Wakesurfing

Wakesurfing is a water sport in which a rider surfs the wake that a boat creates. The rider is pulled up by a tow rope, usually from the water, then drops the rope and rides the steep face just below the peak of the wave, so the boat does the work that ocean swell does in surfing and no rope is held during the ride. Riders use boards made for the sport and compete in two styles divided by board type: skim style, with smaller, narrower and less buoyant boards that favour spins, shoves and technical tricks close to skateboarding, and surf style, with larger and more buoyant boards used for carving and aerial manoeuvres. The origins are disputed, since several people and companies claim the invention, though boat surfing was recorded in the 1950s and 1960s and the first United States design patent for a wakesurf board was granted in 1997. Inboard ski or wakeboard boats with ballast are the usual choice, and the sport carries safety rules on exhaust and flotation devices.