Boating Industry Canada October 2016 - 25

Chris is really the "driver" using this electronic
control box. Combinations of speed and acceleration
can really help the rider to a great run.

Parents love the fact that the school teaches the kids while
they can watch in comfort. The kids learn to ride and they can
practice their tricks here, but there is an issue with the fact that
the parents still don't know how to drive a boat properly for
towing a wakeboarder. The driver's skill and knowledge is very
important.
This is an opportunity that any marina who sells boats for
wakeboarding and waterskiing could really take advantage of.
Offer driving lessons and help the parents be more involved in
the sport.

Immediate Opportunity
How about making a cooperative arrangement with Rail Yard
Wake Park to teach the kids how to ride while your marina
teaches their parents how to properly drive the boat? Would
that sell more boats for you?
Is there any sales pitch more powerful than the kids saying
to their parents how much they want that wakeboard boat?
Christine told me that 75 to 80% of the people who come
to Rail Yard Wake Park have never wakeboarded before. They
practice their tricks in the comfort and convenience of the park
and then when they go to the cottage, they are ready to impress
all their friends with their newfound skills.
One hundred kids sign up at Rail Yard Wake Park every
year and the numbers could be far higher.

Other Wake Parks
You've probably seen a similar cable system in action at the
Toronto International Boat Show. They have an arrangement
with a company called Boarder Pass Canada and they have riders demonstrating their skills indoors at "The Lake" for the full
nine days of the show.
Christine was also quick to say that all of the cable parks
support each other. She mentioned Bush's in Bala, Steve Jarret
and other key people in the sport. There's a whole world of

wakeboarding that your customer's kids would probably love
to be a part of.
We asked Christine what their costs were and we were
impressed with how reasonable it is for people to learn
wakeboarding.
As we said at the opening of this story, the beginner "Learn
to Ride" 30-minute lesson includes all of the equipment, oneon-one instruction and 25 minutes in the water for $80. That's
really incredible when you consider they have a 99% success
rate for beginners to get up and ride at that very first lesson.
Another popular deal is called "Ride All You Can" where six
riders share the cable for only $45 each from 10 AM until 2 PM
on weekdays. Participants in that program generally get 45
minutes or more actually riding and it's also a great way to meet
new people.

Last Thoughts
For boat businesses serving the Greater Toronto Area, consider
developing a relationship with Rail Yard Wake Park or other
similar facilities. If you sell boats that are suitable tow boats,
look into Waterski and Wakeboard Canada and develop a parent's driving school that you can offer.
If your business is on a lake or river (even where you can't
run a conventional tow boat) you might even investigate starting a cable park as a separate business. It may not be easy or
inexpensive to get into but a successful operation could be
quite profitable if you were to sell a few more tow boats!
Overall, if the children learn how to do great tricks on a
wakeboard, they will be a lot more enthusiastic about spending
time at the cottage, bringing their friends up and pushing mom
and dad to get that new boat.
Makes sense to me!
Visit: www.railyardwakepark.com

www.boatingindustry.ca 25

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