Have you got a question for our wakeboard / ski experts?
Do you have any problems to do with your kit or wakeboard / ski in general?

If you have, then email info@ultrasporteu.com and we'll get one of our team riders to answer your queries.

The most interesting questions will be posted here.

Q. I have seen on your website that you sell Bern helmets. Why can I not buy one directly from you? Where should I go to buy one instead?

A. Our role at Ultra Sport is to import and distribute, so we ship in the goods (i.e Bern) from all over the world and then sell them to shops around the UK. This makes it easier than if a retailer had to organise bringing in each of their products from a different country, so instead they can get them all from the UK. As a distributor, we can only sell to retailers, so you would have to buy directly from them. To find your nearest retailer, simply go to our Retailer Locator on the website, select the product you are searching for, choose your region and click search. This will then come up with a list of retailers stocking the brand you're after in your area, along with their contact details. If a shop doesn't have a specific item you're looking for (i.e in your size or preferred colour), they will get in touch with us to see if we have any available and place an order, which will normally be delivered to the shop itself.

Happy Shopping!
Edd

Q. I was just wondering what the significance a centre fin has on a board? I'm looking into purchasing a Subjekt board from Liquid Force but I saw that it didn't have a centre fin. What effect does it have on the board with regard to landings etc? I'm a relative beginner so should I just stick to centre fin boards?

A. It really depends on where you are riding - sea or lake?
I generally say that if riding on the sea then the centre fin will aid by helping the board keep it’s direction on landings and stability.

If you are a beginner then you may find on landing that the boat will take control and pull the board round to face the boat rather than carry its direction out away from the wake, in which case this usually results in the edge of the board catching and a good hard face slap with it!

Also in swelly conditions the centre fin will give the board some traction on general riding.
However if the rider is using the board on the lake and hitting kickers and sliders then the centre fin can cause some problems with stability when hitting the object and make the board rock. Whereas two side fins hold the board on the kicker level. Please remember that hitting kickers and sliders does invalidate your warranty unless you are riding an impact base board like some of the O’Brien boards and the Grind from Liquid Force.

Any boarder should learn to use the board without any fins to learn how the edge of the board works for you. This also enables the rider to learn how to stand on the board in the correct position, up over the centre and not hard on the tail. This gives a longer leading edge in the water, giving more holding power and will enable the rider to be able to load the line up more aggressively which in return gives the height off the wake.

However this takes time and if you are a beginner or intermediate rider then the centre fin will help give you some stability and make the board a little more forgiving for you in the early days.

To sum up: if you are a relative beginner then I would look at the Balance as it is very similar to the Subjekt but has a centre fin and because of that the end of the board is shaped slightly different to accommodate the turbulence that the fin produces.

Hope that this helps you out in picking your new board.
Good wakes,
Neil

Q. I am a keen wakeboarder, have been boarding for about a year and can jump start 180 ollie, but I am not sure what board and bindings to buy. I have been using the boards at Holme Pierrpoint cable. I've been looking at the new O'Brien rail 137 and 132 with some adj bindings from noble boards for about £300 as a set, but I also like the look of the new liquid force search jumpstart board with the new Liquid Force "super" bindings. I was just wondering if you could give me a hand on choosing the right board and bindings (best if in a deal together). By the way I am 13 and am using an O'Brien blunt 137 board with some sort of Hyperlite bindings.

My Price range is about £300 and lower.
Please help me!!

A. Thanks for coming on to our website.

As you know we distribute O'Brien , Liquid Force, ClingOn and also a brand FreeMotion which is produced by Liquid Force.
With your price budget the board that I would suggest would be a FreeMotion Drive board and binding set up, which is real similar to the Search package.

The shape is just like the Rhythm which is a forgiving shape, easy to ride and works good on cable and boat.
It’s features are as follows:

These are boards for having fun on the water. The Drive is fast and forgiving, it has smooth simple lines which translate into the most fun and forgiving ride you’ll have... They go big and land super soft. Once you ride a Drive your wakeboarding will definitely go up a notch in the ladder.

Smooth user friendly shape in two sizes, stable and easy to turn. The two sizes are 135 and 143. The 135 if you are below 13.5 stone and the 143 for those bigger guys.

Centre of mass deck with low volume nose and tail - sturdy platform with minimum swing weight.

Round Template -  flows through the water without any catch spots.

3 stage rocker running through the centre gives stability when cruising in the flats and huge pop when launching  of the wake

Continuous rocker along the rail line provides quick smooth response when edging.

PBT top deck for great looks.

Reinforced insert bar with sealed inserts solid locking platform for your bindings with no water seepage into the core of the board.

Hope all this helps - good riding
Neil