Wakeboarding is one of the most famous water sports nowadays. Most riders express their personality, wakeboarding skill-level, and fashion through the wakeboard they own and ride. Various brands know these needs, and the best manufacturers in the industry have an idea of how to meet these demands.
There are many trustworthy brands on the market, but only a few stand among the rest. This article gives some reviews and information on these leading brands so that more riders, whether beginners or professionals, will learn more about them.
If you are a new rider, you will benefit a lot from knowing these brands because you will know where to look first if you do not know where to start buying a product.
Top 10 Best Wakeboard Brands in the Industry Today
- Hyperlite
- Byerly
- O’Brien
- Body Glove
- CWB Board Co
- Jobe Sports International
- Liquid Force
- Airhead
- Ronix
- Slingshot Sports
Table of Contents
#1. Hyperlite
Hyperlite is a famous brand, and everybody knows it. Wakeboarders love its products because it never lets the riders down. Wakeboard athletes like Rusty Malinoski use it.
It was HO Sports that founded Hyperlite. Its first product was a wakeboard with neutral buoyancy.
What makes Hyperlite stand out among its competitors is its compression-molded wakeboard that gives a thrilling experience.
Another feature of Hyperlite is that its wakeboards are as slender as slalom skis. Its thickness helps give softer landings to the users. Hyperlite is true to its name by producing lightweight wakeboards. For this reason, other companies try to imitate Hyperlite’s creations.
Our Hyperlite Wakeboards Review
Official Site: hyperlite.com
#2. Byerly
Byerly has been in the industry since 2006. Since that year, it has been selling products, such as boots, wakeboards, and water skates. It helps people improve their riding performance.
Since its founding, Byerly has been introducing new products in the market. One example is its Hook wakeboard that can sit in water.
Byerly typically uses fiberglass and composite materials in the creation of its products. Because many people trust this brand, Byerly reached the global market.
#3. O’Brien
O’Brien wants to provide the best experience for its users to create memories. O’Brien has been in the industry for more than 50 years, and it has been living the traits of quality, value, and performance.
O’Brien exhibits these traits by creating products for families at an affordable price. The company wants its users to cherish the moment while they are in the water.
Since O’Brien came into the industry, it has been selling towable tubes and wakeboards. It focuses on manufacturing boards that aim to improve the wakeboarders’ performance.
Official Site: obrien.com
#4. Body Glove
Body Glove takes pride in its product design as its edge. Brothers Bob and Bill Meistrell, who was making a living as lifeguards, founded the Body Glove in 1953. This company has been famous for its wet suit, which was its first product in that year.
The company wants to become one of the leading brands in the industry. Body Glove has become successful in attaining this vision because of its constant innovations that improve the wakeboarders’ performance.
Its mission is to provide an enriching water experience to the riders, which it also succeeded. The Body Glove has been famous for its neoprene wetsuits. It began when the brothers discovered that this type of garment provides excellent insulation. Because of this, swimmers have never felt cold swimming in the water with the help of its product.
Aside from wakeboards and wetsuits, Body Glove also sells various water sports products, such as wakeboards, water sports DVDs, and books.
Official Site: bodyglove.com
#5. CWB Board Co
The CWB Board Co is another great brand to buy a wakeboard from if what you want is a customized product. The CWB Board Co has been in the industry since 1989. They have been catering to the needs of men, women, and children since then.
The company is most famous for its ski boots, which is not surprising because it partners with the renowned ski manufacturer, Connelly.
CWB Board Co is also famous for manufacturing wakeboard products that shook the industry. It was the one that introduced the closed-cell foam boards cut from an advanced grid system. These boards are durable and uniformly stylish.
#6. Jobe Sports International
Jobe Sports International is a famous Dutch brand that sells watersports products, such as accessories, clothing, wakeboards, and more. It also sponsors several prominent athletes.
Frank Jobe was a professional skier who founded the Jobe Sports International in 1974. In 2008, Sports and Recreation Den Bol bought the firm, and the brand started to thrive. The company claims to consist of real people who appreciate the beauty of watersports.
