Zip and i(mi)Zup : hybrid knee/wakeboard and ski trainer ...

[Ronnie]

Someone posted this link and started a thread about this hybrid water sports gear which got me thinking about making/mcguyvering my own.

http://zup.com

Here are pics of the skis I will canabalize the foot holds / bindings (just the front halves) from and the two knee boards I can modify. I'm not sure which one I will use yet. The black one has a handle hook and retractable fins but the grey one's pad is thinner (easier to cut/ form) and would use shorter foothold mounting screws. App not sure how to orient the footholds, like skis or a wakeboard. I will probably move the strap up a few inches as well.

I will noodle on it a little today at the water(park).

 

[Bruce]

I look foreword to seeing how it works!

 

[Ronnie]

I was trying to determine which way to mount the footholds and which board to use last night. I'm probably going to mount them sideways like they are mounted on a wakeboard and will probably use the black board since it is the same at both ends and already has a rope hook on it.

I did try to practice how I would get up on the resulting board (wakeboard trainer) last night as well. In short it will be challenging, the boat will have to be at the perfect supper and even than going from a kneeling to standing position wih out falling off, tipping over or subing will take a lot of balance. I suspect that anyone able to do so already knows how to wakeboard and / or just doesn't need Sunna training device. I have not used any of this gear in years so I don't mind revising it to make something new. My son stated that he may want to try knee boarding in the future, if so I will let hi do so on the board I do not modify or I will be a new one for him.

Looking at the zup again all I see is a knee board that allows people to stand on it because it has footholds similar to how skis would be set up. Most newer knee boards already come with An integrated tow handle hook for $120 so I don't understand why the price of the zup is almost three times the price of a knee board. whatever these guys are smoking must be damn good if they think they can justifiably put a $120 price on a color matched double handled rope.

 

[Ronnie]

Here is a pic of the i(mi) zup I came up with.

Just trying to get ahead of the writing / typing but my so and I tried it out this weekend (I will post a video of this soon), I couldn't get up but my son did. I wanted more of a wakeboard trainer than the sups dual waterski trainer is too me. Even though my son could use it and I could improve the design somewhat I think it would be a lot easier learn to wake board the old fashioned (trial and error) way or to use a training strap. Oh well, just another $1m idea that wasn't.

Oops, almost forgot the pics.