pylon which is usually 6-feet tall or higher, used to attach the rope to so it's higher off the water. A higher rope gives less downward pull on the rider while in the air.
Eye-Opener:
A fall where you faceplant so fast that you can't manage to close your eyes before hitting the water. We don't recommend falling this way.
Faceplant:
A fall where you catch your toeside edge causing you to fall very quickly so your face slaps the water hard.
Fakie:
A term from skateboarding that means riding the board in your normal riding position, but traveling the other direction. This can't really be done in wakeboarding since you can't change your foot position, so fakie is often interchanged with the term "Switchstance" in wakeboarding, which just means that the rider is riding the board with their opposite foot forward.
When you ride the opposite way that's natural for you. Left foot forward riders go right foot forward, right foot forward go left foot forward.
Fat Sack:
A sack that is filled with water and placed in the boat to make the wake bigger.
50/50:
Sliding along a rail with the board parallel to the line of the rail.
Fin:
A fin is the scag on the front and back of the board to help stabilize the board in the water.
A piece mounted on both ends of a wakeboard to help the board track while moving on the water.
Flats:
The flats are the flat water areas outside of the wake. "Landing in the flats" means the rider jumped off of the wake, cleared the other wake, and landed out in the flat water area.
Flip:
The term can be interchanged with "Invert", but in wakeboarding a Flip is usually a term used to define a tip over tail upside down rotation. There are a few exceptions though.
The rider rotates around the horizontal axis, flipping the board end over end.
Frontside Rotation:
A spin where the rider rotates with the front of their body towards the boat first. For a left-foot forward rider, this would be a spin in the counter-clockwise direction.
A direction of spinning, you jump and your front turns first, right foot forward spin frontside clockwise. Chest first.
Initiating a spin by turning the front side of your body to the direction you are traveling (opposite of backside rotation).
Glass:
A term for smooth water.
Goofy Foot:
Wakeboarders who ride with their right foot forward.
Grab:
While in the air, if the rider reaches down to the board and clasps their hand on it, it's a "Grab". There are lots of different types of grabs that can be done alone or added to other tricks.
Handle:
The handle is at the end of the rope, and is usually between 12"-15" wide.
Handle Pass:
When the rope handle is passed from one hand to the other, it's called a Handle Pass. It's usually only used to referred to when the rider passes the handle behind their back.
Heelside Edge:
The Heelside Edge is the side of the board closest to your heels. Most riders are more comfortable edging with this edge when beginning.
When you cut on your heels, chest facing the boat.
Hole:
The hole is the area in between the wake and the flats. It dips down from the wake and back up to the flats. Landing in the hole can hurt and cause the rider to wreck.
Invert:
When the rider goes upside down while in the air, it's called an Invert.
Kicker:
A ramp hit by a wakeboarder or wakeskater to catch air.
A curved ramp that pitches a rider into the air. Similar in shape to a ¼ pipe in skateboarding, but usually doesn’t reach vertical in pitch.
Life Jacket:
A life vest or jacket is used to float the rider in the water.
Lip:
The lip of the wake is the top of the wake.
Lipslide:
A slide on an obstacle or wake where the tail of the board travels over the obstacle first. So if you approach a slider with your chest facing it and ollie up and put the tail of the board over the obstacle, you're doing a Frontside Lipslide.
Loading the Line:
This is a term used for building line tension in the rope when edging progressively. You want to "load the line" to build tension in the rope so it releases when you leave the wake to give you maximum pop.
Getting the rope tension to be tighter and tighter as you make you're cut into the wake. This happens when you do a progressive cut.
Lube:
A slippery substanced used to help get your feet into bindings. There are some specially made lubes, but some people used shaving cream or soap.
Mobe or Mobius:
An invert that also contains at least a 360 degree spin in it.
Nose:
The front tip of the board, the closest end to the boat.
Ollie:
When the rider pops the board into the air by pushing down on their back foot and jumping up leading with their front foot. Just like a skateboarding ollie.
Pop:
This is when you release from the wake, you generate pop. Pop is also similar to the term "Air".
Progressive Edge:
The proper technique to be used when edging. A progressive edge is when the rider build their edge as they approach the wake so that their hardest edge is right when they hit the wake.
Pylon:
A metal pole used for attaching the rope to the boat.
Rail:
A long rail made of metal, PVC, or wood used as an object to slide by a wakeboarder or wakeskater.
A horizontal bar that a rider slides upon.
Raley-Based Tricks:
Tricks built off of the Raley, which means they are all tricks with your body extended back with the board above your head, yet aren't inverted flips.
Rampy Wake:
A wake that has a very gradual slope to it. This type of wake is better for tricks where the rider edges all the way through the wake.
Regular Foot:
A rider who rides with their left foot forward on their wakeboard.
Revert:
Used to describe landing Switch or Fakie. A Roll To Revert is a Back Roll with a 180 causing the rider to land backwards, or Revert.