The Jobe Sports International’s mission is to help provide enjoyable moments for water sports enthusiasts. The company encourages them to create memories by pursuing their passion in different places.
The company’s goal is to provide quality products to watersport enthusiasts by encouraging them to jump into the water.
Jobe Sports International has been famous for its stand-up paddleboards (SUP) made from bamboo. A paddleboard is a watersport board where the rider can stand on it and paddle to maneuver it.
Official Site: jobesports.com
#7. Liquid Force
Liquid Force is another famous brand that offers wakeboard products, garments, and accessories. Because of its popularity, it is no wonder that some famous athletes and celebrities endorse it.
Its creators are Tony Finn and Jimmy Redmon. The two founded the Liquid Force in 1995. It all began when they looked for a new hobby aside from water skiing and surfing; thus, the birth of skurfing, which is now famous as wakeboarding.
Tony Finn was the one who developed skurfing, and Redmon was a product design expert. The two found each other and formed the Waketech company. It produced a twin-tip board, which was among the company’s first products. This board was the first water board to ride with the right foot forward.
Since then, the company has been developing its products until it started producing hybrids and lightweight wakeboards.
Our Liquid Force Wakeboards Review
Official Site: liquidforce.com
#8. Airhead
Airhead is one of the prominent brands owned by Kwik Tek, the parent corporation that has been in the watersport business for more than 20 years. Kwik Tek is a famous manufacturer of inflatable floats and tow tubes.
Aside from Airhead, Kwik Tek also owns other famous brands, such as Dry Pak, Jet Logic, SportsStuff, and more.
Its Airhead brand, aside from wakeboards and other watersports products, has also been manufacturing snowsport gears.
The brand takes pride in the 840 denier nylon and 30 gauge PVC materials it uses to create its products. Other brands have been trying to imitate this innovation.
Official Site: airhead.com
#9. Ronix
Ronix is one of the leading brands in the wakeboarding industry. It produced its first wakeboard in 1990. Ronix has been famous for manufacturing products that encompass technology, style, and comfort. It aims to create products to perfection.
Thus, it is not surprising that several wakeboarders, such as Danny Harf, testifies its efficiency. That is why it is no wonder that Ronix reached worldwide prominence.
Ronix is not only famous for its wakeboard, but also its accessories, such as bags, ropes, and boots.
What makes Ronix different from other brands is that it offers customization to fit a diverse market’s needs. It manufactures products to meet the needs of men, children, and women. It has the wakeboards that riders need, whether they are novices or pros.
What customers love about its products is that its wakeboards are easy to maneuver.
Official Site: ronixwake.com
#10. Slingshot Sports
Slingshot Sports has been in the industry since 1999. The Logosz brothers founded it.
The Slingshot Sports mission was to provide the best products for outdoor water sport athletes. It has been the company’s mission until now.
Despite that Slingshot Sports has been adhering to its mission since its founding, it believes in constant innovations. You can see it in its creations. The company claims that its products are a combination of technology and style.
Arts is the center of the company’s culture. You can see it on its products because of the graphics and technology it uses. That is why if you use one of its products, you will stand out among the rest. Because of this, the slingshot sports are best for wakeboard riders who also love fashion and style.
Official Site: slingshotsports.com
Conclusion
Wakeboarding is a famous watersport. That is why you should buy from the most trusted and best wakeboard brands if you are among the enthusiasts.
Among these brands, what stands out the most is Hyperlite. This brand has been in the industry for over 27 years. That is why it is no wonder that it is one of the brands that wakeboard riders love.
Hyperlite confidently claims that its products and the construction materials used for their creation are reliable in different seasons. Its wakeboards are the result of the technological advances it discovered through its center of research and development.
One example of a product that the Hyperlite is proud to present is its Nova Carbon Pop Top that claims to advance wakeboarding into a new level.
What to Consider in Selecting the Best Wakeboard Brand
If you are a new wakeboard rider, buying from a famous brand would be the safest thing. It is because famous brands will never dare to taint their name for producing mediocre products. However, it does not mean that you should head on to the store after seeing that ad on TV.
