The Dreaded Face Plant!!!

[kaneboats]

If you can't find it, PM me your address and I'll send you what I have. You can give it back in Tampa. I only have DVD #2 of the Book, so it skips how to wear a life jacket and how to drive a boat, but it starts off with some pretty basic stuff and gets into some jumping. I haven't needed #3 yet.

[Reese350]

I got to meet Dallas yesterday at the Malibu Open tournament in Waterford, MI. Wow, what a wakeboarder! She was also great with the kids. She chatted with my 7 year old for 15 mins giving him boarding tips. Same goes for Phillip Soven. He was great with the boys too. Great to see such nice kids at the top ranks of the sport!

[FoilTechHydrofoiler]

Zegm Get A hydrofoil there are alot of guys riding these aged 6-60. The most addictive water sport I have ever gotten into. Here's some pics from this weekend.

[501]

Don't crashes on a foil hurt more then a wakeboard?

I am early 30's and have been boarding for a couple years and can do a couple basic inverts. Face plants become easier to prepare for with more experience, turn head and cover up. I spent a lot of time in my youth snowboarding and skateboarding and the falls seemed to hurt more. But what I find is I am more sore the next couple days after crashing a lot wake boarding then I was when I was young.

As for the helmet, I have heard the debate that they can cause neck injuries because they slow the impact of your head down relative to the body. I am not sure if this is true, heck it probably isn't, but I sure don't like the feeling of wearing a helmet during a nice wakeboarding set. Sliders is a different story, i wouldn't even try them without a helmet, but here in Alberta there is no chance of ever getting to ride a slider in the near future.

[Ian Brantford]

Don't crashes on a foil hurt more then a wakeboard?

Nope. Having split my time evenly between the two over the last three years, I can confidently say that having the big fixed ski there nicely breaks the water for you about half the time. Other than than, the only increase in crash intensity from the foil stems from the fact that it is easier to get some significant height while jumping.

As for the helmet, I have heard the debate that they can cause neck injuries because they slow the impact of your head down relative to the body. I am not sure if this is true, heck it probably isn't, but I sure don't like the feeling of wearing a helmet during a nice wakeboarding set.

Again, I have done it both ways for several years. It's much, much better with a properly-fitting helmet (with ear flaps) than with nothing. Many eardrum ruptures and concussions have been avoided due to helmets.

To greatly reduce the risk of neck injury, get a neck roll:
http://cinchmax.com/_wsn/page3.html
It works best in conjunction with a helmet, since the back and sides of it contact nicely with the neck roll as you crash. The maker of course makes a disclaimer of any medical value for liability purposes, but I found that it works exactly as one might hope.

I also like siped floatation vests to cut the impact on the torso. I use one made by Jet Pilot, but they only appear to be available with composite materials that aren't approved by the various authorities. It only has about half the floatation of a regular vest.