boardertj Faceplant
Joined: 23 Nov 2006 Posts: 31
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Posted: Sep 27, 2011 4:05 pm Post subject: New Socal Cable Park: Desert Wake |
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Hey Guys,
Just wanted to share my experience at the newest cable to hit Southern California.
Desert wake has been open since July. As of now, their setup consists of a cable lake with 2 Rixen cables running side by side and a boat lake to rent out hourly. They have plans to expand including a full cable and a winch park.
It was a little difficult to find as there are no signs anywhere marking the turnoff.
I bought a 2 hour pass and rented a helmet. There is a $10 yearly membership fee on top of the $30 two hour pass. $5 for the helmet. Ended up paying $48 for everything with tax.
After paying and signing the release forms I hopped on a golf cart and one of the crew members drove me out to the cable lake. I put my name on the board for the cable and chilled on the patio while I waited. Now it was a pretty crowded day and there were about 8 people in front of me on the board so I had to wait a bit longer than expected.
After about 45 minutes It was my turn. I strap up (wakeboard, no skating for me that day) grab the handle and go. I cruised a bit to get my rythem going and sprayed the funbox a bit. The box is a wide flat table, almost like a manual pad but a bit higher, with a flat bar on the side. I hit the flat section a few times, 50 50, front board, back board, 50 50 180 out. (This is the 2nd time ever hitting a rail so don't flame me for sucking )
I tried to cut hard and throw a backroll out in the flats but came up well short. On my final set I tried the flatbar portion of the funbox and got rocked. I didn't hop quite high enough, boucned off the top and slammed onto the lower box section shoulder first. It hurt like a beach for the first 2 days but its getting better. I got up finished my set and called it a day. I didn't get a chance to hit the corrugated incline pipe, maybe next time.
Overall the place is really cool. On the other cable they have a spine kicker and a 80ft A-frame. Randal Harris, Melissa Marquardt and a few other West Side riders were ripping it that day. I was told by the crew that those guys are out there at least once a week.
The staff was super friendly and very helpful to all riders, giving pointers to beginners, giving me advice on hitting the flatbar, even though I still ate $#!+ and helping advanced riders perfect their technique. They all did a great job at operating the cable and doing their best to get people on and off the water quickly.
The only gripe I had with the place was the wait time. On a less crowded day I am sure it wouldn't be a problem. but it was at least a 30-40 minute wait between pulls. As this place gets more popular this could be a problem. No one was enforcing the 2 hour time limit and were more focused on making sure everyone was having fun and getting in some quality riding.
Check it out if you get a chance. It's out in the middle of nowhere (Indio/coachella) but it was well worth the drive in my opinion.
For pictures and more info check out the website
http://www.desertwakeinfo.com/ |
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