Wake Nation
Trips with Kids!
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| “You’re next in 3-2-1." My heart raced. I took a deep breath and tried to remember our instructions. Lean forward, then back. Then-- I gripped the rope and flew off the dock at Wake Nation, the region’s newest water adventure. Located at 201 Joe Nuxhall Way in Joyce Park in Fairfield, Ohio, Wake Nation is one of only seven such attractions in the country and “unlike anything else in the Midwest.” We found that there’s plenty of free parking at Wake Nation and it’s free to enter and just relax on the deck, soak in the sun, and watch the action. But we wanted to give it a try. So did our youngest, but he spent the afternoon with grandma and grandpa instead, because riders must be at least 10 years old. We signed waivers for our other kids and ourselves, then rented equipment and got fitted for helmets and lifejackets before the owner gave us instructions on knee boarding, the beginner water sport at Wake Nation. Visitors can also try wake boarding, water skating and water skiing and adventurous athletes can also add challenging jumps, including floating sliders, grind rails, table tops and kickers. But we just wanted to circle the 10-acre lake. And I never mastered that. After the 3-2-1 count down, the cable line whipped me into the water. The kneeboard and I skidded along the surface with me teetering left, right, and left again before I overcorrected and splashed in the lake. Still, it was fun. I bobbed up, grabbed the board, and swam back to land. My husband and kids did much better. In fact, my 10 year old took off. He held on tight and flew across the water, whipped around the first turn and wiped out at the second. “The beginning is scary,” he said. “But it’s really fun and really fast.” My husband and oldest mastered multiple laps. My husband even showed off by using one hand and waving at us, but he wiped out when he tried to take a ramp. Still, he said it was far easier to learn at Wake Nation than behind a boat. “When you wipe out boating, it takes so much time for the boat to circle back, and starting while being pulled out of the water is just hard.” And as a practical matter, he added, “It’s a lot cheaper than renting a boat or, if we had a boat, even paying for gas.” My oldest didn’t care about that. He liked the fact that the snack bar sold nachos for $2.50 and that the owner and others offered continuous encouragement and instruction. “They were really helpful about how to do stuff, like getting around the turns and trying a ramp.” He liked it so much that even though by the end of the day his arms “felt like rubber bands,” he still named Wake Nation “the best place ever.” www.wakenation.com |
(513) 887-WAKE
201 Joe Nuxhall Way
Fairfield, Ohio 45014
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