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Barefooting Beginner Tips

Beginner barefooting tips, including getting up, deepwater starts, boat speeds, driving tips, the right way to fall, stepping off a slalom, tumble up start, wake crossing, and more.
How to Do a Beginner Barefoot Start With a Boom
Tips on how to do a successful barefoot start with use of a boom connected to the side of the boat. The boom is the easiest method of learning to barefoot waterski.
How to do a Beginner Barefoot Start Behind the Boat
Are you ready to kick off the water skis and test your abilities on your bare feet? If so, these tips could help you take a stand on the water with the aid of a wakeboard or kneeboard.
How Fast Should You Go?
There are so many activities you can do behind a boat, and each works best at different boat speeds. Use this feature to determine how fast the boat should be traveling when barefooting or while participating in other boat-towed sports.
Teaching Kids How to Barefoot Waterski
Barefooting can be an intense sport. When teaching kids use these tips to get them skimming on the water quick and safe.
Boat Speed
General rule of thumb for finding the ideal barefooting boat speed. Tip from Footer.
Coach's Corner
Barefoot Central has brought two of Barefooting's most notable footers, Mike Seipel and Brett Sands, together to give their coaching advice and debate the finer points of barefoot coaching techniques. Just submit your questions and await their reply.
Deepwater Starts
Have you got your start down on the boom? Time to move behind the boat.
Driving Tips
A quick pull out of the hole and then ease up a bit. This tip and more from Footer.
Footer's Edge - First Time Barefooters
Basic barefooting terms are defined here.
The Right Way to Fall
When you are barefooting, eventually your toes will accidently catch. Here is how to minimize the damage to yourself. Article from WaterSki magazine by Mike Seipel.
Shortline to Longline
You've learned to barefoot off the boom and can even manage the short rope. Now you want to get up from deep water behind the boat. Here's how to make a smooth and crash-free adjustment. Article from WaterSki magazine by Lane Bowers.
Sinus Savior: The Front Tumble-Up
One of the best ways for footers to prevent a nasal flood is to start with your head out of harm's way, in this case above water, with the front tumble-up start. Article from WaterSki magazine by Lane Bowers.
Stepping Off A Slalom Ski
You can do this long line but if you have access to a boom, it's much easier to learn and the falls aren't quite so painful. Tips from Footer.
Tumble Up Start
If you find you don't like stepping off a slalom ski, try the tumble-up boom start. Tips from Footer.
Up With Style
One of the biggest misconceptions in barefooting is that the back deep start is for experts only. But for new footers it can be just as easy to learn as the front. Tip from WaterSki magazine by Peter Fleck with Ron Scarpa.
Wake Crossing
Now that you are up on your feet, next step is to cross the wake. Learn from step-by-step instructions and photos, from Footer.

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