My Chunk of Extreme Sports At The Best Cable Park In The World

One of the things that I dreamt to accomplish is to experience just one of the various extreme sports man has known today. The adventuresome spirit that possessed my wandering feet a long time ago has gone a long way that such inclination comes natural since then. I just thought that I should do one extreme sport while I’m at my peak.

So, when my then girlfriend (now wife) invited me to spend my Hallowmas to their beautiful province four years ago, at the best cable park in the world (Camarines Sur Watersports Complex or CWC) at the town of Cadlan, I gave in right away! The reason is that long before I learned about her proposition, I had already known about wakeboarding at CWC through Sports Unlimited on TV.

Before I might mislead you with what you will saw in the featured photo, let me explain why that’s no wakeboarding but kneeboarding. Well, I didn’t know that kneeboarding is a precursor or training course for those who want to do wakeboarding. This is so because your center of gravity is very low when you are standing on your knees and the human body offers less scope for wind resistance to affect one’s surfing, according to the trainers. Further, it may be hard to believe but according to what I researched on this subject, standing on your knees gives you more maneuverability and makes it easier to handle the board. Hence, using kneeboards is the best way to get introduced to the water sport of wakeboarding.

“Wakeboarding was created from a combination of water skiing, snow boarding and surfing techniques. Instead of using skis, the rider rides a single board with stationary non-release bindings for each foot, standing sideways. Wakeboarding, besides being one of the world’s fastest growing sports, is now gradually being recognized globally”(camsurwatersportscomplex.com).

On the one hand, although using kneeboards is recommended for beginners, this does not mean that kneeboarding is just a training course for wakeboarding enthusiasts. Rather, it is a full fledged sport in its own right. It has its own set of rules to be followed and has its own set of tricks to be performed by the kneeboarding enthusiasts.

“Kneeboarding is an aquatic sport where the participant is towed on a buoyant, convex, and hydrodynamically-shaped board at a planing speed behind a motorboat or cable. In the usual configuration of a towsport kneeboard, the rider sits on his heels on the board, and secures himself to the deck with an adjustable strap. As in wakeboarding or water skiing, the rider hangs onto a tow-rope”(camsurwatersportscomplex.com).

But let me tell you this, it’s not as easy as I thought it is based on what I said earlier. In the first place, it wasn’t called extreme sport for nothing.

The experience of doing it last 01 November 2007, together with my then significant other (who served as photographer since she somehow suffered from aquaphobia that time), a friend of mine (Heartly) and his girlfriend (Jing), proved it’s, indeed, NO duck soup.

Once I stepped onto the rotomolded board, with my knees to my chest in a squatting position, my heart was pounding like I was facing death. Good thing the so-called adrenaline rush took over by the time the cable pulled me to the water. I’ve never felt so alive after that! … Of course, I also wiped out a million times before I finally got the hang of it.

We were lucky the CWC manager, Reuben Buchanan, who happens to be a world-class wakerboarder placing second in the Australian nationals (2004 and 2005), was there to give me and my companions a hands-on training during the afternoon when I decided to kneeboard again. The guy’s words are a mouthful; I couldn’t help but feel motivated to do this extreme sport again and again.

So remember this in case you get there for the same reason: Don’t think twice to approach Mr. Buchanan because he will sure help you.

Before we left CWC, I had the opportunity to get a photo of the breathtaking rainbow’s tail using my late LG camera phone.

Truly, I enjoyed every bit of my stay in CWC not only because of fulfilling the dream of doing an extreme sport or the world-class facilities it has but moreso because of the beautiful landscapes around (e.g. the glimpse of Mount Isarog which is supposed to be standing imperially at the background of the photo below) and its accommodating people.

The Camarines Sur Watersports Complext (CWC) is, undoubtedly, the best Cable Park in the world!

For more information like accommodations, tour packages, rates, rental fees, and other amenities (e.g. EcoVillage – An Eco Tourism Showcase, Clubhouse Restaurant & Bar, Cabana, Swimming Pool, Game Room, and Massage Parlors), please visit this website: www.camsurwatersportscomplex.com.

PS: iPhone 2G, GE X5 and LG Camera Phone

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