One of the most exciting products to hit the water ski industry within the past few years is wake skis. Wake skis were born on snow and in the terrain parks at many of your favorite ski resorts. They're short, twin-tipped skis with a fat profiles to give you the same feeling of jumping, cutting and turning on water instead of snow. Wake skis were developed by Stereo Skis in Norway and have just recently been introduced in the United States. They're popular with all ages and offer those who are interested in new dimensions in water skiing an opportunity to experience the thrills of "catching air" and have more fun. They are so new that many stores that carry water skiing equipment may not yet stock them, so if you can't find wake skis at your local sports retailer, keep looking.
What to Look for
Wake skis basically come in one length: 145 cm or approximately 56 inches. Borrowing much of their technology from traditional water skis and twin-tipped snow skis, wake skis are shorter and fatter than other types of water skis. Unlike other types of trick water skis with flat bottoms and no fins, wake skis come with tip to tip channels and quad fins to aid in stability. Because wake skis are so short, their designers have come up with several unique design aspects that allow the skis to remain stable on the water at high speeds without sacrificing maneuverability. First, wake skis use "3-stage rockers." Rockers are the amount of curvature on the bottom of the skis or how much the tips and tails turn up. Second, a channel is carved into the bottom on the skis to allow the skis to track straight when not performing turns or jumps. They also come with a center "flat spot" and greater widths that aid in stability when landing and launching off of wakes. And finally, wake skis are made with more sidecut than other types of trick skis. Sidecut allows you to make radical, sharper turns at higher speeds.
Common Pitfalls
Wake skis have only been on the market during the past several years, so you may have trouble finding them. Three good resources for buying wakes skis are Stereoskis.com, Radarskis.com and Hosports.com. They're also not for everyone. Because wake skis tend to be less stable underfoot than traditional combination water skis, they're often difficult to use--and even more difficult to learn on. Also, if you have trouble with your knees, wake skis may not be your best choice. They use bindings that are less forgiving than other types of water ski bindings and don't release when you fall.
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