Quest ATX — Attraction in Buda

My experience here was very mixed. The staff is engaging when you walk in the door but for the most part that ended after we paid with some exceptions:

The good: Wakeboarding is super fun! I definitely plan on pursuing this as an activity. It's a challenging sport with loads of potential for growth. I was a skateboarder and a diver in my youth, in many ways wakeboarding can be a glorious mix of both. The owner seems to always have a genuine smile on hand and appears to be extremely helpful to noobs like myself. It's both intimidating and awesome seeing what the talented folks can do on the jumps and rails. They do have a training line to help you learn the basics which is great.

The bad: I feel like we were sold on the blob/obstacle course thing. It was very boring considering that my friend and I were the only people on it. We ended up using only 20 mins of the hour we had available then moved on to the wakeboarding. The training wasn't all that great. The trainer seemed tired and disinterested. She was nice and threw out some suggestions but there really needed to be more aid and encouragement. She wasn't terrible, just seemed tired. That training was part of the hour we purchased. It's tiring for new people like myself so we decided after 30 mins to take a break then try the actual course. The clock was still ticking though and that was not clarified when we stated that we were going to take a break. Some amazing wakeboarders showed up during this break and we were just waiting, somewhat intimidated considering we had no instruction on how to approach the actual course. Staff kept walking by with no acknowledgement. I finally worked up the nerve to go up and ask for help and was told my time had run out but i could go once, with some attitude... The owner was super nice and immediately helped but of course I immediately face planted. I came out and asked if I could go again which after a heavy sigh from the girl operating the pulley said "fine..." Second face plant of course and by then I was embarrassed enough to stalk off, put my stuff away and leave.

Overall it could be awesome. There are some good staff and the owner genuinely seems like a great guy. The up sale on the obstacle course is understandable but for me was already a waste of money. The wakeboarding experience was fun but lacked in guidance that is necessary for for a first timer to walk away feeling good about spending the money. I wish these folks the best and hope they can improve in the realm of...

Facility is subpar and very rundown. Bathrooms are not maintained as there is dirt in the sinks. So obvious no one even checks them. Lake is down obviously Texas is in a drought. Obstacles are not maintained and there is one that has a bottom to it that you can climb through, this obstacle is not useable as there is 4 inches of algae and toxic substance in it. I would be highly concerned if a child tried to climb through this not getting exposed to something that could potentially be life threatening. I asked if they knew and do they clean the course and was told once a year. I doubt that even happens. Staff is very hands off and not there to make your experience a better one. On the beginner wake board line there is no one at the entry station to teach the kids how to use the wake board or any safety briefing. There is one person manning controls about 30 ft away and will “coach” the kid but they are not verifying equipment is in working condition it fits correctly. As we left after about an hour I spoke with the “manager” and voiced how it was disappointing that these issues with facility was happening and throughout the conversation he made lots of excuses, no action, no response to fix what was observed. It’s obvious they are just there to get your $50 a person entry fee and move you along. This place could be fun and worth the trip but IT’S NOT. Lake life is great but your money is better spent at Lake Travis. If I could give a zero star review I would.

Editing to add response to owner

Your staff did not “get my kids riding” they participated in teaching ZERO percent. Great gaslighting statement you made.

You have no idea what is in the bottom of that float because you have not attempted to have it tested. If other watering holes in Texas have been shut down for toxic algae I would think that would be a concern for you and one to not ignore as you are. There could be actions taken to remedy that but you have no intention. This is not moss and normal algae growth found in typical lake environments, this is stagnant water in a floating devise that is baking in the Texas heat growing whatever. And kids are playing in and around it.

As a business...

NOT the same as behind a boat, but that's not why it's getting 2 stars. And not saying I didn't have a good time (but I'm very easy going), but definitely did not meet expectations.

So the bad: First off, not great directions since it's on an unmarked road on Google Maps and there's no signs to continue on it all the way to Quest. Some folks working there (blonde hair, camo shorts on 8/14) were just not very helpful or welcoming. During mid-day summer, the kid campers there slow down the entire line, you'd think they would give priority to the ones who aren't there all day, all summer. There's no clear system of order - we walked up to the dock, not knowing how to get on the cable and the employees (blonde girl and tatted guy) just kinda looked at us without saying anything - maybe they assumed we had done it before? They shouldn't assume anyway. Majority of the time, you're just trying to actually get up from the start or trying to hold on around the whip lashing turns, then you wait in the water to get picked up. The cable kept getting stuck so for 30 of our 120 minutes, we couldn't even keep the line moving to wake board. Yes, you still pay full price.

The good: When you get up, it's exciting! MOST (Kristina, Carlo, and the brunette girl) employees were very friendly and gave us great tips. They have $15 for Ladies night including the rental. $15 seems more reasonable, if only it were that all the time.

Especially not worth the $25 uber/Lyft each way. So don't make the trip if you're visiting Austin. It was recommended to us by two super stoked guys - not what I'd recommend to anyone.

All in all, not worth $100 for two people to get up on a wake board, have no wake to play on, go in circles, and have a stiff neck for three days from all the yanking and falling. Weird experience, probably never need to...