during its initial creation wakeboarding was knownn as skurfing because of its connection to inventor tony finn's brand. in 1991 the canadian paul fraser came up with a new model of board characterized by its neutral floatability - this invention made the practice much easier for newcomers. thi development sparked the spread of fraser's term wakeboarding which is currently the most commonly used term for the activity.

brazil saw the first sessions of wakeboarding in 1990 but it really established itself with the creation of the brazilian wakeboarding association at the end of the decade