How To Choose The Best Wakeboarding Ropes

Before you just go out and buy any rope you need to consider a couple of things prior to doing so. The rope that you end up buying will have a lot to do with your current skill level and of course your current budget. Although a rope will not be a determining factor of whether or not you are going to master wakeboarding, it will help in your journey to ride better.

Some things to consider when looking for a wakeboarding rope.

Most wakeboarding ropes are made with 2 different types of materials.
1.Polyethylene- Although the word is a tongue twister it is not a big deal in what it does for you. Basically it's advantages are that it stretches a little bit more than a regular toe rope. This can help a lot when you first trying to get up on the wake. Which is the first thing that you will want to do when starting out. Without getting up...there is no riding. So having a rope that stretches a little bit when you are starting out can help, especially for beginners.
2.No stretch rope made of spectra material- This rope is pretty much self-explanatory. The ropes don't stretch that much at all. Professionals usually tend to want to use these kinds of ropes more than the polyethylene types of ropes. They help to give a professional better performance because they can predict its limits before trying tricks.

The importance of the rope length

Most of the standard wakeboarding ropes on the market tend to be around 60 to 70 feet in length. A lot of professionals will prefer having a longer rope because the distance between the wakes will be wider further you go away from the boat. However the height of the wake will diminish after a certain distance. It has been tested by the rope manufacturers that a rope around 60 to 70 feet is the optimal length to be able to find the place where the wake is the highest. As it goes as well, ropes that are shorter are closer to the boat where the wake is smaller and the distance between the wakes is closer. Although I mention that longer ropes are used by more professionals, it is worth mentioning that most ropes that are made nowadays have “adjustment loops” for quick adjustments to accommodate any skill level of riders. And to even confuse you more, if you purchase a rope that doesn't come with the adjustable loops you can always make these yourself.

The importance of the wakeboarding handles

Finding a wakeboarding handle that is comfortable is going to be one of the most important factors when you go to purchase a new rope. If you will be riding for hours and hours you will want to find a rope that will not callus your hands too badly. Most wakeboarding rope handles are usually 13 to 15 inches wide which is longer than ski handles. The reason that wakeboarding handles are longer than ski handles are because of the tricks that are performed when wakeboarding. What I mean by this is that a lot of the tricks that you will do when wakeboarding require you to pass the handle behind your back.

When purchasing a wakeboarding rope and handle it is good to try to get the opinion of other riders. If they have been riding for any amount of time they will know the what they like and it will help in your search to find a better rope.

Some of the ropes that we have used in the past that tend to be the ones that we like are the following.

Find out more about wakeboarding ropes and handles