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With the growth of water sports, and the economy in the dumps, many people are faced with the tough decision whether you should buy a boat or become a member at a local cable lake instead. Until this year this wasn’t an option for North Texans, but with the explosion of cables across DFW, and the rest of the US more and more people are having to make this decision either because they can’t afford both or simply because they don’t see the need for having both. Before you jump to either conclusion I would like to bring up some key points that might help you make your decision.

1. How long have you been riding
2. Do you prefer obstacles, or wake
3. Distance from the closest cable
4. Level of experience.

The answers to these questions can help you make this tough decisions.

The amount of time that a person has been riding can help determine what they might like better. One who has ridden for a long time behind a boat, and has a love for the feel of the wake simply cannot expect to find the same feeling of the wake at a cable lake. On the other hand a person who learned on cable, and has a love for the obstacles Can get a similar experience behind a boat, as long as obstacles are available to hit (in Texas these areas are few and far between).

Distance from the closest cable is a huge factor in whether or not a season pass at the cable or owning your own boat is the right decision for you. Don’t hate me for pointing out the obvious, but the closer you are the easier it is to just load up the car and hit the cable. Those further away may find that they don’t use the cable enough and still need their boat to get their fix.

The level of experience that a rider has influences this decision greatly. In most cases, the more advanced riders say that there is no substitute for boat or cable, and both are equally important.

Cable:
Learning to ride on a cable is no more difficult than getting up behind a boat. The cable does, however, work back and arm muscles much more than when riding behind a boat. This is seen by many as a benefit due to the fact that once these muscles are built up and in shape from riding the cable, your handle control is AWESOME. You will find that handle control can make or break any trick. Personally, for me the cable helped my boat riding tremendously. The increase in my handle control allowed for my tricks to be landed much more effortlessly than ever before.

Boat:
Learning to ride behind a boat is how people have learned for years, and therefore we can’t knock it in the slightest. The boat has been the traditional way of riding for years and was the way that many of the professionals of today learned to wake board and wake skate. The benefit of learning behind a boat comes from the courage that you gain from learning to jump wake to wake behind the boat. Riders will tell you that there is no substitute for wake, and that it is definitely a necessity for the full development of a riders repertoire.

The truth is, both are important to the advancement of individuals ability and the sport as a whole. Just like every sport, through time water sports are advancing, cables are a new addition to the sport NOT a new technology trying to replace the boat. The cable is a new avenue to allow more people a chance to ride, which will help water sports popularity and level of skill increase.

Riding is riding, do it, and do it often…… Whether you are lucky enough to ride boat and cable or just get to ride one or the other, be grateful that your riding and make the best of it.