Weighting the XLV for Wakeboarding (yes, wakeboarding)

[trayson]

So who all is using their XLV for wakeboarding? What have you found gets you the best wakeboarding wake?

(ballast setup, speed, rope length)


I really haven't played with my setup much. I've been doing just the 1180 gravity bag, 21.5mph, and 70 feet of line.

Open to suggestions for the best wakeboarding setup.

[Ian Brantford]

After finally getting the right small crowd that let me do some experimentation a couple of years ago, I finally found that I had been doing it wrong (and suffering for it) for eight years. <sigh>

The only time that I have ever done satisfactory wake jumping is the few times when I moved a couple of adults to the bow. I had not been tracking how much of a difference that made. The problem is that, if you are using factory ballast and have people in the interior, the wake will probably be too steep for anyone but a fairly expert and strong rider to use. It's too much for beginners to progress because they'll be fighting that huge impulse. It took that long to add up all of the muttered comments that a few experienced riders (mainly visitors) had made, tempered by being polite instead of objectively informative.

The XLV's original Gravity Games ballast is set up with 1180 center, 2x500 rear, and zero front ballast. With no front ballast, you need to remove rear ballast weight to correct for every person in the interior other than the driver and observer. Alternatively, you can add bow ballast.

The crucial experiment for me was when I tried it with NO ballast. My nephew, who had recently spent a week at a wakeboarding camp on a Malibu, had complained that he just couldn't get the energy out of the XLV's wake with my usual configuration. With NO ballast, he was finally happy, saying that it felt much the same as the Malibu (though not as high with less weight). We have since then been adding more ballast back in the center and a freestanding extra bag in the bow, but last year was a crap-out boating-wise, so full experimentation hasn't happened.

It is my opinion after all of this time that the XLV should never have been sold without a bow ballast option. Also, Canadians are too polite to tell you what you what you need to hear.

[jmvotto]

my wakeboard wake on the on the XLV is plenty with no ballast, but with 750 in the rear and 1180 in the play pen at 21 mph the wake is sick and over my skill level.
my.02

[trayson]

Thanks for the feedback. I tried the 1180 full and each of the rear 1100's about half full and it was a blast. I'm definitely getting more air and having a great time.

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-8aQz6SfwAIs/VWyG3wiKftI/AAAAAAAAZDA/Uu8zEu55gGE/s800/IMG_3924.JPG

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-oYn-QS0Yh8c/VWyG4n6QZ5I/AAAAAAAAZDA/1PxYy6xPmVA/s800/IMG_3945.JPG

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-cGzBSNdf3ng/VWyG482FoTI/AAAAAAAAZDA/id8Ir-TasNE/s800/IMG_3946.JPG

[Ian Brantford]

Thanks for the feedback. I tried the 1180 full and each of the rear 1100's about half full and it was a blast. I'm definitely getting more air and having a great time.


Sweet! That's pretty much the Gravity Games setup.

[KG's Supra24]

Solid looking wake!

[xBabyJesus]

Looks like I've been doing it wrong too... Ian, are you saying to run the 1180 front AND run a bow sack? I've never heard of anyone running that much weight up front.