During the warm summer months my close friend and I enjoy wakeboarding on a small private lake. 

Two years ago, the lake had a modest 40+ foot rail-slide set up for the wakeboarders who wanted to use it.  It was constructed of wood 4X4’s and was securely installed into the lakebed.  However, this structure was easily defeated by the brutal winter we experienced in 2006/2007.  As the spring thaw broke up the ice, the rail was reduced to mere splinters and small portions still lie along the shoreline to this day. 

[Rail-slide: A trick adopted from skateboarding where the wakeboarder slides the bottom of the board (base) along an object, typically a metal pipe or wooden beam.]

Since my friend, myself, and only a handful of others used the rail-slide, the lake owners did not want to spend the resources to build another one and called upon us to create and install a new rail.  My phone rang soon after…

“Hello?” I answered

        “Hey, you want to help build a new rail for the lake this year? The old one was destroyed and, if we want one, we have to build it.” questioned my friend.

“Sure what do you have in mind?” I replied

        “I have already gotten started on it.  Just come over after work and I will show you the specs.” He said

“Yep, see you then. Late.” I closed

What I was not prepared for was the sheer size of the beast my friend had in mind.  I should have known better.  Anything he does is always big, and a major adventure.  And, really, I am not certain I can emphasize adventure enough.

When I first arrived, he had already constructed the base. To put it lightly, it was HUGE, so I knew we were in for some fun and excitement. 

He explained, “Mother Nature had kindly removed the old one. I plan to build the Indestructible Rail that will withstand the harshest of winters. Plus, one that is challenging enough for us.”

“Sounds good”, I proclaimed. 

He rolled out the plans, which amounted to little more than a document scribbled with a simple drawing.  I chuckled when I saw it.

“We were going to construct the entire rail out of the water and place it in the water by crane”, he told me.

“You are nuts. But that is what makes life fun”, I replied.

The outline of the rail-slide is as follows:

• 2500lb concrete base (12ft x 6ft x 8 inches)
• Solid Steel Frame (15ft from base to the top and nearly 60 ft wide)
• Multiple Steel cross braces
• 2×10’s covered by ‘Trex Deck’ as the slideable face
• Style: A-Frame

Overall the dimensions from a riders standpoint were:

• 56 ft long total.
• 16ft up beam
• 24ft flat bar
• 16ft down beam

Once installed, the rail-slide was going to stand 5-7 ft from the water’s surface. [depending on depth of water and fluctuating water levels]

After over 100 hours spent constructing the rail, we loaded it on a flat bed truck early in the morning to avoid any other cars and trucks on the road, and we headed for the lake.  6 hours later, we had precisely installed the rail into the water using a massive boom truck.  (For spectators, it must have looked like we were trying to fly a steel kite with a crane.) 

Our biggest challenge in securing the rail was the shoreline slope.  It was a slight angle and we had to make sure we leveled the rail accurately. But more importantly we had to make sure it would not slide down the slope.  We secured the rail to the lakebed using massive steel drivers placed through the concrete base, and additional concrete footers for leveling.  This thing was going nowhere…

It was perfect.  We used the rail all summer.  It was the most technically demanding and largest wakeboard rail-slide I have ever hit, not to mention, one of the funnest. The possiblities were endless on this thing, and I was sad when the season came to a close and we would have to wait until next summer to see it again.

A few weeks ago, I was driving past the lake on my way to the mountains to go snowboarding.  It was lightly snowing and the sun was just starting to crest the Horizon, so the visibility was poor.  I always look at the rail as I drive by the lake but, with the low visibility, I could not see it. It was hard not to feel proud about such a amazing creation.  However, one this day, I was suspicious of the rail being missing. I phoned my friend and expressed my feeling to him. 

“There is no way that thing moved even an inch”, he assured me. 

The following week I was nearby and drove by to confirm or deny my suspicions.  I gazed over at the lake and, in perfect visibility, the rail was gone!  Four Thousand Pounds of concrete and steel was up and gone!  It just disappeared!

“Hey James. What’s up?” he answered.

“It is Gone”, I said hastily.

“What!? This is who?” he asked.

“No.  It’s me - James. The Rail…It is Gone!” i laughed.

“No way?” he said.

“Yep.  Must now be resting beneath 10 inches of ice”, I told him. 

We laughed together for quite a while….

As powerful as man may think we are.  We are certainly no match for Mother Nature.  We thought we had built the rail strong enough to withstand anything she could throw at us, but we proved to be unworthy competition. 

While we are not sure exactly what happened to the rail at this time, most likely, it rests safely at the bottom of the lake.  Now we must wait for the spring thaw before we can hopefully drudge the beast from its ‘watery grave’ as it sits in Davey Jones’ Locker in order to determine the exact outcome. 

Til then, I guess I will just have to wonder: What happened to the 4000lb Indestructible rail-slide.

  Share This