Jbski

Kickers and Sliders

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Obstacles – Some History from one of the earlier innovators – Dan Bach

The very first slider ever built at Thorpe and probably one of the first in the UK was a super naive straight wooden rail made from the 4x4 inch posts which came from the cradles used for imported Ski Nautique ski boats. Nick Newcombe and I were watching one of the first of the US promo vids, a Waketech from memory, and there were some dudes doing some slides. Nick thought we should have a go and we “acquired” a long thin dock covered in carpet and bolted this rail along one edge. Then we shaved the edges down a bit with a grinder (we used a grinder for all jobs in those days) and we then thought it needed to be quite slippery and melted some water ski ramp wax on the rail. Anyhow lots of chumps had a go and my god was it hard core...even at 6 inches high and only 14ft long. It was true to say Nick was the real mad man in those days and he even tried to slide it on his O'Brien Kryptonite (I bet few will remember that ski....a hot dogging 90's thing...very odd). So we reckon that was the first UK slider; this design never made it to the everyday circuit, in those days it was just too much for some to imagine.

The first Thorpe kicker was really Nick’s doing as he loved to get that grinder going! Then owner Paul Seaton endorsed it because as a former European Champion he liked jumping and we saw one when we went on a German cable site tour for new ideas. It was wooden decked and I painted a Stones tongue on the face and waxed it with special harder wax. It was real fun. I remember clearing 32 meters on my Waketech, at 46kph (further I might add than I ever got to on the main ramp). Kneeboarders even hit it and were catching massive air and then stuffing the nose in for a full eyelid peeler!

The berm idea came from a Cory and Bruce combo and was inspired by the snowboarding scene. Made without authority from the new owners the boys took over the design and this was a unique cable items given it's suitability for the corners. You needed courage and commitment aplenty to tackle this baby at speed...and speed is what you needed otherwise you dropped like stone off it. I wanted no rails with more of a ramp style approach up the face, but the boys wanted it different and rails it was and it was a cool bit of kit. Bring it back dude!