Date: 6/24/01
Author: David Williams

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Catching Air at the Cable Park

Although it wasn't my first visit to the Orlando Watersports Complex (OWC), it was the first time I had ventured beyond the dock and gotten my feet wet. It all started when Mike Ferraro, who runs Mike's Place, a wakeboard and water ski training center at OWC, hooked me up with Rene, the owner of the whole operation. Rene's a very cool guy and got my buddy, Brett, and I all set up with our wristbands and even fronted us a board to replace the one that a certain airline (I won't mention names, but they're out of the southwest) had neglected to ferry to our destination.

Like many Californians, neither of us had ever been on a cable before. As we donned our equipment, including the required helmet for hitting the sliders and kickers, and made out way down the ramp to the water's edge, we found Andy sitting behind the controls of the cable system. As the riders fell and the empty ropes would come back around, he'd get them all set up and hand them off to the next rider. Andy was kind enough to give us a few tips, some words of encouragement and away we went for our first run.

Although I would have an embarrassing fall right off the dock later in the day, my first start was relatively error free. The cable takes some getting used to because of the way it pulls in an upward direction. It works a whole different set of muscles than boarding behind a boat does, and I could tell that I was going to be hurting the next day. My shoulders were especially hard hit.

My main worry was the corners. I knew from watching others that if I wasn't in the right position, I was either going to get too much slack in the rope or I was going to get yanked out of my boots. Well, the former is what I had to deal with on the last turn of my first round. I took it too narrow, got slack and lost the handle for my first taste of the walk of shame. It could have been worse. If you fall at the far end, "the walk" can be a 10-minute affair.

Now that I had a feel for what I was doing, I wanted to experience the sliders and kickers. This would also be my first exposure to hitting water obstacles and that's what I was really looking forward too. Keep in mind that if you want to hit these things, you need to bring your own board. They do not let you hit sliders or kickers with the demo boards rented on site. We had my Liquid Force Trip 43 for banging on and a Hyperlite Project demo board for playing nice. It was a pain to keep switching off just so we could both hit the obstacles, but worth it.

The set up consisted of a large kicker, two PVC sliders and a PVC ramp. The big kicker was pretty intimidating and I didn't do much more than go off the side of that. It didn't help that I still had my center fins on. If you're going to hit the kicker, you'll want to take those off. I really liked the smaller slider and the PVC ramp, both of which were a lot easier to hit than they looked. I was stoked on the progress I made with those in the half-day we spent on the water.

I wish I could say that I had the same good fortune when it came to getting air without the assistance of ramps and sliders. For the life of me, I could not figure out how those guys were going so high in the corners. Andy had mentioned that it takes a fair amount of cable time before most people get the air time mastered. 2000 Men's 1 National Champ, Miles Armstrong, showed up in the nick of time to give us some pointers in this area. Following his instructions did not have us throwing 20-foot Raleys at each corner, but it did give us an understanding of what we needed to eventually get ourselves to that point. I'd try to transcribe the passed down knowledge here, but I'm sure I'd screw it up in the translation. However, Mr. Armstrong was kind enough to put it down on paper for us, so click here to get his cable air secrets.

Overall, OWC was a blast. It's a fun environment with lots of cool riders to chat with while you're waiting for your next run. Miles and Ricky Gonzalez were just two of the many folks we got to know that day. They've got food available on site and a Performance Ski and Surf pro shop that's got all the equipment you might need. Most importantly, they've got great people like Rene, Mike and Andy that are willing to help you out whether you're a newbie or a veteran. If you're ever in the Orlando area, I would highly recommend stopping by, even if for only an hour. You won't regret it.

The Orlando Watersports Complex is located in Orlando, Florida and can be reached at (407) 251-3100 or owc@earthlink.net. You can also visit them online at www.OrlandoWatersports.com.

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