Being cool is all a matter of perspective. If you happen to be hanging out on a dock in Orlando with MasterCraft's pro wakeboard team, and you are beginning to receive American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) membership applications in the mail, you are likely to feel about as with it as a polka band accordion player at Ozzfest. But take that same person, and put him or her behind the wheel of MasterCraft's X-80, the latest and greatest (in all senses of the word) wakeboard boat, and a transformation occurs. After putting the 28-foot wakeboard boat on plane and cruising past someone on the lake who's piloting a 1983 runabout that used to be blue and seeing the look of envy on their face as your one-boat parade goes by, you start to 'peacock' a little, and darned if you don't feel a little more contemporary.

Wakeboarding is not a solitary sport. It's one where the participants feel a strong bond with other skiers who have also been slapped upside the head by the surface of the water numerous times while trying to perfect a difficult maneuver. Unlike slalom skiing, where you want the flattest wake possible ' thereby limiting the number of people you want on board ' with wakeboarding you want a big wake, so the more the merrier. And with a passenger capacity of 15, it's more than likely that this boat will be the epicenter of the wakeboard community in your area. How's the wake with a boatload of folks? Absolutely monstrous. Let's just say you won't have any problem with hang time. That is even before you deploy the 120-gallon Pure Vert ballast system that gives you 1,000 pounds of extra plowing weight. At 19 mph, the wake is steep and has a lot of kick, according to the pros. When you hit 22 mph, a totally clear-water ramp appears in the middle of the wake that is truly impressive. The height the skiers get off this wake is simply mind-boggling.

As you would expect from MasterCraft, board riders get the royal treatment with standard features like the Zero Flex Flyer Tower, which has four built-in board racks that display your arsenal like artwork. A nice option is the Binding Blaster, which dispenses Slick Boot lube to make it easy to 'boot up' before a run. Driving a boat at a steady speed takes practice and skill, and there's nothing worse for a rider than having the driver make a throttle correction when you're loading the line to explode off a wake. But with the standard Perfect Pass cruise control system, even marginal drivers can maintain a constant speed. A couple of options make apr's-ski time for riders more comfortable, like the shower option (not available with the Cadillac engine) for rinsing off and a heater to help warm up hypothermic skiers, and literally extend the season.

Passengers on the X-80 aren't exactly flying coach either with lounge-able seating everywhere you look. In MasterCraft's 'Super Fly' bow section, you have seating for at least four, six cupholders, and a pair of Clarion speakers to make sure the bow crowd can rock hard. Like most bowriders, the forward-facing seats are comfortable with good backrest recline, but since most will want to see what is happening out back, MasterCraft designed them to be comfortable when facing rearward as well. There's an optional bow filler cushion that turns the entire area in front of the tinted windshield array into an adult playpen with plenty of stretching out space for the tanning crowd. A really useful feature is the bow boarding ladder that resides in the large anchor locker. This allows the X-80's bow to be nosed up into the shallows so water weenies won't have to get their shorts wet in order to wade ashore or socialize at popular sandbar hangouts.

The cockpit is huge because of the 9-foot-6-inch beam and the open seating arrangement that the U-lounge gives you. A great feature is the portside rear-facing seat that transforms in seconds into a 'Cleopatra couch' for the ultimate in reclining while watching the air show. Also on the port side is the large head compartment that has a corner-opening, rounded door for easy entry and an overhead light. There is room for double-digit numbers of passengers in the cockpit, and they are treated to nice features like the wet bar that has a classy-looking stainless-steel sink, Corian countertop, storage, and even a trash can. There are 17 total cupholders on the X-80 and three coolers to make sure your guests' refreshment needs are met. Two of the coolers reside under the stern sun-lounger seats that flip up and stay up because of the hydraulic rams. They are also a great place to store your wet water toys when the fun changes gears. With an optional filler cushion, the entire stern section turns into another giant sunpad.

The best seat in the house belongs to the driver, who sits on an oversized helm seat that has a flip-up bolster so they can stand comfortably when maneuvering close to downed skiers. Staring at the pilot are three bullet-shaped instruments made of billet aluminum called the X-Pod display that helps give the X-80 its futuristic look. Standard features include trim tabs, in case everyone is sitting on one side, and a Clarion CD stereo that comes with a subwoofer to pound out the bass. The driver grabs onto the fat, hand-wrapped, tilt sport wheel and puts his or her other hand on the competition-style throttle.

Turning the key brings the optional 450-hp, 8.1L HO V8 GM engine to life. And thanks to the SilentMaster dual exhaust system, you can switch between quiet and Quiet Riot with the flick of a rocker switch. The anything but standard Cadillac Vortec HO 6000 LQ9 powerplant, which features a closed cooling system, puts out 385 hp and is found only on the Escalade, EXT, EXC and MasterCraft boats. Those who want to go from wild to wildest can even choose a twin engine option that features a pair of 5.7L EFI V8s with two configurations that produce either 310 or 350 hp per engine. MasterCraft says that the 700-hp version can push the X-80 to 36 mph in less than six seconds, which is blazing fast.

Like with its non-wakeboarding twin, the MariStar 280 STS, the VectorDrive inboard system gives you the safety of inboard drive because the prop is tucked beneath the hull, but without having a giant engine coffin in the cockpit like traditional inboards.

Pulling away from the dock and hammering the throttle results in a smooth hole shot that features very little bowrise. Keeping in mind that the X-80 weighs 5,200 pounds dry, the performance is pretty impressive. The fork-nosed party platform reaches 30 mph in less than 10 seconds and hits a top speed of almost 48 mph. The handling is accurate and a bit 'stately'; in other words, you won't toss this thing into corners like you would a MasterCraft ProStar 190, but for a 28-footer, it's responsive and a hoot to drive.

The X-80 is a wakeboard party waiting to happen. The styling is 'out there' in a good way that attracts attention while still getting the job done. Parents with skiing-enthusiast kids are going to get plenty of 'parent of the year' votes, and you can bet that on the weekend when dad pulls away from the dock, he will have the full complement of kids with him, not to mention their best friends along for the ride as well.

This isn't a one-trick pony boat, but rather one that will not only handle the skiing chores, but smoothly transitions into an entertainer with big-water capability. With the base price at $88,820, this boat is for discriminating buyers who want a serious ski boat for the family, but also want the ultimate in comfort. You can be sure of one thing: If you buy this boat, your lake will never be the same.