Rewind:
A spin where the rider does a shifty one way, then back the other, then spins back in the direction of their initial shifty.
Rider:
Another name for the person riding the wakeboard.
Rocker:
The amount of curvature in a wakeboard. If a wakeboard has 2 inches of Rocker, then the tip and tail are 2 inches higher than the middle of the board. There are two types of rocker, continuous and three-stage. Continuous rocker is a smooth curve, while a board with three-stages of rocker, with a flat spot in the middle of the board.
Roll:
An invert where the board travels in an edge over edge rotation. However, some tricks that follow that rotation aren't called Rolls, and a Back Roll has a tip over tail rotation, so it's very confusing.
Roller:
The wake from a boat turns into a wave that "rolls" through the water. So wakes from other boats are called rollers. Material is typically non-stretch and may include kevlar or spectra.
Rope:
The rope connects the handle to the boat. Common wakeboarding rope lengths are between 55'-80'.
Sketchy:
A landing that isn't very clean. Meaning the rider almost fell when they landed for one reason or another.
Slider:
A long rail made of metal, PVC, or wood used as an object to slide by a wakeboarder or wakeskater.
Slime:
Also called binding slime or lube, this is something used to get your feet into the bindings. There are special products such as Newt Juice or Loogy Lube, or things like shaving cream and soap are also used.
Soar:
To fly through the air on a board.
Spin:
A spin is when the rider and board rotate around on a vertical axis.
Stack:
Another term for a bad wreck.
Standing Tall:
When the rider is about to pop off the wake they want to stand tall, which means extending at the hips and knees so they don't absorb the energy created by the impact of the wake.
Steep Wake:
A steep wake is a wake that is very abrupt and steep in shape. It's closer to being a wall, and is better for tricks where the rider wants to stop and pop, or go up more instead of going out.
Style:
The method in which a rider conducts themselves on the water. Not so much judged by the actual moves they are doing, but the manner in which they do them. This is unique to most every rider in the world and a rider will achieve a high level of respect if he’s "got style."
The look a rider has while riding. A unique style is a unique look to their ride. Things usually considered stylish are well-held grabs, smooth landings, tweaking out tricks, etc.
Surface Trick:
A trick performed with the board on the water the whole time.
Swing Weight:
Referring to a board's swing weight is how heavy it feels while rotating or swinging through the air. Boards that are heavy near the ends have a heavier swing weight.
Switchstance:
Riding the board backwards from your normal riding stance.
Another term for fakie, used in place of fakie in the names of some tricks, at least that's what I thought, until Bill McCaffray confused the nation with his article in the May 98 issue of WBM.
The position a rider is in when his opposite foot is forward. For example, a dominant left-foot-forward rider would be riding switch if he was approaching the wake right-foot-forward.
Tail:
The back end of the board, farthest from the boat when riding.
Thumb Screws:
These are screws used to screw the bindings onto the board.
Tip:
The front end of the board, closest to the boat when riding.
Toeside:
The side of the board closest to the rider's toes.
When cutting in or out of the wake with the toe side of the board on edge, and you're back is facing the boat.
Tower:
A "cage-like" aluminum attachment to a boat used for tying the rope to, placing boardracks, speakers, etc.
Tracking:
A board's "tracking" is how it rides through the water. A board with strong tracking holds a strong edge or holds steady well. A board with loose tracking is loose in the water.
Triple-Up:
Just like a Double-Up, except the boat makes an additional kink which it drives back through to make a roller even bigger than a Double-up.
Triple-Up Whip:
When the driver drives a triple-up, and instead of hitting it where the wakes converge the rider whips into the triple-up roller and lets go of the rope so he whips into a trick.
Tweak:
When a rider moves the board or legs while making a grab. Tweaking out a Method Grab means the rider would grab the board, then possibly bone out one leg.
Vest:
A life jacket, used to float the rider in the water.
Wake:
The wave created behind the boat which is used by a wakeboarder to jump of off or slide.
The liquid ramp generated by the boat as it displaces water.
Wakeboarder:
The person riding the wakeboard.
Wakeboarding:
Riding a wakeboard behind the boat. It's best described to others as being like snowboarding behind a boat, or a combination between snowboarding and surfing behind a boat.
Washy Wake:
A wake that isn't very clean. This means that it's sort of bumpy and there may be a white turbulent water on the top of the wake.
Whitewash:
This is the turbulent water created by the wake in the center of the two wakes. Whitewash can also show up on the wake itself, which would make the wake a little harder to hit because it would be less clean.
Wrapped:
When the rider has the rope wrapped around their back when riding they are are going to perform a wrapped trick. It allows a rider to spin without doing a handle pass, so it allows for unique grabs.
The rider initiates a spin (or a mobe) with the rope ''wrapped'' around his body to eliminate the need for a handle pass. Sometimes criticized for making the move easier, but allowing the rider to grab the board for a longer duration, making up for it in the style category.
Wreck:
When the rider falls and can no longer hold on to the rope.