Tantrum in wakeboarding: what the toeside backflip is, which prerequisites you need, what the build-up with a coach looks like and why you never try it alone.
The tantrum is a backward somersault (backflip) over the wake or kicker; the IWWF list carries it as a toeside backflip. In the list the toeside back roll appears as "a TS backflip (tantrum)" [1]. The tantrum is the starting point for a whole trick family that the IWWF list carries, such as tantrum to fakie or tantrum to blind [1].
A correction up front: this series' skill inventory first called the tantrum a heelside backflip. After checking the IWWF list, the toeside classification is the documented one [1].
The honest answer: the tantrum is not a skill for solo attempts. A flip means you rotate over, and the failure case is an impact with head, neck, shoulder or knee. This guide explains what the trick is, what you must be able to do beforehand and what a safe build-up with a coach looks like. An execution manual is deliberately not included. You get that from a trainer who can see you.
Applies to boat and cable. Behind a boat you jump over the wake, on the cable mostly over the kicker. In cable competition, inverts count toward the score alongside spins, grabs and features [2].
A word on expectations: learning the tantrum mostly teaches you one thing, namely deciding. The flip itself lasts a fraction of a second, the preparation takes months. That isn't a disadvantage, it's the reason why a build-up with a coach is so important.
Verifiable entry criteria. If one is missing, the tantrum isn't due yet.
Go through the list with your coach, by video, not by feel. Park operators give the order: straight jumps, then 180s, then further tricks [3].
Milestone: Your coach confirms that all building blocks run repeatably.
You work on a loaded toeside edge and high, calm flight. This is the phase that takes longest. How long is individual, a fixed time frame would be a guess.
Cue: Your coach gives you an external target ("goal: calm in the air, soft down below"), not a list of body parts. A meta-analysis of 73 studies found external focus better for performance and learning than a focus on body parts [4].
You train the feel of rotation with the coach away from the water, for example on a supervised trampoline or in a foam pit. That is practical experience, not research evidence. Only with supervision, only on suitable equipment.
Only when the coach agrees: suitable spot, lots of room, calm weather, clear head. You decide before take-off, never in the air. A half take-off is more dangerous than a conscious decision not to go.
Watch the video together. Only repeat what was under control. An abort rule agreed beforehand (for example after two failed attempts or dropping concentration) applies without discussion.
When to move on? Only when the tantrum is repeatably clean do you move on to variants like tantrum to fakie or to blind [1].
The tantrum is safety-critical. Inverts endanger head and neck. In US emergency-room data, 28.8 % of wakeboard injuries were head injuries and 12.5 % brain injuries [5], and wakeboard injuries more often involved head and neck [6]. In a survey of orthopaedic surgeons, ACL tears were 31 %, shoulder dislocations 15 %, fractures 21 % of reported cases [7]. In a survey of wakeboarders, 42.3 % of respondents reported an ACL tear, mostly after landing a high jump, through axial compression, not through the binding [8]. That is a self-selected survey, not an average of all riders.
This guide explains and motivates; it does not replace supervised training or a trainer.
Take three seconds before each attempt and say aloud (to yourself or your coach) what you're doing now and what you're not. Whoever voices their decision either jumps more decisively or lets it go, and both beat hesitating.
A backward somersault (backflip) over wake or kicker. The IWWF list carries it as a toeside backflip [1].
We advise against it. The flip is safety-critical; learn it with a coach, prerequisites and protective gear.
Individual. What matters is that edge, height and landing sit reliably beforehand. A fixed time frame would be a guess; whoever undercuts it takes risks the trick doesn't need.
Helmet and impact vest, mandatory in competition [2], because head and neck injuries are common among wakeboarders [5].
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