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WATERSKI MagazineStep into a pro shop today and you're bound to see a bevy of wakeboard shapes. Yet with all of the different sizes out there, the most important aspect of wakeboard design may be the bottom. To help you translate a board's design into how it will ride, we asked four of the top wakeboard designers to give us their view on phasers, concaves, channels and other bottom contours.
* Denny Kidder, Blindside: Phasers create lift by disturbing the water flow. They also help cushion landings.
Concaves contain water flow down the length of the board. The water under the wide point is necked down and squeezed out in the tail or tip area, resulting in more lift. Channels direct water down their length when a turn is made, instead of letting the water escape off the rail. More of the energy put into a turn is utilized and converted to forward thrust.
* Paul O'Brien, Hyperlite: Phasers are beneficial because they create air pockets underneath the board, helping it explode easier off the wake. It is important to have sharp radius on a phaser as well. Otherwise, it will allow water to travel through the phaser, defeating the purpose.
Concaves and channels help the board hold an edge through the wake.
* Jimmy Redmon, Liquid Force: The true intention of any bottom contour is to manipulate water flow across a surface. In simplest terms:
1) Phasers create random turbulence. This can result in a board being looser on the water when running flat. Critical to their success are size, shape and placement of the dimples.
2) Jet bottoms offer controlled turbulence. This also results in loosening up a board when running flat, as well as keeping a board from “sticking” to the water when landing an air.
3) Concaves create lift, resulting in more speed and “pop” off the water.
4) Channels offer control (hold) through a redirection of water flow. They provide an adjacent controlling surface to an otherwise flat bottom.
5) All of this water must exit the surface (board) at some point, and that's where edges (bottom rail) come into play.
* Eric Perez, Wake Tech: Phasers trap air and give a soft and controlled ride to a board without deep channels.
Depending on the concaves, the board will ride higher in the water and be slightly faster, but consequently less stable.
Channels are key. To be most effective, they must run the length of the board and not stop before the end [of the board]. They will keep you from skipping out when doing a slide or cut when riding on the rail. If they are deep and go all the way out to the ends, they track the board and stabilize it when coming off big tricks.
