Recreation
Skim style
A wakesurfing discipline using flatter, thinner, low-rocker boards with little or no fin, built for spins, shuv-its, slides, and skateboard-like freestyle.
Skim style is a term from limnology — the scientific study of inland waters. The detailed explanation below covers the definition, why the concept matters to lake water-quality interpretation, and how it intersects with the LakeGrade rubric. Reading Skim style alongside the LakeGrade rubric helps make the rubric's structure intuitive — each grading parameter maps directly onto an established limnological concept.
The per-lake pages on LakeQuality always show the specific Skim style value for that lake, so you can move from the general concept to the specific lake without leaving the site.
What It Means for Your Lake
Skim-style wakesurfing borrows from skimboarding. Skim boards are flatter, thinner, lighter, and run low rocker with minimal or no fins, giving a fast, loose, direct response. The flat bottom and lack of fin let the board pivot freely on the water's surface, making surface spins, shuv-its, and 360s far easier than on a surf board. Skim style delivers a skateboarding-on-water sensation and excels at freestyle: board slides, lip slides, body varials, and creative spin combinations. The looseness that helps tricks also makes the board harder to keep planted in big carves, so the two styles favor opposite ends of the wakesurfing spectrum.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is skim style?
A wakesurfing discipline using flatter, thinner, low-rocker boards with little or no fin, built for spins, shuv-its, slides, and skateboard-like freestyle.
Why does skim style matter for lake health?
Skim-style wakesurfing borrows from skimboarding. Skim boards are flatter, thinner, lighter, and run low rocker with minimal or no fins, giving a fast, loose, direct response. The flat bottom and lack of fin let the board pivot freely on the water's surface, making surface spins, shuv-its, and 360s ...
Related Terms
A wakesurfing discipline using thicker, more buoyant, finned boards built to emulate ocean surfing, favoring deep carves and flowing turns on the wave face.
Spinning only the board 180 (or 360) degrees beneath the feet while the rider's body stays facing the same direction.
A full 360-degree rotation of board and rider, most commonly performed flat on the water's surface in skim style.
Sliding the board 90 degrees across the crest of the wake for at least a second, tail crossing first with the rider facing the boat.
Jumping and spinning your body 180 degrees while the board stays pointing in the same direction.
The curve of the board from nose to tail; more rocker turns more easily, less (flatter) rocker rides faster and looser.
Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.