5. Board and Binding Tech - While we've seen a steady progression in our gear since the early days of the sport (directional boards anyone?), we've finally hit a place where everyone can find a board/boot that fits their exact need and riding preference. Whether you prefer cable, boat, a combination of both, or even urban winching that requires decks that can take a crazy beating like cement slides; you'll be able to find a board and binding combo that's exactly right for you. New advancements like Hyperlite's "System" bindings (handy for the cable or winching), or Slingshot's big introduction of flex boards in to the market are innovations that are constantly pushing the industry as a whole to think differently, and that's good for all of us.
Rider: Matt Manzari
4. Wakeskating - This is a case of "Make enough noise and people will hear you". Hammers are being dropped left and right all the time, and the sport is finally getting some notice outside of the wake community. Even the extremely popular website The Berrics (theberrics.com) has given the sport some love recently. Granted, they call it "wake boarding", but hey, can't blame them for trying. In addition, the vast majority of people who want to get out on the water can't afford an expensive wakeboard boat. This leaves the door wide open for them to pick up a wakeskate and have at it behind something as small as a jet-ski or even a small skiff (check out some sweet custom machines at this Wakeskating.com thread).
3. Down with corporations! - This is one that could have me eating my words later, but I think this is the year that we'll see a couple of rider-owned companies start to give some challenge to the big guys. For a while wakeboarding was stagnant. Boards were the same, technology was similar, nobody was making waves in the marketplace. With the introduction of more rider-owned companies like Remote, Ronix (sort of) and Slingshot, we've seen massive leaps and bounds in the industry when it comes to technology and availability of wake gear. As I mentioned before, Slingshot led the charge when it came to making flex boards popular, and Ronix has turned the binding market upside-down and continues to innovate and create some of the best boots in the world. At the same time, Remote and Integrity wakeskates have spent their entire existence making high-end wakeskates that meet the performance needs of today's riders. Thanks to these companies, the landscape of wakeboarding and wakeskating are completely different than they could have been if just the big guys were in the game.
2. More Events Than Ever - With support from companies like Red Bull and their traveling System 2.0 competitions, wakeboarding and wakeskating will receive a ton of exposure this year. In addition to these big sponsor and tours, grassroots tours are popping up everywhere. The most awesome example of one of these tours is the Wakeskate Tour. An absolutely amazing event travelling the country and putting the best riders in the best spots to really push the sport in the right direction.
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