Not surprisingly, many people don’t know the first thing about wakeboarding. Wakeboarding is one of the newest water sports that came into existence in the late 20th century. It’s like water skiing, or skateboarding on water. A wakeboard looks like a surfboard, only shorter, broader, and had straps.
Here’s a clearer picture of wakeboarding: a rider standing on the board, feet strapped, being pulled by a boat and carving moves on the wake. A wake, by the way, is the wave created by the boat. Sometimes, instead of a boat, a cable system is hooked to the shore an the rider holds on to the cable, riding the waves, getting onto a ramp, flipping and doing tricks in the air and then landing on the water.
The Legendary Griffin
Wakeboarding, indeed, seems a lot like the griffin in that it is an offshoot of four different sports. The riding style is suggestive of water skiing, snowboarding, and skateboarding, and the sport itself was born in the wake of surfing. In 1985, surfer Tony Finn of San Diego, California developed a hybrid of water ski and a surfboard, which he called Skurfer. In the same year, foot straps were added, which proved to be crucial in the development of the sport. This allowed riders to flip in the air, thus jumping off from its surfing genesis.
In the 1990s, wakeboarding began to gain popularity in the United States and throughout the world. Today, it is making waves in the Philippines where surfing still holds a fascination for people and is being promoted further. At the forefront of this revolution is Paolo Araneta, pioneering Filipino wakeboarder who organizes events, exhibitions, and competitions to promote the sport.
In 1999, he tied up with another friend, JB Borromeo, to form the Wakeboarding Association of the Philippines. The two sort of pioneered wakeboarding in the country. The group, however, has since remained inactive. Unlike other serious athletic sports that center on hard training, boarding is done in the spirit of fun and recreation, a lifestyle which attracted many to the sport. Then there is the camaraderie wakeboarding fosters in gatherings and events. However, to be a good wakeboarder, one has to be physically fit, mentally ready, and patient to be able to learn the tricks. Boarders train, but really it is more of practice, and again often recreational in nature. It is only right before a competition when things get a bit serious.
Wakeboarding is divided into runs, in which one can do an average of 10 tricks. They are judged on height, execution, and style. For the Addict Mobile Wakeboarding Experience in Boracay in 2006 and a competition in Batangas, they brought veteran wakeboarders Patrick Viererbe, Bradley Mundt, and Daniel Pyne, who did exhibitions, conducted boarding clinics, and judged in the competition.
Growing Locally in the Philippines
Wakeboarding remains a nascent sport in the Philippines — the participants are few and facilities fewer. A major factor that prevented people from getting into the sport was the cost to own a boat. But with the cable facility first make available in Lago de Oro Resort in Calatagan, Batangas, people started to see that wakeboarding can be fun and within reach. In the last three years, wakeboarding in the Philippines has grown because of the cable system.
Wakeboarding in Lago de Oro, Calatagan, Batangas
Today, the Camsur Watersports Complex opened in Bicol, said to be one of the best wakeboarding facilities in the world. Built within the sprawling 150-hectare Provincial Capitol Complex in the capital of Pili, about a hundred visitors come in daily — making the complex perhaps the biggest attraction of the province, according to governor Raymund Villafuerte, Jr. Citing that there are about two million wakeboarders and only 150 facilities available worldwide, he believes that wakeboarding is the fastest growing extreme sport globally today. He intends to capture a portion of that market and promote the province as the “cable skiing Mecca of Asia”.
While wakeboarders may not be as serious about their sport as other athletes, they seem to live for the exhilaration of the ride — carving beauty between water and air.
Getting to Lago de Oro
Located in the town of Calatagan, Batangas, it is a 2.5 hour drive from Manila. Take the South Superhighway and the Sta. Rosa Exit. An alternative is the Coastal Road that gets you to Tagaytay City. From Tagaytay, drive towards the towns of Tuy and Balayan. At the Balayan town proper, turn right, going to Calatagan. Or head to the Sugar Central junction in Nasugbu, Batangas from Tagaytay, and proceed to the town of Lian, then to Calatagan. Lago de Oro is along Zobel Highway.
Getting to Camsur Watersports Complex
Philippine Airlines has domestic flights to Naga City which takes about 40 minutes. By land, there are air-conditioned and ordinary buses plying the eight-hour route daily to and from Manila. The complex is located within the Provincial Capitol in Cadlan, Pili, only five minutes away from the Naga airport.
August 13th, 2008 at 1:41 am
i just want to ask about the cost of putting up a wakeboarding facility?