Wake Boat Safety Tips
One of the best ways to spend a sunny afternoon on the water if you’re an adrenaline junkie is to go wakeboarding. Watersports have become immensely popular in recent years, and for good reason — they’re thrilling, fun and a great way to get some exercise while impressing your friends!
Even though you won’t be going extremely fast on a wakeboard, it’s still important to follow good safety practices. The water can be very dangerous if you’re under-prepared, so you’ll want to make sure you have the skills, gear and knowledge to wakeboard safely.
JC Sports is your South Carolina surf boat dealership, located in Seneca. Here are some tips for staying safe on your wake boat and ensuring that those around you are safe, too.
1. Wear The Right Gear
The right safety gear is crucial to safe wakeboarding. Everyone, even the passengers who stay on the boat and the operator, should be wearing a personal flotation device, otherwise known as a life jacket, at all times. Make sure that your life jacket fits well and isn’t worn in any places. Life jackets can serve many purposes: they can keep you afloat if you fall into the water, they can get you back to the surface if you sink under and they can keep you from drowning if you lose consciousness.
Another essential piece of gear for any watersports participant is a helmet. Hitting your head is dangerous enough on land, but it’s another matter entirely when you’re in the water. You may also wish to wear a wetsuit in order to stay warm in the water and prevent sunburn.
Finally, the operator of your boat needs to have a signal flag so that they can alert other boaters to the presence of someone in the water, especially if you fall in.
2. Know How to Swim
No one should ever attempt watersports without knowing how to swim reasonably well. Of course you need to wear a life jacket no matter what, but you should know how to swim and have basic skills down pat, like floating on your back and your stomach. You never know when you’ll need to hastily get out of the way of another boat or wakeboarder. And you may find yourself swimming to shore if your boat has a problem. If your skills aren’t sufficiently strong, then take some lessons before you climb onto a pair of skis or a wakeboard.
3. Practice Courtesy Around Others
Do unto others as you would have others do unto you. This applies to boating as much as anything else in life. Make sure that you’re being respectful in how you operate your surf boat and how your wakeboarders and surfers behave. Other boats may be traveling much more slowly and there’s no reason to cruise up close to them and startle them into going faster. Watch for swimmers in the water, too. Showing courtesy to others will make your day much more pleasant and it will make everyone else’s day much more enjoyable, too!
4. Limit Downtime
When you’re in the water and your wake boat isn’t in motion, try to get moving as soon as possible. Busy waterways like lakes and rivers will have many boats and watersports participants in the water so don’t be a sitting duck for very long.
5. Obey Signage
You’ll see a great many signs around the waterway you’re in that will let you know of various rules and laws that you need to follow. For example, speed limits need to be adhered to at all times. It doesn’t matter how fast your ski boat can go or how much you want to impress your passengers — follow the law and slow down!
Watch for other signage as well, like areas of the water that are off-limits to boats or warnings about wildlife that may live in the region. Following the signs will keep you and everyone around you safe, and you can also protect the environment by avoiding those off-limits areas.
We hope these tips prove helpful to you on your next wake boat adventure. Still trying to find the perfect ski or wake boat? Visit our website to see our great selection of new and used wakesurf boats for sale at our Seneca, SC, dealership. We even provide financing options to help you get the surf boat you need. JC Sports is the ski boat sales expert for all of South Carolina, including the cities of Greenville and Anderson, SC.