WHERE TO GO
The first piece of good news is that you don't have to cross the pond to Florida or California, the second is that you don’t even need to live on the coast to get involved in water skiing. There are water skiing opportunities in all parts of the United Kingdom and Ireland, both by the sea and further inland. Locations include beaches, sheltered estuaries and inlets, and natural or artificial lakes.Take a look at our water skiing in the UK directory to find a water skiing operator near you!
BOAT OR CABLE?
The classic image of water skiing involves the skier being towed by a boat, known as a towboat. But that’s not the only way. There are also water skiing parks which use cable-tow systems connected to wires that are suspended above the water. In general (in the UK) towboats are found on open water at the coast, while cables are installed on artificial lakes. Which should you choose?
For your first time, we recommend a towboat with a boom. That’s a pole that sticks out horizontally and perpendicularly from the side of the boat which you can hold onto. The stability of the boom and the proximity to your instructor, who’ll be in the boat, make this the best way to learn how to stand up for the first time.
Cable water skiing can be a fantastic way to build up hours of practice, as it’s a cheaper option that’s less dependent on good weather. It might take you some time to master rounding the corner at each end of the course without falling, but once you’ve found your feet you can start to attempt jumps from ramps in the water. One thing you’ll miss though is the wake of the boat, which rules out certain kinds of jumps and tricks.
EQUIPMENT FOR BEGINNERS AND BEYOND
Children
As well as starting out on the boom, children often use a special pair of water skis that has the two skis tied together at the tip and the toe. They’re very useful because maintaining two skis in the correct position takes a level of strength in the legs that youngsters might not have developed yet. Outriggers, something like stabilisers on a bike, can be used as well.
Double
The original configuration is two skis, one on each foot, like snow skis only shorter and wider. They’ll usually have tips that curve upwards and, unless you're trying to do tricks, small fins at the back. This style is sometimes referred to as combo-skiing.
Single
An increasingly popular discipline is slalom skiing, in which the skier has two feet on one ski. There are superficial similarities between this kind of water skiing and wakeboarding, but also important differences. The main ones are that the ski is much narrower than a board, and the feet are placed in line (one in front of the other), rather than side to side.
RELATED SPORTS
Kneeboarding
This is exactly what it sounds like - kneeling on a board which is towed by a boat or cable. This sport is considered less extreme than either water skiing or wakeboarding because it’s easier to learn and the prospect of falling is less off-putting. It’s also an option for people with limited mobility or strength in their legs.
Wakeboarding
Simply put, wakeboarding is to water skiing as snowboarding is to skiing. A wakeboard has a greater surface area than single or double waterskis and the rider stance is perpendicular to the direction of travel. The great thing is that many of the skills are transferable, so if you already know how to wakeboard, you should pick up water skiing pretty quickly, and vice-versa.
GREAT BRITISH WATER SKIING
To prove that the UK has a proud tradition of water skiing, here’s a Pathé newsreel of a water skiing show put on by an American show skiing troupe way back in 1967. It was filmed on a lake in Theale, near Reading in Berkshire. Enjoy!
