Table of contents for Jul-12 in WAKEBOARDING

History is made at almost every wakeboarding event in one way or another. Someone wins for the first time, an established rider adds to a record number of victories or a Cinderella story emerges and an unknown rises to the top of the ranks out of nowhere. It's rare, though, when someone lands a trick that has never before been accomplished in a contest. When Nautique released the Super Air Nautique G23 just weeks before the 2012 Nautique Wake Games in Orlando and announced the inclusion of an Expression Session for Pro Men, that is exactly the type of history it wanted to make. While Phil Soven and Harley Clifford continued their rivalry in Pro Men, a couple of new faces made their way to the top of the Wake…

If you have a crew you ride with all the time, odds are figuring out who rides first is always a challenge. I sat down with Ben Greenwood and my little bro Reed and came up with a couple unrealistic and ridiculous ways to determine who shreds first. Sure, some of these techniques are less convenient than simply drawing straws, but they're a whole lot more fun. If you don't know how to juggle, you better learn. Otherwise, you're never getting to ride when you want to. Just like riding a wakeboard, juggling requires concentration and coordination, so it just makes sense to have a juggle-off to set the riding order. The last one still juggling gets to choose the riding order. If you want to make this contest really…

It all starts with fundamentally sound toeside wake jumps. From there, start with a solid toeside backside 180, and then move on to the 360 and even a 540. Give yourself a lot of room outside the wake, then take a nice progressive edge into the wake. Dig into the wake a little more and really focus on riding all the way through the top of the wake. Start rotating backside as soon as you're in the air, and let go of the handle with your back hand so you'll have more time to grab melon. Once you come around the 180, focus on pulling around for the landing. Good handle control is key to this trick. Keep your handle level and into your front hip during your approach and…

I try to hit the wake with a medium amount of speed and pop, just like I would on a typical 540 or 720. The biggest difference is I hold the grab instead of passing the handle. When you leave the wake, immediately reach for the melon grab with your front hand and initiate the rotation with your back hand. When you've completed the first 180, toss the handle behind your back while continuing to hold the grab. Spot the handle as you come around for the 360, then grab the handle, let go of the grab and finish the final 180. The two biggest keys to this trick are good pop and throwing the handle in a spot where you can actually grab it again. Make sure you edge…

When a guy like Shaun Murray says something like, “From this boat forward, wakeboarding will never be the same,” you tend to take notice. After all, with his two decades of riding at wakeboarding's highest levels, few if any riders are more qualified than Murray to make such a judgment call. Still, the statement smacks of self-promoting hyperbole. In fact, you're probably thinking something along the lines of, “Of course he's going to say that — he rides for Nautique.” Well, in the case of the Super Air Nautique G23, we say Murray is right on the money. Nautique's new flagship has the best right-out-of-the-box wake we've ever seen — and that's just for starters. With a dry weight of 5,400 pounds and a 2,850-pound factory ballast system, the G23…

Start by edging out about 2 to 3 feet farther than you normally would, then cut into the wake with a more aggressive approach. As you edge in, make sure to keep your elbows in and your upper body strong. When you reach the base of the wake, roll off your heelside edge and adjust your shoulders so they are parallel to the boat. As you pop off the wake, your entire body should point up in a straight line. Bring your knees up into your chest, lock into the grab and let your head go back to follow the rotation. While upside down, spot your landing early then hold onto the grab as long as possible before putting down your landing gear. Remember to square off at the top…

It's easier to get a solid grab on this trick if you take it wake to wake, so approach the wake with a soft and steady edge. Right as you leave the top of the wake, dig in a little harder to get plenty of straight-up-and-down pop. Try to get the grab as soon as you leave the wake and hold it all the way until you spot the landing. Roll your body off the wake, go for the grab, look for the sky, give a good tug on the handle to get it around your head and then come around for the landing. You need to have all your basics down, from regular to switch and all possible 180s and 360s. When you first attempt it, slow your boat…

When Cobe and Tarah Mikacich bought a boat for their Orlando wakeboard camp, they favored qualities like proven wakes and dependable performance over the latest and greatest bells and whistles. After all, in the setting of a wake school, their boat would be much more training tool than social vehicle. That quest for no-nonsense reliability led them to Malibu's 21 vRide, which originally made a name for itself as the Wakesetter VLX. Five hundred hours later, the 21 vRide's track record has proven true, delivering clean, consistent wakes for all levels of riders. Even better, Cobe says, “It's great to never have to make excuses for our boat.” “The wake is really balanced and clean, and it has a nice transition and a really good lip that you can zone…

Before progressing to a method, you should have a poppy heelside wake jump with a solid melon grab under your belt. Start with a snappy, progressive edge. Keep your hips up as you hit the wake and push hard off the top of the wake with your legs so you get plenty of pop. Once you've left the wake, let go of the handle with your front hand and bring the board up for the grab. When you have the grab, bring your front knee in as close as possible while turning the board 90 degrees so it's facing the boat. After you've passed the height of the move, let go of the grab and spot your landing. Let the board drift back underneath you, keep your chest up and…

This is one of my favorite tricks to do, but it's obviously an advanced trick and requires expert handle control. A solid backside 5 and an indy backside 180 are the two prerequisite tricks, and you definitely should work on a few late backside 180s to practice getting your head around for the late rotation. Move first into a strong indy backside 180. The further into the trick you get, the closer your hips need to be to the handle because it will help keep your board underneath you. As you make the first handle pass, spot your landing and initiate the final 360. You'll need to pull your body around a little harder than on a regular backside 5 to finish your rotation. As you land, focus on keeping…