Wake Fives Made Easy
Matt Rini
 

For the beginner to intermediate trick skier, the two  wake five fronts
(W5F basic and reverse) are a great way to increase your trick score
without much difficulty.  By now you have likely mastered the wake-O
(WO) and the two wake back to backs (WBB).  This is the point when the
wake fives should be learned in order to continue the natural
progression of wake turns.

Whenever learning a new trick ,I find it best to try to break down the
trick as much as possible.  By this I mean try to find some part of the
trick that you already know.  This method speeds the learning process
and minimizes the frustration that comes with learning a new trick.
The wake-five can be broken down nicely into two easy tricks that you
should already know, wake back to back and a front.  This is called a
prep.  The only thing that's different is that you need to land the
wake back to back in the full back not just in half wrap.  A common pit
fall is that people think that they need to spin the trick really fast
to finish the rotation; however, this usually compromises their axis.
This is why I teach people the prep first because hardly any energy is
needed to do a WBB and the prep teaches people to spin easy.  The most
important part of any trick is the take-off, so finding a good prep can
be great for working on the take-off.

The key elements to the take-off for the wake fives are:  be sure to
carry a really light edge all the way through the top of the wake and
into the air, use your back arm (the one closest to the stomach) and
your back hip (the hip furthest away from the boat) to start the turn,
and be sure to pull, pop and turn at the same time.  After you land
outside the wake, you will be in back position, wait for two seconds
then slid to the front completing the last 180 degrees of the wake
five.  Be sure to pause in the back;  this is a
wake-back-to-back-slide-to-the-front and not wake five sliding the last
180.  I suggest working on both of them at the same time and doing the
prep for three weeks or until you master it.

At this point you have learned the hardest part and nothing about the
approach or take-off should be changed when attempting the trick.  The
only thing you need to do different is to pass the handle in the back.
It is a good idea to do five or six sets where you do half preps and
half wake fives.  This way you can get the feeling of a easy and
controlled take-off and it will carry over to the wake five.  If
problems should arise, always go back to the prep for a little while
until you get the feel for it again and be sure to go through your
check list of keys.  Good luck!

Editor's note:   Matt Rini has represented Canada in two World
Championships, finishing 13th overall in 1995.  He recently opened a
training site near Orlando (see Shortlines).