Wakeboard & Bindings for 8 year old little girl beginner

[kenzie]

I have an 8 year old little girl who is eager to wakeboard. What board and bindings do you suggest? She is tall and thin for her age, pretty athletic though. I've been looking at the 111 or 118 Liquid Force Star for kids. Would this be a good place to start? I want her to be comfortable while learning. I don't mind upgrading in a couple of summers. The kids bindings look to have velcro instead of laces - this seems to be easier to adjust for a little one. Thoughts?
Also, what rope do you suggest for kids wakeboarding? Thanks for any insight. I'm not a wakeboarder so I have no idea where to start.
Cheers!

 

[Dave.Mishchenko]

Re: Wakeboard & Bindings for 8 year old little girl beginner

A couple of my kids (now 8 and 10) have been using the 118 Nemisis for a few years which is the same board (in a boy's style). The middle fin on the Star / Nemisis is removable. I had bought the board with the Jr. Domain bindings (3Y-6Y) and that's been the only downside as the binding have been a bit too tight for both kids (they're fairly tall as well).

I'm looking at getting a new board (the Nemesis 124) but I'll probably pair them with a small men's binding as I think we'd have the same issue with the LF kid's binding.

For a rope you'll want a wakeboard rope (not a ski rope) as a wakeboard rope is designed not to stretch. You can get kid's ropes which feature a smaller diameter binding and optionally I'd suggest a rope with section (i.e. it may be 75', but have 4 x 5 ' removable sections). With that kind of rope you can vary the length to make your speed and wake.

 

[kenzie]

Re: Wakeboard & Bindings for 8 year old little girl beginner

Thanks Dave for the response. Very helpful!