You also have to consider several factors to find the best wakeboard product for you, not just the brand. Here are some of the considerations other than the product’s name.
Size
Even if you have received a 100 percent discount on a product from a famous brand, you will never enjoy riding it if it does not fit your size and taste.
Generally, the size of the board should be according to your weight. If the wakeboard is short, it is going to be unstable. If it is long, it is going to be challenging to carry. That is why you should also consider the size of the board.
Bindings
If you already have bindings, make sure that they are compatible with your wakeboard and they are comfortable to wear.
Construction
If you have a preference, you should look for brands that manufacture wakeboard products using the material you like. As you notice, famous brands have their choice of constructing their products.
For example, the CWB Board Co commonly uses closed-cell foam, Byerly uses fiberglass, and Airhead uses denier nylon and gauge PVC.
Most wakeboards typically have foam or wood construction covered with fiberglass if you do not have an idea which to choose. Foam is cheaper and durable, while the wood pops and flexes better.
Brand’s strength
Each brand has strengths that characterize it. Brands also live by their missions and reasons for creating their products. Some focus on innovation, others on memories, while some are on the design.
One example is Slingshot Sports, which centers on providing unique and lovely graphics. CWB Board Co, on the other hand, focuses on providing customized products for men, women, and children.
What you need to do is to know the reason why you want to buy a wakeboard.
FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions)
Q: Why buy from a famous Wakeboard brand?
A: If you know the exact features that you need for a wakeboard, there is no need for you to buy from a famous brand. You can purchase your product from unbranded ones if you have an idea about the wakeboard features you want to buy.
If you are a novice rider who does not know where to purchase your new wakeboard, it is advisable to buy from famous brands’ stores.
Brands are famous for a reason. It is because customers recognize them. Because people trust them, they do not want to lose it. They continuously manufacture quality products.
Q: What is the difference between cheap and expensive wakeboards?
The common difference between cheap and expensive wakeboards is the construction materials used for them. The cheap ones are compression-molded. These products are slow, cumbersome, and less buoyant, but extremely durable.
The customized and manually-labored products that make use of quality materials are the expensive ones. The materials used include the expanded polystyrene foam (EPS), which is light, buoyant, and maneuverable, but costly and fragile.
Q: What is the best wakeboard you need?
A: When choosing the best wakeboard to use, consider its size concerning your weight. You also have to find the materials.
If you are a novice wakeboard rider, you will benefit the most on smooth wakeboards with three-stage rocker for the more effortless transfer of body weight. It is also advisable to get the largest one that is appropriate for your size for better control.
Meanwhile, pros find using stiff and short wakeboards more enjoyable because of the thrilling experience they give. Stiff wakeboards provide better pop experience.
Q: What boots to buy along with your wakeboard?
A: What you need to consider when purchasing a pair of boots concerning your wakeboard is that they should be compatible.
Boots have bindings that connect you to the board. That is why these must be compatible with the board. The best way to find out about their compatibility is to buy from the same store and ask about it.
Most wakeboards commonly use 6-inch binding plates and M6 mounting hardware that are compatible with almost any brand. However, if you own Liquid Force 4D bindings, these are only compatible with wakeboards with Flextrack.
Q: What is the difference between longer and shorter wakeboards?
A: Shorter wakeboards are a suitable product for professional riders. These wakeboards need more energy for pushing through the water, and these are slower. Because of their size, these wakeboards are more comfortable to spin and to control when you perform your exhibitions in the air.
However, the landings are harder because of the tendency of the board’s nose to land first, including your face.
Longer wakeboards are advisable for novice riders because these are easier to handle and learn. These wakeboards provide better control and buoyancy. These also allow you to move quickly on the water and have soft landings. However, these boards are too heavy.
Related Resources
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Torsten Bird is a talented and adventurous waterman from Western Australia, passionate about surfing, stand-up paddleboarding, hydrofoiling, skimboarding, snowboarding and skateboarding. Torsten has spent countless hours mastering his skills and his dream is to one day represent Australia as an Olympic athlete. Follow Torsten’s adventures on Instagram.
