Wakeboard Rocker, What is it?
Rocker is the most important variable in respect to the wake you ride, determining a board’s speed and pop. Think rocking chair: Rocker is the amount and type of bend pressed into a board from tip to tail. All the other features help the board, but compared to rocker they each play just a subtle role in how a board relates to the wake and your style. The flatter a board is, the faster it planes across the water. The more bent the board is, the more water it will push, making the board slower. Now don’t jump to the conclusion that faster is better. Everyone may want that Ferrari feeling, but slower boards are preferred so the rider can go up straighter and not get sprayed in the face when a wake is steep. In other cases a flatter board is better, so the rider can edge through a mellow wake and go way into the flats. So keep an open mind ‘til we get to the good stuff. When you’re looking at board specs, rocker will be displayed in inches, measured by the maximum height of the board’s edge off the ground. These days, anything less than 2.5 inches is considered pretty flat, while anything 2.5 and above is giving you some serious curve.
Rocker types
Continuous Rocker – That rocking chair visual that’s been sitting in your head is called continuous rocker. It’s a smooth, uninterrupted curve from tip to tail. Continuous boards tent to be faster than three-stage boards with an equal amount of rocker, due to a smoother waster flow across the curve, though these boards usually won’t pop as hard.
Three–Stage Rocker – These boards have two distinct bend points and a flat spot in between, rather than a smooth curve. If you split the board into thirds, right at the line between each section would be where the board bends. You can move these lines closer to the middle or away from the middle to create a bigger or smaller flat spot for the board to land on. Enlarging the flat spot slightly speeds up the ride through the wake. You will also see these rocker descriptions on certain boards. These rocker lines are relatively new and designed to fain more speed, more pop, or both.
Subtle/Hybrid – A toned-down version of a three-stage or continuous rocker line, to gain speed. For continuous shapes, it usually means the board has less rocker and you can see that in the measurement. For three-stage boards, it is a more discreet version of the three stages. It feels faster because subtle rocker lines have more contact area with the water, for a faster feeling as you carve around and also while riding up the wake.
Blended – Currently used for continuous shapes. It creates a flat spot in the middle of the board. The edges maintain a continuous flow, but the bottom center of the board has a blended flat spot. It’s designed to give you a continuous edge and then a three-stage pop.
Abrupt – Designed to be more explosive off the wake because of a kinked tip and tail. Used for both continuous and three-stage designs.
Progressive – Used for both three-stage and continuous boards, it means a noticeable amount of bend applied to the tip and tail. It is fair to say that progressive and abrupt are similar in their meaning and application.
Effects of more rocker
Boards with a lot of rocker are aimed at the steeper wake and a slower, straight up oriented style. Wake-to-wake grabs, spins, and handle-pass inverts are a lot easier to manage with a board with more rocker. It will force you to use your legs, keep the line tension low and go high, but keep to the transition for some of those first hucks at these tricks. If you are learning your first tantrum or front roll, which are the “trip-flips” of wakeboarding, having a board with a lot of bend will help you switch edges and trip straight up for the flip. For off-axis spins it is critical that you get into the air and pause. You have to go up and over the handle to spin. This high pause will help you get your body in the right position to spin. The big bend in the board will let you go slow enough into the wake, get the bounce you need and land down the transition so you can stop your body from rotating. If grabbing and flipping in your thing, then you will have more time to keep your hand on the board instead of just slapping the rail as you flip. You can still take tricks out into the flats and go big, but more rocker will make you work harder to produce the speed to sling yourself up and across the back of the boat.
Effects of less rocker
Flatter boards with a small amount of rocker are ideal for mellow wakes, aggressive riders and an edgy, out-in-the-flats style. Any “load and release” trick will be better executed with less rocker.
If you care learning your first front flips or raleys, then the edginess of a flatter board will help you load up the line, making the water catapult you upward whether you are using the wake or not. To learn your first raleys it is smart to learn how to jump way out into the flats before you attempt them. You need speed to get the distance, and a flat board will allow this to happen. You won’t spend all your energy trying to make the board move, enabling you to spend that energy on managing the line tension in the air.
When the nose of the board starts blasting water in your eyes, that’s when you know your board is too flat for the wake size.
