Worth the wake
There's only one way to find out if wakeboarding is the sport for you – jump in the water and try it, finds Catriona Thomson
Do you ever wake up in a blind panic? Well, I have ever since I volunteered myself, my daughter Eve, her chum Ria, plus mum Sharon to undertake a watery and adventurous challenge. We headed to Foxlake, 25 miles east of Edinburgh, near Dunbar, to try wakeboarding, and had been sponsored to raise funds for the Midlothian Swimming Club, to which the girls belong.
Foxlake is a community interest company, which evolved from some friends walking on a piece of farmland and imagining what it could be used for. They dreamed big and created Scotland's first Wakeboard Cable Park. The plans for this place are always advancing; this season sees a second cable-tow being installed to double the riding capacity and the construction of a water assault course, where you are guaranteed to have fun, fall in and get wet.
The Boardside Cafe is now open, providing delicious home baking for hungry boarders. The lake sits in a quiet country setting, sheltered and hidden away in grass and woodland.
A visit provides a great way to get sedentary teenagers outside.
Traditional wakeboarding involves a rider being dragged along behind a speedboat on lochs or the open ocean.
It was developed in the late 1980s, using the wake behind the boat to do tricks or fancy moves, stunts and jumps. But at Foxlake, riders use an innovative, remote-controlled pulley system eliminating the need for an expensive fuel-guzzling boat, and allowing more people the opportunity to try it out relatively cheaply.
As the dreaded day got closer, the more apprehensive Sharon and I became. Unlike our girls, we are not expert swimmers and our fitness regimes are nonexistent. So when the morning of our challenge finally dawned, we were quaking
with nerves and if we could have found an excuse to back out, we would have. However, as everyone had been so generous, we simply had to surrender ourselves to our wet-suited fate.
With a basic lesson in what to do completed on dry land, we took the plunge, one at a time. Your feet are held firmly in place in boots attached to the board. You ease yourself into the water from a pier, before bobbing about, making sure your ankles are under your bum and your arms are outstretched. Callum, the instructor, patiently talked through what to do next. As you gather speed, you need to crouch down before gradually standing upright.
I confess I'm no expert, but it wasn't as hard as I thought it might be. Although I have to reveal that my expectations were pretty low, and I had imagined being dragged face first, through the water, repeatedly, before drowning.
Eve was up next, while I wrestled out of my wetsuit. She zoomed along confidently. I never had any fears for Ria either; both are adventurous gals. Hope, my younger daughter, had come along to support her big sister, and as she was so patient, she got to try it out too.
Having had to endure a torturous, nerve-wracking wait, Sharon, Ria's mum was finally up. She was insistent that she would just manage a couple of runs however, it turned out that she's a natural.
Whilst recovering our composure on the wooden decking area which overlooks the lake, we were treated to an expert display of stunt skills from an experienced rider. The trick names are awesome; Tantrum, Whirlybird, Moby Dick or Toeside Backroll.
Although sadly wakeboarding was unsuccessful in becoming a trial sport for the 2020 Olympic Games, it is still one of the world's fastest growing sports. If our motley crew managed to give it a go, anyone can, so why not book for a try-out session?
For further details see www.foxlake.co.uk
This article first appeared in Scotsman Magazine 22/06/2013
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