If you’re looking to get started in wakesurfing, you need to know the difference between the types of boards out there, from skimmers to surfers and hybrids of both, to the soul-surfing longboard. Here’s a look at three types of wakesurfers from the same brand.
Connelly Katana The Style: It’s a surfer-style board that has straighter rails and deeper fins to give it more drive to allow for pumping and gaining momentum to surf in a traditional ocean-wave style.
The Shred: The Katana is an expert-level board with sharp rails at the tail, round buoyant rails toward the nose, and a quad fin setup. The board has a blazing-fast drive and pop off the lip.
The Numbers: $600 for a 4-foot-7-inch or 4-foot-10-inch board; connellyskis.com
Connelly Big Easy The Style: It’s the wakesurfing equivalent of the classic longboard, designed for cruising and doing tricks such as nose riding.
The Shred: The Big Easy is the longest surfer that Connelly offers, with a tri-fin setup and a tapered tail design that allows for easy maneuverability. The full-length EVA pad on the top provides the grip to perform tricks along the length of the board, in classic ocean-surfing style.
The Numbers: $550 for a 5-foot-6-inch board; connellyskis.com
Connelly Bentley The Style: This hybrid board combines some of the loose, trick-enabling traits of a skim board with the more predictable feel of a surfer-style board.
The Shred: The Bentley provides the best of both worlds, making it an ideal board for beginners trying to develop a style that suits them. The twin-fin setup helps provide drive in the wave but lets it break free on the wave lip for more skim-style tricks.
The Numbers: $350 for boards from 4 feet 4 inches to 5 feet; connellyskis.com
The Style: It’s a surfer-style board that has straighter rails and deeper fins to give it more drive to allow for pumping and gaining momentum to surf in a traditional ocean-wave style. The Shred: The Katana is an expert-level board with sharp rails at the tail, round buoyant rails toward the nose, and a quad fin setup. The board has a blazing-fast drive and pop off the lip. The Numbers: $600 for a 4-foot-7-inch or 4-foot-10-inch board; connellyskis.com Courtesy Connelly Skis
Read Next: More Wakesurf Buying Tips
The Style: It’s the wakesurfing equivalent of the classic longboard, designed for cruising and doing tricks such as nose riding. The Shred: The Big Easy is the longest surfer that Connelly offers, with a tri-fin setup and a tapered tail design that allows for easy maneuverability. The full-length EVA pad on the top provides the grip to perform tricks along the length of the board, in classic ocean-surfing style. The Numbers: $550 for a 5-foot-6-inch board; connellyskis.com Courtesy Connelly Skis
The Style: This hybrid board combines some of the loose, trick-enabling traits of a skim board with the more predictable feel of a surfer-style board. The Shred: The Bentley provides the best of both worlds, making it an ideal board for beginners trying to develop a style that suits them. The twin-fin setup helps provide drive in the wave but lets it break free on the wave lip for more skim-style tricks. The Numbers: $350 for boards from 4 feet 4 inches to 5 feet; connellyskis.com Courtesy Connelly Skis
